Live Review: San Cisco, Gunns, Montaigne

A rather packed and enthusiastic crowd welcomed Montaigne and band to the stage this night. The charismatic songstress flawlessly filled the room with romantic lyrics of moments passed, drawing the crowd in deeper with each and every note. When band members were introduced, it was clear who the favourite was, as a pair of dainty panties was launched onto the stage for the keyboardist. A giggling, yet poised Montaigne continued to pierce her voice through the heavy, charging drums, delivering I’m A Fantastic Wreck and Life, ending the set with her Like A Version cover of Sia’s Chandelier. An excellent conclusion to a beautiful story, Jessica Cerro is a true star in the making.

Fremantle-based Gunns opened with a few slow, fuzzy surf ditties that mellowed things out. If your ears blinked you’d have struggled to identify if it was one lengthy song or three. Playing almost as if glued to the floor, the melodic garage rockers appropriately chilled out the growing audience, as melodic garage rockers are known to do. However, the WA descendants may have channeled My Bloody Valentine a little too much for the dance-ready crowd. The five-piece picked up the pace by the end, before casually signing off with “OK, we’ll see you next time”. A huge cheer was received from the now sardined listeners.

Only the sweet sounds of indie pop could quiet the screaming crowd, and certainly every under-age hipster in Sydney was ready for a boogie when musical darlings San Cisco walked on stage. A surprisingly scruffy-haired Jordi Davieson fronted the energetic group for their Australian Run tour.

Playing favourites like Toast, Beach and Rocket Ship, each song was echoed by fans like national anthems. The high-energy four-piece seemed pleasantly surprised by the deafening singalong shrieks that permeated the Metro Theatre. This prompted Davieson to confess, “You are the most enthusiastic crowd so far,” appropriately followed by amplified cheers. Everyone’s sweetheart, Awkward, catapulted couples into a happy jig flooded with nostalgia.

It was then revealed that their new album had a predicted release for March. Not a beat missed by drummer and singer Scarlett Stevens and the dance party continued with new single, Run, and other unreleased tracks were very well received.

The Fremantle troop closed the night with Fred Astaire as their much-deserved encore, sending punters away with pleasant thoughts of indie pop fairies and dance party dreams.