Live Review: The Shins, Angie McMahon

There are few things more blissful on a muggy Brisbane night than disappearing into the air-conditioned luxury of Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC).

Ok, maybe when you're disappearing inside to see indie-rock pioneers The Shins being supported by rising star Angie McMahon. Maybe that's more blissful.

To begin the evening's proceedings, McMahon takes to the stage in her trademark jeans and T-shirt, looking somewhat out of place against QPAC's splendour. However, this all changes once she opens her mouth. Her vocals seem almost custom-made for the theatre's heightened acoustics. The singer's powerful bellows and delicate falsetto bounce and reverberate off the walls, giving off the impression that she's everywhere at once.

As commanding as McMahon's stage presence is her banter is equal amounts endearing. "This song is about a bad date. Actually, he lives in Brisbane. I'm sure he's not here... but not 100% sure," she jokes before launching into once song. Wrapping things up with triple j favourite Slow Mover, the Melbournite cements herself as an extremely promising artist as she easily vibes with her amazingly tight band.

The Shins appear on their flower-strewn stage with little fanfare but a huge cheer from the crowd once they get sight of frontman, James Mercer. They waste no time launching straight into legacy track Caring Is Creepy, upping the octane and dirtying the usually laid-back tune. Following on with the bouncy joy of Australia, it's here that QPAC's one and only flaw starts to show. People have been hit in the chest with a one-two punch of some of The Shins' most popular songs and they want to get up and dance, which is something that's not exactly comfortable in a theatre with a ceiling-high organ.

After hyping the audience up with some fan-favourites, Mercer and co then ease into new LP Heartworms with album opener Name For You. It's classic The Shins fare, bouncy, light and catchy, accented by Mercer's clipped, iconic vocals.

Clever cookies keep their eyes on drummer Jon Sortland, who consistently steals the show with his exuberance and expert percussion. To be honest, Mercer's entire band deserves a shout-out as their collective excitement, consistent attempts to include the crowd and just generally looking like they're having a great time make for a very entertaining show.

Just as they had started with two heavy-hitters, The Shins close out their main set with classic singles Phantom Limb and Simple Song. It's during the former that the QPAC effect once again rears its head as Mercer turns the microphone toward the sold-out room to sing the trademark, "Ohhh-woaahh-ohhh"s. At most there's a tepid response; people are reluctant to go full-on singalong in the respected theatre, no matter how much goading the band do.

This reluctance isn't reflected later on as the crowd hoot, holler and stamp their feet to get the band back on stage for their encore. After dancing through latest-album cut The Fear (complete with violin trio), The Shins sidle into possibly their most well-known track, New Slang. Even though Mercer must have played it thousands of times since Natalie Portman declared that "it's gonna change your life" in Garden State, he appears to be just as invested and in love with the tune as ever.

After almost two decades and a whole bunch of line-up changes, The Shins prove tonight in Brisbane that they can still put on one heck of a show, even when they're in a venue that's more used to housing ballet.