live music review: lyla, we rob banks, oh minor

The line up at the Ed Castle’s Plus One on the 18th December 2010 is an odd one, not least of all evidenced by the fact that the members of opening act, Oh Minor, don’t seem to have any idea of who is to follow them, beyond the fact that their band name is We Rob Banks. Headliners, Lyla, however, are relatively well known to just about anyone who pays attention to the Adelaide music scene, beyond just those playing at the AEC.

As mentioned, the night begins with Oh Minor, a recently formed self-professed ‘super group of sorts’, consisting of members of the now-defunct British Robots and We Grow Up, as well as Anthony Wignall of the Keepsakes.

The lead vocals are shared between the distinct voices of Anthony Wignall and Mark Curtis and alternately make Oh Minor sound much like slight deviations from their respective present and past projects, except with a more rock sound appealing to those who prefer their music without such a hard hitting dose of indie (such as yours truly).

Oh Minor are a band that have only been around for a couple of months and so their longevity and artistic progress is yet to be seen. Nonetheless, they’re high in technical proficiency and better-oiled than most unsigned (and some signed) bands. Which probably sounds like a cop out, but is meant with the utmost regard. Plus, guitarist Paddy Montgomery whips out a sitar, further proving the musical diversity and diverse skill evident in this band.

Performance wise, they’re entirely adequate, though most of the audience interaction is limited to the band members’ friends. All up though, a welcome addition of veterans to Adelaide’s stages.

Next up was We Rob Banks. As mentioned, the members of Oh Minor did not know who they were. For my part, neither did I, and it quickly became apparent that the lack of attention they’ve garnered may be because they’re, well, not very good.

In truth, I decided to forego my duties as a reviewer for the sake of my general evening enjoyment. We Rob Banks is a band that is difficult to take seriously (and judging by the lack of updates on their own sites, it’s uncertain as to whether they even take themselves seriously); they are relatively apt musicians individually, but seem to have no real direction. The lead guitarist is wearing a mullet wig, the female guitarist is in heels and a mini skirt, and the singer introduces one of their songs with, ‘this is about getting drunk’, the tedium of which can only be rivaled by Josh Monte, frontman of Melbourne’s Carnation, bantering about ‘eating out’ at their own performance at the Ed Castle earlier this year.

And so Lyla finally took the stage, and not a moment too soon. Ripping through a short-ish set with the aptitude and attitude of true rock ‘n’ rollers, Lyla showed why they have become one of the forerunners of Adelaide’s music scene over the course of their short history. Their energy is enigmatic and is juxtaposed by Matthew Minucci’s casual stroll off stage, a tilt of his beer toward the audience exemplifying the band’s nonchalance. But though it can seem bratty in some instances, it instead seems coolly appreciative and entirely within the stylings of Lyla. Because as much as we all like to pretend otherwise, style and image have always been inherently tied to music; it’s just that Lyla are taking advantage of this more so than just about any other band in Adelaide.

Stefan Krcmarov’s keys prevent their often raw sound from ever sounding unrefined (further than is intentional anyway) and the band appropriately injects their early 90s Britpop/rock-esque with a little more grit and a little less wail. And to prove they’re not just toying with their genre/s of choice, Lyla treats the audience to their cover of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ ‘Heads Will Roll’.

We can only hope they will Be Here Now for a long time yet.

(Image Credits: William Morris Photography.)