After my fourth stint at Metro in two weeks I can say with confidence that seeing Aussie dance commandos Cut Copy was hands down one of the most trying and yet electrified shows I have seen this year. If you were amongst the lucky handfuls who waited out the delay for Cut Copy's set at Pitchfork Music Festival this year, then you understand what I mean.
Cut Copy came out to "Visions" soon guns were a-blazing (and by guns I mean synths and keyboards) as they went right into "Nobody Lost, Nobody Found." Looking out into the crowd I could see the opposite was true though. Everyone immediately found themselves lost in the beats the Cutters set forth into the audience. Some of them were drunk, slowly trying to sync up as best they can while simultaneously trying to maintain some sort of balance. Some of them shut their eyes and simply jumped up and down with their hands in the air, occasionally shaking their heads. When they got to slower jam "Strangers in the Wind" off of this year's sophomore album In Ghost Colours, the crowd was allowed a moment to slow down and catch their breath again, recalibrate as the rest of the show was going to ask a lot physically.
As the set progressed everyone immersed themselves in carefree no holds barred dance. It was when they launched into "Saturdays" that front man Dan Whitford told the crowd what time it was, it was time to get their dance on. Everyone devoured this, self included, and as Whitford pointed the beat back in, the crowd jumped in unison. I thought we might get a DJ set from Cut Copy sooner than we thought (immediately following the show they were at Smart Bar). People in the balcony were jumping along as well.
When Cutters left the stage after a changed up ever so slightly subdued rendition of "Future," the crowd did their best to beckon them back on stage, but it was clear hardly anyone had the breath to get single "WOOOOOH" out. Claps were lazy and only about ten feet were stomping but the tired sound that did come from the crowd brought the guys back on stage for a song they dedicated to all the fans that stuck it out for them at Pitchfork. As "Hearts on Fire" began the crowd was immediately turned on again, despite low batteries. Everyone gave it their all, the band and the crowd, everyone was literally up in arms. As the show came to a close and Cut Copy thanked everyone immensely the crowd dissipated, but like sitting under power lines you could still hear and feel the electricity in the air.
Oh gosh I dunno. I think it took a while for the band to get into it. It wasn't until the crashing bits of Saturday that the audience went bat shit.
See my photos of the show here:
http://toomuchrock.com/shows/cutcopy.html
Posted by: Sid Much Rock | 09/19/2008 at 11:58 AM