Though they have been around for years and released many albums, Of Montreal‘s newest record, “The Sunlandic Twins,” is finally bringing them the acclaim and attention they deserve. This was evident by the swarm of eager fans at the Ex-Plex (in the basement of the Echoon Saturday night when Of Montreal took the stage for the first of two LA shows (the next is THIS Saturday at the Ex-Plex again). If you didn’t make it to this show or you just need another dose, I would strongly suggest going on 2/4. It shouldn’t be missed!
Leader Kevin Barnes jumped on stage in a wedding gown and brought with him a bottle of champagne. “Will you marry us LA?” he asked the audience before popping the cork and stripping off the dress to reveal his bare chest, which he immediately covered with a vintage coat. This was not the only costume change of the night, nor display of showmanship.
Kevin proves to be the perfect front man, commanding the audience and enticing them with whimsy. His shows have a theatrical element to them as well. He changed costumes twice more during the set after the wedding gown, and wore heavy glitter eye-makeup and a diamond choker, a fair semblance of a modern day Bowie. It’s not too much of a stretch since he shares fine facial features and the somewhat androgynous look that Bowie popularized.
The rest of the band proves to be equally dynamic and are good supporting players to Kevin’s frolics. Kevin’s wife, Nina, proves to be the most endearing member of the band simply because Kevin mentions her and being married so often throughout the set. It must be true love!
Of Montreal played all of the songs that I love off of their newest album and threw in some older material for good measure. What was amazing about their set was that they were able to recreate the exact sound on the album. This is miraculous to me since when listening to their record you realize how multilayered it is (rumor has it that their sound check takes 2 and a half hours). They also incorporate audience participation and throughout the set employed handclaps from the crowd, and of course sing-a-longs on songs like “Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games.” Their breed of dance-pop is one of the best!
Before their encore, they ended their set with “The Party’s Crashing Us.” The lyrics are my favorite of any Of Montreal song and I think and this song proved to be the highlight for me. I had been waiting for it the entire night and when they finally played it, it didn’t disappoint, like their entire show.
