Review: Hot Chip at Princess Theatre, Brisbane
With a shortage looming, punters were out in force to get their fill of Hot Chip for one night only in Brisbane.
Entertainment
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The Hot Chip shortage is real.
Not only is Australia facing an undersupply of the sizzling salty delicacy heading into summer, the Brit-dance-poppers of the same name are only here for three dates.
Luckily Brisbane had one of them, with a heaving audience at the ornate Princess Theatre appreciably gobbling them up on Wednesday night – and there was no shortage of British accents in the crowd.
Hot Chip were one of the last international acts to play Brisbane before borders closed in early 2020, and both the band and the River City have been through a lot since then – aside from lockdowns and travel bans, Covid-19 nearly claimed one of the band’s touring members, and there was the freak death of a producer on their previous album.
But despite having travelled 40 hours from South America via Qatar, the group still had a spring in their step, frontman Alexis Taylor having earlier limbered up with a tennis session.
Once on stage it was a high-energy performance from keyboardist/guitarist/dancer Owen Clarke and bassist/keyboardist/percussionist Rob Smoughton.
And Taylor’s falsetto was ably augmented by keyboardist Joe Goddard’s regular vocals.
“Woo! Thanks guys – mayte!!” Goddard responded to the welcome.
Like Snap! and, yes, New Order, part of Hot Chip’s appeal is that their humanity isn’t lost in the electronica. Traditional guitars, bass and drums keep them grounded in the real, even as they explore new synth frontiers.
And unlike many acts, Hot Chip can be assured their fanbase will be all over their new stuff, so over a third of the setlist came from their latest album Freakout/Release, notably single Eleanor and the title track, on which Taylor’s voice was modified by vocoder and guest bassist Nick Peill joined him and Clarke in a guitar jam that whipped the audience into a frenzy.
There was little audience interaction, aside from regular thank-yous and Taylor giving special thanks for a bra thrown on stage.
And Taylor provoked squeals of delight when he finally shed his jacket to reveal a cartoonish dinosaur T-shirt. For the encore he sported a touristy wildlife tee.
They dusted off rarity Boy From School from their 2006 album: “This is a song that we would have played for you in Australia the first time we ever came here,” Taylor said.
For the encore, Taylor pogoed with Clarke during Huarache Lights and shared vocal duties with Goddard for I Feel Better.
Hot Chip play the UNSW Roundhouse on Friday.
Setlist: Down, Flutes, Boy From School, Eleanor, Freakout/Release, Night & Day, Hard to Be Funky, Broken, Hungry Child, Ready For the Floor, Straight to the Morning, Melody of Love, Miss the Bliss, Over and Over. Encore: Huarache Lights, I Feel Better.
Last night we danced to Hot Chip inside the beautiful Princess Theater â¤ï¸ pic.twitter.com/ILJCYmF6Ej
— Liz Ballantyne (@ShifterCreative) November 17, 2022
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