alt-J
18th April 2023
Spark Arena, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Lauren Sanderson. Photography by Nick Paulsen.
alt-J returned with a bang and let’s just say years away from the music scene certainly hasn’t hindered their ability to create pure musical magic.
We last saw the musical genius that is alt-J in 2017, when they played two sell-out shows at The Auckland Town Hall. The unique idiosyncratic British band returned last night to showcase their most recent album, The Dream, kicking off their 2023 Australasian tour in Auckland.
The night began with a support slot performance from local pop outfit Harper Finn, who performed a short but sweet set that showcased his impressive EP, Newcomer, and latest single ‘Different Skies’. Blending his vast vocal range with electronic beats, it’s easy to see why he won
Best Breakthrough Artist at the Aotearoa Music Awards in 2021.
Soon enough Spark arena became crammed with eager fans, the atmosphere shifted and the exhilaration for alt-J began.
Dressed in an abundance of black the eccentric three-piece act entered the stage and the crowd let out an enormous roar, filling the arena with rapturous screams. Hands were thrown simultaneously into the air forming that well-known triangle symbol, that is alt-J.
As the trio took to their places, the vibrant lights shone a deep red, and they looked out awkwardly in silence at the packed arena. The crowd waited in anticipation ’til finally their sweet harmonic symphonies drifted in.
Kicking off the night with ‘Bane’ – A trippy new song about Coca-Cola, from their new album, The Dream. Their strong acapella harmonies which have become a trademark of the band, echoed around the space and left everybody in awe of what was to come.
alt-J’s set list was certainly addictive and enthralling. Playing songs from all four of their albums, ‘An Awesome Wave’ (which was deservingly awarded the Mercury Music prize in 2012), ‘This is All Yours’ (2014), ‘Relaxer’ (2017), and their latest offering, ‘The Dream’ (2022). Their intricately crafted melodies and the thrilling tone of Joe Newman’s voice really played to the crowd’s needs.
‘Every Other Freckle’ was up next, followed by ‘Interlude 1’, this stripped-back track focuses purely on the stunning vocal range between frontman Joe Newman and Gus Unger-Hamilton-the pair had great musical chemistry, complementing each other perfectly during their haunting
duet.
Newman forgot the lyrics during ‘Deadcrush’, in which he proclaimed “Ah, I fucked it” but alt-j can do no wrong in the crowd’s eyes and all was forgotten.
The trio smoothly transitioned into ‘Matilda’, where Unger-Hamilton teased Newman for forgetting the lyrics to the previous song, saying “90% of the audience know the words to this track… do you?“
Despite this endearing moment, I couldn’t help but notice an absence of banter from the boys – over the period of 90 minutes they spoke very rarely – but then again do you need much more? It was refreshing to not have to listen to the history of the band and how much they loved Auckland, instead, they seemed to be as lost in the music as much as we were.
You can always rely on alt-J to produce undeniably-catchy tunes and new track ‘Philadelphia’ is proof of that. Inspired by The Beatles, this epic number highlights the band’s quirkiness, which we all know and love, and was a pure sensory treat.
‘Fitzpleasure’ and ‘Something Good’ were clear crowd favourites, while we were captivated by the extraordinary strobe light extravaganza during ‘In Cold Blood’, which pulsated in time to the hypnotic rhythm.
The guys capped off the evening with their much-loved hit ‘Breezeblocks’, which was the ultimate ending to a stellar night. As the crowd bid farewell to the musical geniuses, the closing lyrics “Please don’t go” rang true for most of the crowd who indeed were sad to see them leave.
Until next time alt-J!
Were you there at Spark Arena for this great indie-rock gig? Or have you seen alt-J perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Note: Ambient Light was provided passes to review and photograph this concert. As always, this has not influenced the review in any way and the opinions expressed are those of Ambient Light’s only. This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase a product using an affiliate link, Ambient Light will automatically receive a small commission at no cost to you.
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