Teleman @ Open

Electro pop is a strange beast isn't it, music fans. From Soft Cell to Justice, from extremely minimal tinkerings to the epic, orchestral output of Pet Shop Boys it's as flexible a genre as any other. Tonight we're in a packed out room at Open on a school night to enjoy two sparky acts who promise a future consisting of robot dancing and keytars. There's a mixture of teens and verging on hipster 30-50 year olds, some of whom look like they might not have been out of an evening in some time, such is their apparant reticence to have any obvious fun - and even though we're squashed in nicely with strangers, the room doesn't have a comfortable "we're all in this together" kind of vibe.

NZCA Lines, from outta London (pronounced Nazca..it's an ancient Peruvian geoglyphs thing), are reduced back down to a duo this evening; unfortunately there's no sign of third member Charlotte-who-you-probably-remember-from-Ash on guitar. Looking like slightly sad rejected droogs, all in white, Michael on keys and guitar and Sarah-out-of-Hot-Chip on a snazzy electronic drum kit are here to represent. There's just a little banter, and serious faces onstage; I can't really tell if they're having a good time or not which mars my own enjoyment somewhat. Musically they are tight and smooth, and play very well indeed, but for me there's something missing. Perhaps it's not beefy enough, or loud enough, or there's not enough difference between the tracks - some of the audience seem to recognise the final track Two Hearts, their biggest hit so far, but in general we are all a little unmoved. They sounds like a faster The xx, which in theory sounds great, but it's a bit insipid to be honest.

Moving right along to Teleman, four chaps who have crafted their sharp, catchy tunes most recently on their 2016 album Brilliant Sanity which has been getting mad radio play on 6Music and great reviews. It feels rather as though the stage is too small for them tonight, with rangy bass/keys player Pete increasingly looking like he's about to bust out and get all Iggy Pop on us. Thomas, lead singer and guitarist, has a great presence to him, calm, cool and collected, with a pure voice that rings true all night long. His brother Jonny on synths physically fades into the background rather, and deliberately or not, this means I listen out less for this most vital of sounds in the mix. Hiro on drums also keeps very much his own counsel, head down throughout the show.

Starting off with one of my favourites, Strange Combinations, they seem a little unsure of themselves..maybe this is a soft start to what will become a full on electrofest? They're a very careful, controlled band musically, and I was kind of hoping that live they would cut loose a little, throw caution to the wind, and there is some evidence of this tonight..but not enough. 23 Floors Up reminds me of early regretful Pet Shop Boys, with Thomas' crooning voice sounding very Neil Tennant in storytelling mode. Nice, except we should all have our arms around each other with our lighters aloft. At times tonight different elements come to the fore - I can hear early 90's indie in there like The La's, I can hear Kraftwerk, even on occasion a bit of prog. There's much more of an 80's vibe than I expected, with tracks like Tangerine and English Architecture from the new album as well as a humdinger in Glory Hallelujah. This band really can play, and although they are a quiet, very British band, they clearly love what they're doing and take it extremely seriously. Some beautiful touches strike me throughout the show, from the three seconds of tender cymbal action at the end of Cristina to a funktastic bassline straight from Owner of a Lonely Heart.

I do get some sense of the passion and emotion that surges beneath their surface, particularly evident the few times they really do rock the freak out towards the end, going with what they feel rather than being bound by the music and really exploring their own landscape. Perhaps it's that all this gentility and care can come across as a bit of an act, a bit of a deliberately low key performance, and that's pretty rare amongst youngish bands who are happy to rip their clothes off and throw themselves onto the drum kit given any opportunity. Probably I'm just not refined enough. I also could do with a darker room and a louder noise to aid in binding us all together as one.

Thomas comes down into the crowd on a couple of occasions; people give him a winning smile, politely move aside and he wanders through like a troubadour. I kind of wish he was being carried aloft by a audience who are rabidly in love with this music, screaming and hollering for more. There's lots of foot tapping, a good number of whoops for the better known tracks, and loads of polite clapping, but somehow the magic isn't here tonight. The encore, of the current, hugely catchy single Dusseldorf and finally the best song of the night, Not In Control (a chugging, Joy Division-like desperate, insistent belter) win me over and gives me the slightly dangerous edge I was looking for.

Leaving the venue, I hear several people say how much they'd enjoyed it and how good they'd been. I just wish they'd shown their appreciation during the gig to give some energy back to the bands, which then would've improved the whole thing greatly.

Overall, I think that the vibe tonight was too much in control, from both band and crowd, but both acts have bucketloads of potential and some tunes you'll treasure for sure. Keep your ears open for them..plus they're at Latitude so catch them there next.