Adult DVD. Sold Out. In The Round.

Adult DVD. Sold out. 1am start time. In the round.  

Adult DVD’s hometown gig at the Belgrave Music Hall was as chaotically energetic as anyone who is even vaguely familiar with their music could expect. ‘Yacht Money’ and ‘Hot Set’ provided the ideal start, an unapologetic blend of punchy vocals from lead singer Harry Hanson, strong riffs and as much influence from the synths as could be imagined with no less than four on stage, encapsulating in microcosm the band’s distinctive sound. Often made comparisons to LCD Soundsystem are not without merit, but only by listening to their classification defying acid/electronic/dance rock can one begin to grasp what Adult DVD are about. 

Simply put, the ‘in the round’ aspect of the gig – where the band stood in a circle essentially amongst the crowd, in an intimate ‘boiler room’ style – worked brilliantly. Perhaps the main beneficiary (apart from the crowd) was drummer Jonathan Newell; no longer relegated to the back of the stage behind a wall of equipment, the pulse Newell provided not only provided the perfect complement to the synths but deservedly took the spotlight at times.

‘7 foot 1’ and ‘Dogs In the Sun’ were both well crafted and compiled without losing the jazzy electricity that makes the band unique. They provided the perfect build up to the highlight of the night, ‘Do something’. A cacophonous soundscape as full of relentless dynamism as the rest of their music, ‘Do something’ retains lyrical sardonicism whilst being undeniably catchy. This combines to give a sense of forward motion – surely emblematic of the band’s trajectory in the coming years.

The remainder of the set basked in the playful peculiarity of the moment. It is not every day at 2AM you are stood, essentially engulfed by a dance/rock band, above an (albeit excellent) canteen in Leeds’s Northern Quarter, but as the industrious ‘Sadman Mancave’ faded into the joyfully crazy ‘Bill Murray’, it became apparent it’s something that should happen more often. 

Written by Freddie Waterland