Live Review: Alex Lahey, Bloods, Micra

Sydney duo Micra kicked off with their experimental indie; mixing ambient electronics with organic instrumentation to create lofty and psychedelic soundscapes that drew us in. Debut single Child Grows Old was a standout, with its unpredictable twists and turns and uniform flow keeping us on our toes.

Bloods pierced our lofty bubble and brought us back down to earth with their punchy garage pop. Reminiscent of an era of '90s pop-punk bands, but with more pop-leaning (and positive) sensibilities and less sad boy lyrics, the four-piece powered through their set like seasoned pros. The audience fed off their rugged yet fun energy, with tracks like Feelings emitting pure joy and giving the crowd permission to boogie, which they kindly obliged.

Alex Lahey was happy to be back on home soil, having just wrapped up a run of European shows. She told us so after she opened with album title track I Love You Like A Brother and solidified the sentiment later by introducing Perth Traumatic Stress Disorder as a song about an Australian city.

The Melbourne singer-songwriter has been on an upward trajectory since releasing her debut album last year, with her onstage energy and gravitas adding icing to an already fantastic cake of superb songwriting and polished performances - all of which was on display tonight.

Choosing to differ this set from her album tour (in case we had headed to both), Lahey bashed out some throwbacks including Ivy League and Let's Go Out, which were met with ecstatic grins, mass singalongs and a little bit of comradery - Lahey was beaming. She then dug deep into her catalogue to make a special addition to her set, dedicating Air Mail to all the longtime fans in the room. We were also treated to a brand new track, which is yet to be named, but watch this space as more Alex Lahey might be hitting our radios soon!

Without warning, Lahey launched into a fitting cover of Avril Lavigne's Complicated, sending the crowd into a frenzy - not missing a beat as they sung the lyrics along to Lahey's up-tempo spin on the nostalgic track. Everyday's The Weekend was gleefully screamed back at Lahey with arms flailing and hips shaking, before she left the stage.

Returning upon calls for an encore they saved the best till last, powering through You Don't Think You Like People Like Me and I Haven't Been Taking Care Of Myself to close the set in a celebratory fashion.