Live Review: Gold Fields, Phebe Starr, Willowbeats

The Corner opens its doors at 9pm on this cold, rainy Melbourne night to a handful of dripping wet punters keen to catch tonight's supports. While the initially sparse crowd seem to be more interested in getting a few beers than watching the performance, Willow Beats put on a solid show, with a sound and vibe comparable to Owl Eyes.

Phebe Starr jumps on stage in front of a building audience, and seems to improve as her set goes on. Starr's voice is strong and powerful, holding its own against the impressive production and sounds from her band. Saving the more recognisable songs 'til the end of her set, Starr draws a rousing response from the now-capacity crowd for tracks such as Jurassica and Alone With You.

The Gold Fields guys leap out accompanied by pounding percussion and white strobe lights before an excited and dance-ready audience. Their triple j-featured debut album Black Sun was released earlier this year to generally favourable reviews, and the results of this aforementioned radio station's high rotation become evident when the crowd sing along with most tracks. Dark Again and You're Still Gone receive the best response, the band's sound and energy comparable to that of Friendly Fires. But while Gold Fields' tunes are not as instantly memorable as FF classics such as Jump In The Pool or Paris (and none of the lads have the booty shakin' swagger of Friendly Fires lead singer Ed Macfarlane), the Ballarat lads certainly are impressive live, providing plenty of fuel and motivation to get this crowd up and dancing. At times percussion does overpower the electronic aspects of this band's sound, and Mark Robert Fuller's vocals are somewhat shaky throughout certain tracks, but overall Gold Fields perform in an energetic, entertaining manner and their popularity and pulling power is resoundingly evident. The group warm up this venue on a night where the temptation to stay in bed, order some pizza and watch a Harry Potter DVD would have been strong for some punters (Harry Potter haters excluded).

As the performance comes to a close, most punters walk back out to the dull, weeping city in a daze, as if this lively performance temporarily transported them to sunnier places – perhaps to a beach in California, where Gold Fields have only recently returned from.