REVIEW: of Montreal at Cosmosis Festival, Manchester

SATURDAY (March 12) saw Victoria Warehouse in Manchester host this years Cosmosis Festival. Will Stevenson runs his eye over of Montreal…

Georgia alt rockers of Montreal took to the Earth stage and they immediately got people dancing and grooving along to ‘Bassem Sabry’ from their latest album, ‘Aureate Gloom’.

Though the bands sound has evolved much throughout their 20 year career, the set still manages to sound cohesive, despite featuring songs from six different albums recorded across their career.

If I had to choose just one from last night @CosmosisFestMcr that'd be Of Montreal pic.twitter.com/dYZp6BHOUn

— Cristina Pedreira (@ostraspedreira) March 13, 2016

Six of the 12 songs are drawn from their most critically successful record, 2007’s ‘Hissing Fortuna, Are You the Destroyer?’ which proves to be a great decision, as the crowd love it; clapping, singing and dancing along throughout the entire set.

The five members of the band fill the stage well and give the crowd plenty to look at, whether it’s the bands flamboyant frontman Kevin Barnes, with his nineties hair cut, impressive vocal range and jerky dance movements or multi instrumentalists like Clayton Rychlik and Nicholas Dobbratz, who switch between drums, keys, tambourines, keys and more throughout the set to great effect.

When they’re not lapping up the visual feast on stage, the crowd are bouncing, singing and throwing their hands in the air to oF Montreal’s joyous sounding music that takes in influences from sixties pyschdelic rock to country and prog rock in their latest music.

Wow thanks Of Montreal for being amazing . Delighted to finally see them. Little dance party in middle of psych drone.

— Louise McHenry (@xfirefishx) March 12, 2016

It’s these broad soundscapes that allow the bands set to be as interesting and varied throughout.

The highlight of the set comes in the closing moments with the poetically titled ‘Heimdalsgate Like a Promethean Curse’, with it’s ascendant, dancey synth choruses and catchy, piano driven melodies, it’s a great closer to a fun set.

By Will Stevenson
@willreviews