Seriously didn’t know I could get even more excited for Deerhunter than I already was when I got Rainwater Cassette Exchange, but then along comes Signer (he’s opening for them yay) and makes me even more fucking bursting with anticipation for their show. Signer, the project of Bevan Smith (ex-Over the Atlantic, Skallander) incorporated live drumming, samplers and live keyboards into a totally organic dance set. Accompanied by Ryan Mcphun and another dude on keys, the vocal similarities to Bradford Cox’s strained long notes were there, but this held its own entirely against Deerhunter material, probably becuase, you know, they don’t have any guitars. Weaving in and out of soft melodies, Signer melted danceable beats, creepily haunting vocals and an array of samplers and gadgets to create one of the freshest live shows I’ve seen here in AGES. Factor this in with the apparent rustiness of their live performance (cue Ryan Mcphun teaching the keyboardist the chord progressions as they played), and it makes for one fucking mean show.

Little Pictures would’ve been happy just playing this show normally, what with it being a show where they actually played with slightly similar bands to themselves (in instrumentation, if not in genre). But, as this was their last show before departing to discover that oft-referenced overseas fanbase, they seemed even happier to be playing than usual (perhaps happy to say goodbye too). Semi-typical sound problems plagued the start of the set, but after some delay they reappeared, Johanna barefoot and smiling, Mark joking self-deprecatingly. Tracks like This House Can Fit Us All created crowd singalongs, and there is a (possibly unintentional) sexual overtone to I Wish I Could Keep You that gives it its own sense of humour (I think Jonathan Phillips’ creative writing is to blame there). It was fun if not particularly good; their sampling has become more subtle and integral to their set (cue the opening piano part of Two Weeks), but the heavy amount of sampling gives the feel that they’ve either been listening to too much Girl Talk and unconsciously moving towards Gillisness, or they’re trying too hard to reach that level of sampling madness – don’t get me wrong, it’s awesome that a band have the audacity to sample Peter Bjorn and John, Grizzly Bear and Outkast into their own material, and for the most part it works. However, the balance between sampled and original material got out of balance at some points, drowning the original tracks in a way that the Ruby Suns pulled off expertly, Lil Pix not quite yet. The only other main criticism of their performance was the covering: their voices suit their own intimate pop songs pretty well, slighty awkward vocal rhythms and cheeky smiles at one another. Where it didn’t work was in their adaptations of other songs (hey Outkast) – their vocal delivery can’t really do Hey Ya justice. AT ALL. But for a band who lay their hearts (and criticisms) on their sleeve, it was a fitting farewell – earnest, slightly cringeworthy and very fun.

It might have/must have/totally was the knocking out of one of the cords at the start of The Ruby Suns’ set which set the tone for their turn onstage. A dance party in the DJ booth turned sour, but not as sour as he seemed to. However, recovering from this minor setback at the beginning of their set, they played a mixed hour of jams. Lots of new material surfaced, which felt more borne out of the danceable feel of their live adaptations of older songs. It sounded weird – rather than Ruby Suns making their tropical sounds more disco, they were going straight for the dancefloor from the start. It didn’t quite suit them particularly on the last track, a hyper-lengthy dance number which came across as more of a FUCK YOU to dance music/kinda the crowd than a party closer. Some Sea Lion material is now getting warped beyond recognition instrumentally (This Adventure Tour was only recognisable once McPhun started to sing), a mutation that worked all too well for a track with repeated exclamations of ‘Hey!’ and an outro thats as befitting of a tribal party on some remote island off the coast of Maui as it was of a Ruby Suns set. Oh Mojave doesn’t sound as good, given the core of its upbeat opening was the guitar bounce that is now found wanting. The sequential duo of Kenya Dig It? and Don’t Trust the Dusty Fruit were amazing (Signer already being onstage to assume the role of token Ruby Suns drum guest). Hope Dusty Fruit is an indication of where their new material is headed and that the uberdancejamz were just Ryan + Amy ‘fooling around’. It was an up and down set overall, with McPhun looking decidedly unhappy for much of it, but then making calls about how we made Auckland look shit by comparison, inciting more AK-WGTN beef along the way. I suppose after the plethora of amazing shows The Ruby Suns have played over the last 6 months, they’re allowed one thats not amazing. Please cheer up for the South Island Ryan McPhun, even if crazy dancers knock plugs out THEY HAVEN’T SEEN YOU IN AGES AND ARE EXCITED OK COOL THX.