The Temper Trap
The Bakery, Perth

This could possibly have been the worst gig in Temper Trap history. Not by performance standards, you understand. They played about as blindingly as expected. They just had a run of awful luck with a repeatedly breaking bass, culminating in playing three quarters of a song with just the two guitars and drum. It was an interesting change up, kind of a Sleater-Kinney vibe, but it wreaked havoc on the band’s morale. They were dejected, unconvincingly reassuring the sparse all-ages crowd of kids sitting on couch cushions that they didn’t think Perth was the worst place they’d been.

But still, they were the Temper Trap. They proved the “hipster” tag they’ve attracted to be inaccurate with the balletic twist of their spray of notes, the unexpected upward direction of their songs. They somehow possessed both a hard dance stamp and a swooning, romantic sway. Vocalist Dougy thrust himself into his role and thrust his groin into the mic stand, shutting his eyes and drawing his laser knife voice from a deep, powerful well and strutting like he was impersonating his favourite diva with all the passion of a karaoke devotee. Then he smiled and said, “Playing music is very humbling.”

by Matt Giles