Playing a one-off support slot for Oceansize on their current European tour, Yndi Halda are an unexpected treat. Sadly though, time constraints mean that what was intended to be a swift two-song set is cut down without the band's
knowledge to a meagre one-and-a-half. By the standards of most this wouldn't be much stage time but Yndi Halda get around half an hour, managing to showcase what they're most widely praised for as well as giving a taste of what's to come. After a good stint in post-rock done to perfection where the band move in sinuous, tectonic synchronisation, they introduce a new song, which retains only some of these elements. There are vocals now, and acoustic guitar tapped at the harmonic intervals. It's still as spacious and complex as the first song, but it's more delicate, using subtler dynamics than changes in volume. It's a real shame to see it cut short, but the band promises to play a full set next time. Let's hold them to it.
Next up are This Town Needs Guns, and while they stay true to the math-rock sensibilities of fellow Oxford bands Youthmovies and Foals, they have all the technical abilities of the latter without the pomposity.
When playing tracks from 2008's Animals they do have the tendency to lose themselves in complex rhythms and self-regarding finger-tapping, but on new material they recover the crunch and the heart of their earlier sound, making whatever they release next something to look forward to. The announcement that they'll play old favourite 26 is Dancier than 4 is greeted with many cheers, and they go so much further than on the studio recording, Stuart Smith looking like the moment means everything to him, and moving his torso accordingly. Their ability to convey emotion alongside obvious proficiency is what marks them out from their peers, and they don't do it any better than when they're on stage.
Taking the stage at a slightly premature ten past eight, Oceansize waste no time introducing themselves and dive straight into Part Cardiac, the opener from recent full length Self Preserved While the Bodies Float Up, which you can read about here. It's intense, it's frightening and it's the only song they'll play that sounds at all like this. But that's what makes Oceansize such a fantastic live experience, constantly changing what they do over the course of their 90 minutes. They create huge swells of distortion, intricate three-part guitar patterns, and show they can do anything the two bands we've already seen tonight can do.
The loyalty among their fans is obvious, with practically every song getting a cheer in its opening moments, but the reception to their latest album is just as warm as for the old favourites like Ornament/The Last Wrongs. Singer Mike Vennart says the new one's their
best album and, maybe realising the faux pas he's just made, simply reaffirms what he's said. And for the first time in musical history he may actually be right. In any case, everything they play is a winner, and the only noticeable discernment among the audience is when someone shouts "play something heavy". They do, of course. Highlights include Paper Champion, which builds over funky bass riffs into a menacing climax, and the encore of Women Who Love Men Who Love Drugs, the mostly instrumental saga from their debut Effloresce. It's as this song ends that they depart for the last time, one by one, until three guitars remain, repeating lush, melancholic notes that gradually quieten as enormous cheers see them off stage.
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