by Nikhil Chopra

This isn’t Paris. And this isn’t London. And it’s not Berlin. And it’s not Hong Kong. This is Boston, and on Monday night, there was a solid turnout at the Royale for the second night of Metronomy’s North American tour. Having released their latest LP in the second half of 2019, the British indietronica pioneers were ready to share their disco magic with all their friends across the pond.

To wake the crowd out of their Monday blues, Joy Again took the stage. The 5-piece band from Philadelphia set up in a fairly horizontal row across the front of the stage, sharing the spotlight, and the guitarists taking turns on vocals. Their raw, indie-pop sound was visually mirrored in their guitarist’s uncut, unruly guitar strings and the keyboardist’s bright red set-up. The performance was packed with catchy tunes, often reminiscent of Britpop artists from last decade: a lot of short phrases, keyboard overlays, and bright lower-neck fretboard action – all with a grungy twist. 

Arthur Shea of Joy Again by Taylor DeFreitas

At the stroke of 9, as if representing a vision from the future, Metronomy walked onto the stage with white, space-suit-esque attires. A background symphony of ambient synths set the futuristic mood, quite aptly embodying their latest album title – Metronomy Forever. Jumping into their opening track “Lately,” Olugbenga Adelekan immediately owned the stage with his high energy dance moves and animated bass playing.

For those who have ever asked what it takes to bring electronic songs to life during live shows, Metronomy’s answer was vocal effects, woodblocks, tambourines, and cowbells. The punchy percussion instruments, with the help of two experimental keyboardists, definitely did the trick. “The End of You Too,” “Boy Racers,” and “Old Skool” were tight jams that got even the stiffest Bostonians dancing along.

Another highlight from the show can be best described as a DJ set with dueling pianos. The band cleared the stage for a performance by band members Oscar Cash and Michael Lovett, who comedically executed a call and response of the words “yeah” and “low” whilst slowly pushing their keyboards towards one another during “Lying Low”.

The crowd also went wild for “Everything Goes My Way” when the striking, white spotlight singled in on Anna Prior. The drummer-singer showcased her prodigal multi-tasking abilities to a staccato anthem. Her angelic voice had no trouble carrying through the venue.

Perhaps the biggest let down of the night was a meek version of Metronomy’s greatest hit, “The Look,” with an inaudible bassline and a dire lack of oomph. The performance paled in comparison to other dance-inducing songs from the night. However, this was easily forgiven as it was merely 4 minutes out of an otherwise excellent 90-minute set.

During the encore, Joseph Mount took the stage with an introspective tune about getting kicked out of a band for not being able to keep tempo. This was facetiously juxtaposed with an upbeat closing number that ended the night on a groovy note. All in all, it was probably the best Monday a lot of the crowd members have probably had in a while. Metronomy Forever!