It took a little while for Wesley Eisold to get into a groove in opening Cold Cave's set. After triggering the new wave-inspired guitar track of "Love Comes Close," his lower register vocals were largely drowned out by the volume of the instrumental track — a problem that got the better of the duo in a handful of situations. Remaining near motionless at the mic stand, eyes shut in avoidance of the bright projected visuals, one had to wonder if he would be as reserved the rest of the way through.
However, any doubt of Eisold's performance drive was left behind when the punchy "Icons of Summer" was cued up next. It wasn't long before he was moving around the stage in commanding fashion, delivering his lyrics with a newfound vigour. It was a presence that wasn't matched by his current live collaborator, handling the majority of the live production while looking thoroughly disinterested. Though Eisold ended up finding a second gear, any vocal style outside of a forceful shout was largely lost in the excessive levels of the bass-heavy darkwave, making the studio recordings a much better indicator of his group's musical ideas.
However, any doubt of Eisold's performance drive was left behind when the punchy "Icons of Summer" was cued up next. It wasn't long before he was moving around the stage in commanding fashion, delivering his lyrics with a newfound vigour. It was a presence that wasn't matched by his current live collaborator, handling the majority of the live production while looking thoroughly disinterested. Though Eisold ended up finding a second gear, any vocal style outside of a forceful shout was largely lost in the excessive levels of the bass-heavy darkwave, making the studio recordings a much better indicator of his group's musical ideas.
