Cults

You would expect a band as hyped as Manhattan's Cults to be all attitude and posture, but the group clearly enjoy what they do too much to care, appearing honest and out to have a good time. Live, they were pretty faithful to their recordings, performing as a five-piece with a drummer, bassist and keyboards/xylophonist, in addition to key members Brian Oblivion and the centre of all things Cults, singer Madeline Follin. And the core duo were exceptional in their ability to light up a room and add some extra live dynamic to their Phil Spector- and Motown-laced indie rock sound. Officially part of the last night of SXSW Interactive, the crowd was here just for the music. Cults didn't waste much time with stage banter, instead launching into some great renditions of their album tracks and a superb version of "Everybody Knows" by Leonard Cohen. A great set, one of the highlights being the extra rocked-out, energetic and still aching version of "You Know What I Mean."