Outfitted in a mesh, white opal coat with matching pants and rose-tinted sunglasses, Alexis Young felt straight out of a David Lynch dream as she led her band, Youngblood, through a campy set at the Vogue Theatre on Thursday (September 14). And while the strawberry-haired frontwoman was certainly the star of the show, the band played an equal part in the surreal fun too — and not simply in strong sonic contributions.
"This is a good song for dancing with someone you have a crush on," Young purred as her backing four-piece descended into "Alone With You," a hazy cut off their debut EP, Feel Alright. Through gusts of pink smoke, guitarist Louis Wu sauntered forward, squealing out a guitar solo as Young wrapped the microphone chord around his neck. The album's title track was sweet (especially on the "oohs") and saw Young playfully interacting with the audience, grabbing at their reaching hands. Candy-coloured spotlights thumped along with the beat and added extra oomph to tracks about falling in love with strippers.
Any faults found in Young's voice, which was a little throaty earlier on, were made up with her commanding, room-filling presence, and her muscle strengthened impressively as the set progressed, especially towards the end where, under strobes, the band closed out the dream with another thrashy jam.
"This is a good song for dancing with someone you have a crush on," Young purred as her backing four-piece descended into "Alone With You," a hazy cut off their debut EP, Feel Alright. Through gusts of pink smoke, guitarist Louis Wu sauntered forward, squealing out a guitar solo as Young wrapped the microphone chord around his neck. The album's title track was sweet (especially on the "oohs") and saw Young playfully interacting with the audience, grabbing at their reaching hands. Candy-coloured spotlights thumped along with the beat and added extra oomph to tracks about falling in love with strippers.
Any faults found in Young's voice, which was a little throaty earlier on, were made up with her commanding, room-filling presence, and her muscle strengthened impressively as the set progressed, especially towards the end where, under strobes, the band closed out the dream with another thrashy jam.