New Orleans band Mutemath have always prioritised entertainment in their music. Whether it’s the remarkable music videos for “Blood Pressure” and “Typical”, their well-known stage antics or overall musical talent, the four-piece are renowned for radiating an aura of amusement. Consequently, with Adelaide lucky to feature on their 2013 headlining tour, it was no surprise that Fowler’s Live was packed with punters of all ages.
Melbourne indie duo Big Scary were the lucky picks for the national opening slot. Playing songs primarily from their debut album Vacation, including “Leaving Home”, “Gladiator”, and “Purple”, their fantastic blend of passionate piano grunge-rock was just enough for the hefty amount of attendees.
Following Big Scary’s wonderful finale, very few people dispersed. Apparently Adelaide has a vast number of passionate Mutemath fans, and all of them were itching to get a prime spot for the headlining act.
It was quite surprising then, after the music dimmed and the crowd began to roar, that a faint drum beat could be heard coming from somewhere. It certainly wasn’t coming from the stage area. Before anyone realised, the four members of Mutemath – each with a different drum kit piece – were walking uniformly from the back of the crowd and carving out an eclectic drum pattern.
Managing to navigate a sea of excited fans to reach the front, the rockers set down the drum gear and grabbed their stage instruments. This included legendary drummer Darren King grabbing a wireless monitor headset and donning it by wrapping a roll of duct tape six times around his head.
With the band raring to go, an all-star trio of songs, including “Odd Soul” “Prytania” and “Blood Pressure,” kicked off the set. Following this, frontman Paul Meany introduced the band but drew attention mostly to King – who, so far, was blowing minds.
After tracks like “Tell Your Heart Heads Up”, the performance grew into a more passionate affair, with the likes of “Goodbye” and “Where We Once Were” filling the room.
Meany then introduced “Hit Parade” as a track Mutemath had been working on while on the current tour, offering a disclaimer that playing it live was still a new concept. Despite the impression that it was a song in development, it was nonetheless given full support from the audience.
Up next was perhaps the reason why the unburdened space that is Fowler’s Live was chosen to house the event. Partway through one of their final songs, a large inflatable mattress-type object – complete with fairy lights – was lifted up into the crowd, allowing frontman Meany to hop on. The mattress went back and forth over the crowd in an erratic pattern, managing to make its way back to the stage just in time for Meany to jump off and sing their fantastic finale song, “Typical”.
Returning for an encore after persistent cheers that lasted many minutes, Mutemath performed just a few more songs, including “Quarantine” and “Break The Same”, to fulfill their near two-hour performance slot.
It was fantastic to see a different blend of people fill up Fowler’s Live – a venue usually restricted to hardcore artists – and with such a fantastic band like Mutemath making a success of the entire event, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the venue open its doors to a wider range of acts.
