The dank cavernous, but oh so cool live music stalwart Good God Small Club held the honour of hosting up and coming Danish singer Mø.
Bringing her unique brand of bass soaked electro pop to Sydney’s ears for the first time, with a short, but electrifying set.
Mø has been compared to, or worked with, an impressive list of indie music powerhouses that would be enough to make any music fan’s mouth water. She has drawn comparisons to the Grimes, Purity Ring and Twin Shadow – three artists who had an explosive 2012, been remixed by Ms Mr, and worked with indie dance king and perennial taste maker Diplo, who produced her lastest single “xxx 88”.
Mø really launched into her performance like a boxer going for broke in search for a knockout – flying fists, bounding from centre stage to lighting rigs to out in the audience in a frantic, yet deliberate kind of way that made her captivating as a performer. It was aggressive, energetic, at times overwhelming set, and completely unlike the sleepy Sydney Tuesday night happening outside.
Unlike a lot of artists her music takes on a distinct new form in a live setting. The most obvious thing were the big hip-hop beats which laid a carnal foundation for the songs to build off. “Waste of Time”, and “xxx 88” in particular, where they carried the room with their sheer force. The rising brass lines in the chorus of “xxx 88” accompanied by “hey” chants made it a memorable moment of the gig. The song has the eclectic-dance charm of Diplo all over it, and is certainly a winner in a live setting, combining the fierceness that characterizes Mø as a performer with a strong danceable groove.
It is also hard to comprehend how bass-heavy some of her songs are outside of a live setting. Throughout her set sub bass swells took over the room, adding another welcome element to her set.
The Dane showed herself to be a versatile performer with the softer moments of the set. Away from the dense textures of the more energetic tunes she has more room to let fly on her voice, and to use a painful, but fitting cliché, soar. Her soul tinged voice matched the swells and falls of her band, with tracks like “Never Wanna Know” and in particular “Pilgrim” showing off her range, as well as her ability to craft a really great hook.
Given her current lack of output it was unsurprising that her set lasted only just over an hour and had punters heading on their way at 11pm. Despite this she left the audience excited for the future, and undoubtedly hungry for more.
