Project Description

Sex On Toast @ The Rosemount Hotel, WA – 21/04/2017 (Live Review)

If there was one thing that Sex On Toast showed the crowd at The Rosemount Hotel it was that, on today’s musical playlist, there is a definite lack of the smooth. And whilst, as their name suggests the soft-focussed allure was laid on thick it was all part of the charm of this nine piece band that rocked it in with a cheeky smile.

Having not been in The Rosie’s main room since its renovation, it like being Marty McFly returning from the past only to realise that whilst life was overall the same, some things had intrinsically changed. Certainly the stage is in a better position and the room has much better vantage points for punters but that bar looks like it was ripped out of a suburban sport bar and it’s a shame the windows have been blocked out but regardless – it does provide a better experience for the artist and audience.

Lofty Heights, with fill-in Lewis Moody keyboardist from Sex On Toast, gave a set that was acrobatic in it’s idiosyncrasies. Jazzy undertones, with a touch of experimentalism that provided a firm foundations for some songs that still need further development. Following on Old Blood were more comfortable in their skin with a bluesy rock swagger that lingered with a dark sultriness. It was a varied offering from two different bands which was fitting considering Sex On Toast’s approach to their work.

Good thing the newly moved stage was now larger because every available space was taken by the ten members of Sex On Toast. Known for their exuberant shows, there was no time to get acquainted as they launched into a set that was slickly delivered with all the ardor of musicians who just want to make you feel as good as they do. Oh, Loretta! from 2015 was a prime example of their polished production values and stage presence. A bold, booming song filled with all the tropes of blue-eyed soul with tongue firmly in cheek had the crowd moving from the get go.

Keeping the mood light worked, transcending Sex On Toast from an 80s imitators of the likes of James Ingram and Herbie Hancock, to producing music which really does sound like their own making. One wonders why more bands aren’t fully utilising the awesome power of three keyboards and a horn section. Later Give It To Me roughed it up bit, giving the crowd a breather from RnB grooves with sharper guitar riffs and stomping rock drum parts, and it sounded pretty great.

Lead vocal and guitarist Angus Leslie anchored the group with his honeyed vocals lending itself to a rich soulful sound, although a number of times through the set Leslie requested that his mic be turned up. With that many musicians on stage the mix would at times get a little swampy. In fact that there was so much going on stage, with every person inadvertently vying for attention. The rare sight of Johnny Bassoon cradling an actual bassoon, keyboardist James Bowers ramping it up with use of a talkbox, and along with everyone else’s dancing it was hard to keep up on where the focus should be.  As was the case for the fast paced Miami Sound Machine influenced Takin’ Over, on stage conga lines are fun to watch but can also result in a case of whiplash.

The second half of the set laid homage to obvious Prince that was lovingly delivered, as the gig fell on the anniversary of Prince’s death. Their renditions of the singer’s earlier work as well as their own sexy work, Hold My Love let the crowd see that for the band it’s not just about arranging songs with ironic lyrics over synth-funk rhythms and hooky guitars, there is a clear sense of striving to develop their musical dexterity.

Sex On Toast are an undiscovered gem here in WA; one wants to pour a JB’s and relish the way they seem to be on a journey of discovery uncovering old soulful, synth-funk elements, delivering them to an audience that peculiarly or smartly, which ever way you cut it, is interpreted with a modern booty-shaking feel.

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Photo - Nathalie Alcarin

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