It’s Such A Beautiful World
On a balmy spring evening in London’s Hoxton district, excited fans gathered to witness the return of Australian synth sensations Parralox. For the uninitiated, Parralox are a duo from Melbourne who have produced some of the finest electro tunes of the 21st century. The mastermind behind the band is John von Ahlen, a one man creative powerhouse who not only writes and produces all of their songs, but designs the CD sleeves and directs their videos as well!
Much has happened since their last show in London in late 2008. A change of line up saw Amii Jackson taking over vocal duties, and the band released their second album, State Of Decay, a highly polished collection of electro pop gems. Both this and the ensuing EP single releases have received worldwide acclaim and expanded their fanbase still further. For those who had made the journey to London for this show, anticipation was running high.
Taking to the stage to a rapturous reception, the band launched into ‘Be Careful What You Wish For’, the first of a five track set taken exclusively from their second album. Amii proved to a sassy and confident front woman, with a pitch perfect vocal delivery. John Von Ahlen looked relaxed on Korg synth and backing vocal duties. ‘Hotter’, ‘Beautiful World’ and ‘I Am Human’ followed in quick succession with the crowd dancing and singing along to every word. The main set concluded with a roof-raising rendition of the band’s recent single (and arguably their finest moment to date), ‘Isn’t It Strange’.
Given the enthusiasm of the crowd, there was no way the band would be allowed to leave after five songs! And so, by popular demand, came the encores. First up was a premier of the brand new track and forthcoming single ‘Supermagic’. John then took over lead vocals for a solo rendition of ‘Moonwalking’. But still the audience demanded more! For the final track Amii announced they would be playing “John’s favourite song”, and to the delight of the fans this turned out to be ‘Empty’, the infectious B-side from the Isn’t It Strange EP.
For those present this was a special evening, with a celebratory atmosphere and the chance for Parralox to bond in person with some of their loyal fanbase. Making my way home that night, I hoped that they are on the verge of much greater success which they so richly deserve. Wouldn’t it be fabulous if, on a future visit to London, they were to play a headline set at Hammersmith, or even Wembley? If nothing else, I’d love to see their stage set, which would no doubt be stylish, futuristic and designed by John Von Ahlen himself!
Parralox will be returning to the UK to play Infest at the University Of Bradford on Saturday 28th August 2010.
www.infestuk.com
www.parralox.com
www.myspace.com/parralox
www.conzoomrecords.de
- An Interview With TENEK - November 9, 2011
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- DEPECHE MODE – Live At The Royal Albert Hall - December 31, 2010
