Of

Montreal

Oran Mor, Glasgow

26/01/09

After a lengthy changeover, Of

Montreal’s appearance is heralded by a man in a white suit wearing a tiger mask who urges the crowd to cheer then slopes off without ceremony as the band file in. Within minutes, a topless lion-man is being whipped to the disturbingly jaunty soundtrack of ‘For Our Elegant Caste’, an exuberant figure in a pink jumpsuit runs onstage and showers himself in gold glitter, and what can only be described as skeletal monkey moles waltz amid the chaos. Fears that the band’s notoriously flamboyant live show wouldn’t translate to Oran Mor’s modest stage are, it seems, unfounded.

Pounding through most of the first half of currently album Skeletal Lamping, Of Montreal demonstrate why they have earned such a cult following. Their sinuous prog-pop collages are so beautifully executed that it’s almost possible to forget they’re being played by Kevin Barnes on hyperactive Jake Shears form and a guitarist whose look is equal parts Patrick Wolf and Bam Bam.

To begin with, the theatrics are an entertaining extra, but they soon wear thin and the show becomes less about the music and more about being increasingly irritated by each new stage invasion. Songs like ‘An Elluardian Instance’ are inventive and dramatic enough without ruby-faced ninjas seducing a half-human pig, while inner torment is not best expressed by two blokes stuck inside pillowcases.

As the skits continue, the band plumbs its nine album-strong back catalogue and don’t always surface with gold, their synth-heavy tempo abuse at times becoming predictably unpredictable. That said, every last note is perfect and if Of Montreal wanted to put on a show, they’ve certainly succeeded, but there is simply too much spectacle here, and it’s hard not to feel that tonight could have been something truly special if they had just toned it down a bit.

Heather Crumley