Temples have been receiving a lot of love from all areas of the country lately, and the time had come to see if they could deliver in a live setting, as well as on record. As I entered The Dome for this sold out show from the neo-psych four piece, I was met by people who pledge allegiance to a whole host of genres. You had your mods with their Weller-esque hair, clad in pretty green attire. Mingling amongst them were your indie goth crossover kids, more hairspray than hair. I even saw two fellas pull up on their fixies, both sporting the most fantastic moustaches I’ve ever laid eyes upon, in matching paisley shirts. Safe to say, Temples are attracting fans of all ages from all walks of life.
Enlisted to warm up the crowd were Charlie Boyer and The Voyeurs, also known simply as The Voyeurs, depending on who you asked. Despite playing a solid set consisting of eight songs, the crowd failed to really get into them, which is a shame really considering the calibre of their live show. They receded backstage to polite cheering and clapping. It was at this point I made a mental note to go and check them out at one of their own shows.
After a brief pause whilst the roadies did their thing, the music stopped, the lights dimmed and the crowd waited with baited breath for one of Britain’s hottest new bands to appear. They took to the stage and after the briefest of hellos, launched straight into Sun Structures.
New single Colours To Life evoked a sizeable cheer from a surprisingly placid crowd. This was followed by Prisms which was released as the B side to the band’s debut record, which is now selling at over 10 times its original price. With only three studio versions of songs available to listen to online the guys are keeping their cards close to their chest, and so the crowd lapped up every second of the short set. Not surprisingly, they finished up with Shelter Song, the track that first catapulted them into the spotlight.
In spite of the fact the crowd were almost lifeless for the most part of the show, Temples still put on one hell of a show. The eight songs they did play were eight tracks honed to perfection, by a band that appears to be enjoying themselves immensely. I think I even saw Adam let a smile slip before his face returned to its usual stone gaze. In answer to my original question, yes, Temples easily pulled off the transition from record to a live setting without a hitch.
The band is set to embark on an extensive UK tour in October and November, finishing at London’s Electric Ballroom. Before that though they are set to appear at pretty much every festival you can name this summer, as well as the small matter of being on the bill at The Rolling Stones’ Hyde Park show.
Temples Played:
Sun Structures
The Golden Throne
Colours To Life
Prisms
Ankh
The Guesser
Keep In The Dark
Shelter Song
By Conor Giles
Dance Yrself Clean
