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The Rapture Plays Good Sax
The fact that Monday night's show at the Henry Fonda Theater in Hollywood was completely sold out wasn't surprising at all; a show consisting of both The Rapture, an already established dance-punk band, and The Presets, an Australian electro duo slowly gaining exposure in the States, was designed for LA audiences; the night was a perfect balance of both old songs we've already danced to and new songs we'll continue dancing to.
The night began with a set from The Presets, the live drummer and synth act from Sydney, who, in their own humble words, had the job of warming the crowd up before The Rapture took to the stage. Playing pure electro, and even mixing in a bit of Daft Punk’s “Crescendolls” at one point, they did just that, especially during their single “Girl and the Sea,” and “I Go Hard, I Go Home,” which was like a flashback to the rave days of the nineties, except with better fashion.
The Rapture has been around since the revival of post-punk back in the beginning of 2000, and just released their second full length Pieces of the People We Love, this fall. With both an ever-present cowbell and soulful saxophone adding personality and charisma to the performance, audiences were highly receptive of the energy on stage; no matter how hot or sweaty it got, the crowd continued to move, especially during ultimate hipster dancefloor classics, "Out of the Races and Onto the Tracks," and "House of Jealous Lovers." While the whole dancepunk genre has produced a lot of cliché, mindless acts over the last few years, it’s nice to know that The Rapture, one of the both definitive and diverse acts of the genre, can stand the (increasingly arduous) test of time.
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