[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he crowd erupts into cheers as Orono Noguchi, the lead singer of Superorganism, cartwheels across the stage. Following four failed attempts, where she nearly knocked over equipment and came very close to falling off the stage, she returns to the mic to begin the next song.
This is just a small sample of what Superorganism would do when they came to the Academy on October 18th. The band, who released their first album in 2018, formed with eight members spread out across the globe. Although they are a relatively new player to synth and indie pop, they have a lot of potential due to their soaring vocalists and shiny production.
The venue itself was very busy, with the pit in front of the stage packed with fans holding the rails.
The band first emerged after a short video by Robert Strange, the band’s visual artist. They slowly walked out, their faces masked by cloaks until Orono exploded onto the stage and they began to play their first song, “SPROGNSM”.
The crowd was immediately brought to life by the pulsing synths of the song. Orono’s voice carried through the venue, with it suddenly becoming high or low though voice modification. The chorus was catchy and clear, with the background vocalists, B, Ruby and Soul taking centre stage.
From there, the band played songs from their album. One of the clear highlights of the night was “Nai’s March”. The vocals were soft and sweet, with Orono singing about her home country, Japan. The interlude during the song is the centrepiece, with the visuals of frogs ribbiting lining up with samples played throughout the song.
During “Nobody Cares”, Orono was surprised to hear everyone singing along when she pointed the mic at the crowd, mentioning that at previous concerts people didn’t know the lyrics. The effective looping of guitars and the emotional weight of the song made this a highlight of the show.
Between songs, Orono took time to interact with the audience. Whether she was answering their questions or asking her own, the crowd was very involved, especially during the segment the band called “Orono’s Time”.
All of this would culminate during their penultimate song, “Relax”, where Orono picked out members of the front to come on stage to dance behind the band.
Before the final song was played, the entire band disappeared backstage. The crowd yelled for more, until they re-emerged with pints of Guinness in each of their hands. A glass was handed to a member of the audience, who with encouragement from the crowd, finished the pint in one.
The entire gig was painted with flashes of dazzling colour, with band-members emerging from backstage in shiny, sequined cloaks. The background projector lit up with intense visuals, splattered with animations of various animals and objects.
The stage itself was mostly equipment, with B, Ruby and Soul, doubling up as background dancers. During the set, they would change from clapping, to tambourines and to maracas shaped as moons.
However, the show wasn’t without its imperfections. While “Orono’s Time” was engaging for the crowd at the front, it may be a “time filler” due to a lack of original songs by the band. As well as this, there were some signs of strain on Orono’s voice, and she did shout rather than sing some of her lyrics.
Despite these hiccups, the entire show was incredibly enjoyable to watch. The charisma of the band is undeniable, with each band member visibly having a great time on stage. This, combined with catchy synth pop, lead to a very good show.
Tadgh McNally
Image Credit: thelastmixedtape.com