The Polyphonic Spree

On a blank white sheet stretched across the stage, a figure begins to scrawl some letters with black spray paint. He spells it out backwards and when he is finally done, it reads, ‘Yo booty is mine!’ The audience cracks up and cheers in unison. It is, of course, The Polyphonic Spree’s frontman Tim DeLaughter’s doing. He starts cutting up the sheet, building momentum as the music escalates. Finally, the sheet gives way to reveal a 15-piece band on stage, all clad in matching paisley robes as they begin an exhilarating rendition of ‘Hold Me Now’. This visual spectacle kicksstart a thrilling night filled with blinding lights, infectious hooks and exuberant dancing that produces a live experience like no other.

The Polyphonic Spree are known for their playful mesh of choral symphonic sounds with cheerful pop rock tunes. Founding member DeLaughter perfectly resembles the unrestrained joyfulness their music brings. Promoting latest release Yes It’s True, the band performed to a packed Festival Hub, which DeLaughter calls ‘the box’. Playing ‘Younger Yesterday’ and ‘Popular by Design’, DeLaughter effortlessly exudes a particular type of magnetic appeal and contagious optimism. He banters about how much he likes Australia, displaying a certain kind of warm sincerity. The Polyphonic Spree has always possessed a faux cult vibe, and with DeLaughter as the leader, it is easy to fall under his spell.

‘You gotta be good / you gotta be strong / you gotta be 2000 places at once.’ DeLaughter leads the audience in a collective, a capella version of ‘2000 Places’ a capella. This creates an electrifying atmosphere, as though there is an unspoken sense of togetherness in the air. It becomes clear that a Polyphonic Spree live show is more akin to a rousing religious experience than any ordinary gig. In particular, with their synchronised dance movements, attractive white dresses and wind-swept hair, the all-female backup singers bear close resemblance to angels or perhaps, eerily enough, pagan sacrifices.

At one point of the night, DeLaughter jumps off the stage and comes into the center of the crowd, jumping along with them. His interaction gets the entire audience immensely excited, yet never entering the mayhem of a chaotic mosh pit. It is a weird kind of unrestrained but orderly joy that The Polyphonic Spree’s euphoric music spreads. DeLaughter’s interaction with the audience never ends, which just makes him all the more charming. An audience member cries for an ‘all night’ session, urging the band not to leave. DeLaughter begins with a mini-impromptu session of Lionel Ritchie’s ‘All Night Long’, which includes some smooth percussion beats and messy scat singing, much to the delight of the crowd. He abruptly finishes and utters, ‘You guys took it way too far with that one’. The audience laughs, and DeLaughter looks pleased with himself.

With ‘You Don’t Know Me’ and ‘Hold Yourself Up’, The Polyphonic Spree is radiating pure bliss. A female cellist energetically head-bangs to a few songs, her wild hair sprawling; her unstoppable vivacity is shared among other band members. The band’s performance is an incredible aural knockout, bursting with brass, strings, electric guitars, synthesisers and voices. DeLaughter appears to be on a different plane altogether. Throughout the night, he asks for a ‘big ol’ bud’ to be passed around and thrown onto the stage. ‘I don’t see anything on stage,’ he says in an exaggerated Texan drawl, following an impressive cover of The Monkees’ ‘Porpoise Song’ and the outstanding ‘Soldier Girl’.

When DeLaughter introduces ‘Best Part’, he tells an amusing story about the song being rejected from the 2000 movie O Brother, Where Art Thou? because of lead actor George Clooney. ‘Have you guys seen Gravity? George’s great,’ he chuckles. After fan-favourite ‘Light & Day’, DeLaughter begins to take requests from the audience. ”Sonic Boom’? ‘Championship’? ‘My Umbrella’?” he asks. He groans when someone shouts ‘Lithium!’ and hastily says, ‘Let’s do ‘Time Warp’.’ He leaves the stage, and the cellist takes on lead vocals. Her voice is astounding, and all the girls on stage dance to ‘Time Warp’, going ballistic with the pelvic thrust (it does drive you insane, after all).

It takes a moment for DeLaughter to arrive back onstage, and the band’s heavy reliance on the frontman clearly shows here. In this brief amount of time, the band members awkwardly shift on the spot, unsure of what to do. When DeLaughter finally returns, he teasingly mumbles, ‘You guys don’t need me’. The singer’s candid nature further comes to the fore as the night wears on. He holds up a cupcake to celebrate a trumpet player’s 21st birthday. Together with the band, the audience sings a birthday song, followed by giving three cheers. ‘Oh, really? You guys over here do ‘hip hip hurray’ after a birthday song?’ DeLaughter sounds surprised. ‘That’s amazing, thanks so much for sharing that with us.’

The Polyphonic Spree’s textured psychedelic rock is magnificently uplifting, and their well-rehearsed stadium orchestration clearly shows. Their spellbinding performance is undoubtedly fascinating to watch, and DeLaughter’s exchange with the crowd is highly entertaining. Surprisingly enough, the night dwindles to an end, with a good 10-minute anecdote by the frontman recalling his teenage job of selling custom suits to actor Larry Hagman aka J.R. Ewing from Dallas. Slowly, the band members begin sitting down onstage, clearly exhausted. He finishes his story and the crowd applauds; it is the kind of goofy tale that would come from a man who is not out to impress you, but is just frankly speaking his mind.

‘I love these people,’ DeLaughter said admiringly, while looking back at his band. ‘What a fantastic group of people.’ After a night of good fun and high antics, this is surely true.

Rating: 4½ stars out of 5