Review: DMA’s – June 11, 2016 @ Corner Hotel

Sydney lads DMA’s have been racking up the passport stamps in the last few months, criss-crossing their way through the US, UK and Europe in support of their debut album Hills End, before finally returning home for a brief run of shows.

Tonight kicked off the first of three sold-out Melbourne jaunts and the punters who were lucky enough to nab tickets were in fine form.

Green Buzzard were in charge of warming up the crowd, and right from the get-go their ’70s-inspired rock grooves slowly drew the crowd in, piquing their attention with every song. Their easy onstage banter (“We’re gonna talk more tonight because we need to stretch our set out – it’s 30 minutes but it needs to be 45”) and catchy, synth-filled garage-pop gems had the crowd dancing in no time.

DMA’s lead singer Tommy O’Dell and guitarists Matt Mason and Johnny Took emerged, moving straight into album opener ‘Timeless’. The front section of the crowd began to move, almost shyly, but this sentiment didn’t last long. ‘Too Soon’ pulled them out of their trance, before ‘Straight Dimensions’ inspired the first punter to get on top of the crowd.

Nostalgia is clearly a big part of the DMA’s drawcard; everything about their ’90s Britpop sound and era-appropriate get up (Kappa jackets, gold chains, worn out caps) transports the audience to another time, and they were losing themselves in everything the band were throwing out.

If the trio were getting used to ‘sold out’ signs on their show doors or heaving crowds of die hard fans shouting lyrics back at them, they definitely weren’t showing it. Frontman Tommy O’Dell seemed completely unaffected by the spectacle in front of him, a nonchalant gaze plastered on his face all throughout the set. His alluring vocals captivated the crowd, paired with a full band to beef up the sound, and tracks like ‘Laced’ and clear night favourite ‘Lay Down’ were given a new power and spunk in this live setting.

Not addressing the crowd more than five times, DMA’s are clearly more about audience connection than audience interaction. This sentiment rang true most of all during ‘So We Know’ and ‘Delete’, where the rest of the band took a back seat, leaving O’Dell and Took – with acoustic guitar in hand – to take care of business. Across the floor, groups of friends (and possibly even strangers) put their arms around each other for some of the night’s loudest sing-alongs.

As the final notes of ‘Play It Out’, well, played out, the room erupted with calls of “one more song”, and the band almost teased the crowd by leaving their instruments perfectly set up onstage for a quick return. But no matter how much the crowd chanted and begged for more, this night was not going to end with an encore.

Whether they are buying into their own hype on not, by the end of the night it was clear that DMA’s deserve every ounce of it.

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