Teleman
– GORILLA, MANCHESTER –
I am excited to be standing with those lucky enough to land tickets for what is another sold out show on Teleman’s UK tour as they walk onto the Gorilla stage. They have garnered quite the following from their two well received and critically acclaimed albums over the past few years and the room is packed out with fans eager to see and hear their brand of indie pop.
The London-based band is made up of Peter Cattermoul, brothers Thomas and Jonny Sanders (all formerly of Pete and the Pirates), along with drummer Hiro Amamiya. Together Teleman craft their sound as perfectly on stage as they have done in the studio, each note sonically pleasing and each riff simply impeccable. Their tight playing and focus on detail, while keeping songs simple, is reminiscent of the crowning era of britpop, but one genre isn’t all they have to offer. The lively set seems to span the decades, even within songs, swapping from 80’s sounding electronic drums and new wave-esque synths to more rocky organ and acoustic beats. Every song gets you wanting to move – especially ‘Tangerine’, with it’s poppy and bouncy hooks and the distinctive and eloquent vocals of Thomas Sanders.
One of my favourite songs of the evening, ‘Not In Control’, is a great example of their ability to propel a song to an exciting synchronised apex. Building the song through a wonderfully motorik beat, adding layers of blissful keys and guitars and even some well-used vocoder, the song swells to bursting point – only the sheer number of people in the venue, and in your very close proximity, controls your need for liberated movement.
The main set closes with of one of the band’s most recent major hits, ‘Dusseldorf’, which has strong traces of Franz Ferdinand’s sharp and punchy guitar approach, along with the soft synths we have come to love over the set. But it’s not long after they say their brief goodbyes that the band are cheered for their return to the stage for a double whammy of crowd favourites. First is ‘Christina’, which really shows off the structured bass-lines delivered by Cattermoul that form the core of Teleman’s catchy, attention-grabbing style. Lastly we are treated with ‘Glory Hallelujah’, with Thomas’s vocals soaring through the repeated chorus to close the set on a euphoric high.
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