LIVE: Darwin Deez @ Village Underground, Shoreditch 23.07.15

With a set featuring new records from the upcoming album and punky Madrid quartet Hinds stirring up the crowd, Darwin Deez gave London independent record label Lucky Number a birthday to remember. Celebrating the 10^th year of the label, Oscar, Hinds and Darwin Deez brought electric sets and enviable dance routines (we’re looking at you, Darwin).

Darwin Deez gave the sold out show a taste of what to expect on forthcoming album ‘Double Down’ which is due to be released on 18^th September with tracks including ‘Time Machine,’ ‘Bag of Tricks’ and Radio 1’s recent hottest record ‘Kill Your Attitude’ featuring in the set. The latter a track that has already gathered momentum with the Shoreditch crowd singing along to every line. The new tracks fit into the band’s set flawlessly, continuing the dorky pop feel that the curly haired thinker is loved for. Despite the encouraging reception to the new songs, Darwin’s previous hits still remain the highlight. The cleverly nerdy ‘DNA’ – which sees everyone who’s ever aced GCSE biology give themselves a pat on the back for acknowledging the chromosomes references – unites the crowd in trying and hilariously failing to replicate the adorkable couple dancing in the video. ‘Sing it like you mean it’ urges the eponymous frontman as the crowd launches into a word-for-word karma condemning rendition of ‘Bad Day,’ before ending on the impossible-to-hate ‘Radar Detector.’ It’s difficult to deny Darwin Deez full praise when they’ve managed to leave the booze-drenched audience jammed into the converted warehouse of Village Underground as cheerfully happy and uninhibited as they have.

It’s also difficult not to mention the choreographed dance routines that the entire band has perfected for tonight’s show. The dance intervals between songs have become as well-appreciated by Darwin Deez’s audiences as their boppy pop tracks. The band are well honed, they know their skills and they provide exactly what is wanted from them; from the floppy haired, lanky singer’s awkwardly impressive moves to Willow Smith’s ‘Whip My Hair’ to bassist Mash Dee’s front-of-stage tap dance solo. Darwin Deez have triumphed this evening giving Lucky Number an effortlessly cool sonic gift and proving to the crowd that their instantly likeable aura is here to stay.

Ashleigh Grady