I felt like I was listening to an edgy new wave pop band ready to tackle the forces of the Beatles at Andy Warhol’s factory – although without the celebrity audience. Fast forward 30 years and in fact I was watching Van She perform in surprisingly intimate warehouse style at the Met. Given their unprecedented success and the popularity of their new album V, such an intimate performance will definitely be unparalleled.
It was a school night and the group had just recovered from a killer set at Splendour In The Grass, so the attendance wasn’t expected to be high. And it wasn’t, but by the time the ticket-holders arrived during their second track, Van She had the young crowd salivating and pinching themselves to ensure they were not dreaming this exclusive experience.
Changes was played early in the short set, which only skimmed on older hits. It was followed shortly by Strangers, the biggest track of the night and one to maintain the energy. The red wine-guzzling, bleach blonde frontman Matt Van Schie drew plenty of female admirers determined to share photographs (and other things I’m sure) with him at the end. The band then adorned V emblazoned varsity style jackets for the encore, which drew passionate responses from the crowd ahead of a massive finish.
After a short delay, the top balcony curtain withdrew to reveal Knife Machine, who used Ableton to successfully secure new fans. The anticipation for Van She Tech was almost too much for a few who left, but for most who stayed it was as if the DJs were playing in our own bedrooms. We were generously rewarded with a dancefloor sparse enough to shuffle out every single inch. Thankfully, Van She Tech gave a thorough run of their renowned remixes for the faithful.
No one knew the gig was going to be as personal as it was, but the small yet enthusiastic crowd did not deter the band. They powered on, clearly feeding off the reactions of the fans. And, whilst there weren’t celebrities in this ‘warehouse’ style party, Van She audiences in the years to come will be scattered with stars reluctantly admitting the band was famous for 15 minutes longer than they were.
