Meltdown Festival: Django Django at the Royal Festival Hall

The Royal Festival Hall must be an odd venue for any band to play in. It’s in the bowels of the Ballardian labyrinth that is the Southbank Centre, meaning that getting in involves a saunter through cavernous glass facades and sterile carpets. Instead of the usual stalls filled with thronging fans, there’s row upon row of seats, some of which are filled by those taking in a bit of culture by the Thames, rather than the performers’ devotees.

Yet it makes up for this strangeness in other ways: the acoustics are excellent, and Django Django (selected as performers by Meltdown Festival’s curator, Christine and the Queens) make full use of them. Throughout, frontman Vincent Neff’s aching falsetto bounces off the Festival Hall’s scientifically designed interior, and both their pleasantly meandering art rock and more thumping efforts sound fantastic.

As one of indie rock’s less-discovered psychedelic gems, Django Django have been offering up catchy art rock since their self-titled 2012 debut. Their 2021 album, Glowing in the Dark was something of an eclectic masterpiece, as showcased by three of the four opening numbers, which each have their own appeal. There’s the dreamy Spirals and upbeat Right the Wrongs, with the wistful Waking Up completing their opening salvo.

Sprinkled liberally throughout the set are samples of forthcoming album Off Planet – which, from the sound of Dum Dum, will feature a more electronic, dance-heavy sound, though tracks like Golden Cross and Come Down show they have not abandoned dreamy psychedelia entirely. By the second half of the gig, the crowd has been snake-charmed from their seats and it’s then that things really get going. A thumping cover of Daft Punk’s Around the World (perhaps a nod to festival curator’s French nationality) is a particular highlight amid the whirring excellence of Django Django’s usual oeuvre.

It’s their breakthrough hit, Default, though, that is still the unquestionable highlight, more than a decade after its release. It’s just so infectious. Combining the strengths of Neff’s floaty voice with a catchy riff that seems to marry post-punk with a hint of hillbilly country rock, it’s a song that brings to mind hipster cowboys riding off into the sunset, fuelled by craft moonshine.

After that, closer Wor, also from their 2012 debut and encore Champagne, from 2018’s Marble Skies, could be anti-climatic but serve as a nice coda before Meltdown’s patrons wander out to a balmy London evening and its own Waterloo sunset. 

Mark Worgan
Photos: Miguel de Melo 

For further information and future events visit Django Django’s website here.

Watch the video for the single Default here: