Acceptable in the 80s: La Roux at T in the Park 2010 Pic: © Drew Farrell
Is it just me who thinks that Elly Jackson of La Roux - for they are actually a duo, lest we forget - sounds like a castrato that's just been winded after receiving a stray boot to the solar plexus? (Perhaps a blow that’s been self-administered, given tonight's energetic aerobics across the King Tuts Wah Wah Hut stage...)
Not that that's necessarily a bad thing - you're certainly not likely to mistake her for any of the myriad soulless singers that litter the audition stages of reality talent shows.
However, it can be a bit wearing, even though she should be cut some slack for powering through tonight despite a sore throat.
La Roux's 80s synthpop vibe is aptly reflected in the evening’s accompanying decor with electronic drums, a retro backdrop and even fake golden Palm Trees strewn around the stage. Just a few more moustaches and Magnum PI would feel right at home here...
Resembling the bastard offspring of Annie Lennox and a randy pixie, Jackson nips nimbly around all corners of the stage, providing the show with a level of energy that thankfully injects the resplendent superficiality of their sound with some slightly more substantial undertones - albeit not a great deal.
But though it does seem vapid at times, there's little doubt that the one-two knockout finale of In For The Kill and Bulletproof are superior pop singles, both rapturously received by the many caterwauling spectators. Anyway, why on earth should we be after anything deeper when we're revelling in the first night of T in the Park? Best leave that for the next day’s hangover...
Best to relax and bob about awkwardly from side to side in remembrance of those times long since past - but now somewhat resurrected - when people partied self-consciously in neon-saturated discotheques, and La Roux was still in diapers. What glorious days I imagine those were!
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