of Montreal at The Scala 02.08.07

In any land far far away, it would take a powerful and exotic creature to turn torture festive, but electro pop chameleon Kevin Barnes's flamboyant psychosis did just that at the Scala, lacing the mental unrest that permeated most recent album Hissing Fauna with twisted nonchalance, and a gaudy stage show that made the comparable Rufus Wainwright look positively conservative. Dancing in front of images of duck-horses fondling each other (seriously), chic basslines rumbled around Barnes' pouting, often downright bitchy (yet comical) delivery (on "She's A Rejector" in particular), whilst a whole host of post-Brothers Grimm characters fought around him. "The Past Is A Grotesque Animal", "Hissing Fauna"'s 10 minute brainstorm, toned down the vibrance of the set as Barnes spat his personal dissatisfactions out to richochet inside his crystal encrusted bell jar, coming on like a rainbow-coloured Ian Curtis. Returning for an encore of older songs, Of Montreal blew the roof off their fairytale kingdom.