That Was The Show That Was: Cut Copy | House Of Blues, Boston | 16 Nov.

[PHOTO CREDIT: Alex Sugg, special to Clicky Clicky] The Clicky Clicky brand doesn't exactly connote dance music, but every now and then the ol' dancing shoes get broken out for another hurrah. Such was the case last Saturday night, when Aussie dance crew Cut Copy boogied into Boston for an early show at the House Of Blues. Fun ensued.

Touring in support of their expansive new record Free Your Mind, the quartet delivered on their shape-shifting sound in the live forum in a big way, deftly sliding between warm-hearted indie-pop and full-on euphoric house grooves from song to song. In a dramatic display of showmanship, the band was presented behind a large transparent screen as the opening synth stabs from Free Your Mind blared through the front of house speakers. While the timing was slightly off, Cut Copy's emergence from behind the screen as the opening bass tone of the title track dropped was still a thrilling bit of rock star theater. It was also a fitting entrance for Cut Copy, a band perhaps more attuned to getting a party going than agonizing over the implications of their stage show moves (the screen shtick notwithstanding).

The band's hour-and-a-half-long set, which drew heavily from the new record, was a pitch-perfect display of festival-friendly dance-pop, all flailing limbs and eyes-closed sing-a-longs. The foursome's secret weapon lies in the hands of bassist Ben Browning. While never eclipsing the other instruments in the mix -- which, by the way, was pristine -- Mr. Browning's tones routinely enlarged songs to mammoth proportions, filling the space with room-shaking bounce. 'Twas impressive stuff for a band whose records typically lean more heavily toward the front end (and narrow end) of the term dance-pop.

While proclaiming affinity for whatever city you're performing in on a given night is a time-honored and somewhat patronizing bit for touring acts, it's especially fun to be a tour stop the band actually loves to play in. In this case, Cut Copy were really psyched to be in Boston, a fact the assembled crowd could certainly feel. Call it naiveté, but we seriously doubt they'll play a single show on this tour better than the one they threw down on Saturday. -- Dillon Riley

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