Attendees at The Sylvee in Madison, Wisconsin bustled with excitement as thousands entered the cavernous central music hall to experience the sold-out show featuring two Aussie Electronic Dance Music trios with Indie roots, RÜFÜS DU SOL and Crooked Colours, on the Americas 2020 Tour. This anticipated spring tour gathered fans from across the Midwest and beyond to sell out not only this Thursday night set but both weekend tour dates at The Fillmore in Minneapolis the following two nights! RÜFÜS DU SOL will be continuing this tour in the United States only until the middle of March, and I am telling you that you do NOT want to miss out.
Crooked Colours opened up the night with their soulful, bouncy indie beats and the deep red rocks of the endless Australian deserts adorned prominently across the stage. Phil Slabber, Leon Debaughn and Liam Merrett-Park performed many hits from their most recent 2019 album Lantaga and earlier discography in a beautiful sequence. I was standing at the top of the stairs walking into the lower pit of The Sylvee when the trio started “Perfect Run” from the hit debut album Vera. The downtempo indie vibes were amplified by the energy of the performers onstage and took you on a journey to the edge of the desert at sunset. Perth-based Crooked Colours will return to Australia after this tour, so now is the time to catch them live!
Fans waited in great anticipation as the stage was reset for Aussie-trio RÜFÜS DU SOL. The red rock fixtures from earlier were replaced by raised platforms, giving all a great view of magic that was about to engulf them. Tyrone Lindqvist, Jon George and a substitute drummer for James Hunt opened with dramatic flashing lights and powerful beats to draw in an already wide-eyed, panty-moistened crowd. The expertly curated set beckoned fans through the darkness of a desert at night to an out-of-body experience at an oasis of electronic beats and spiritual enlightenment. The lighting design captured the mood RÜFÜS DU SOL so successfully ignited, flowing from warm, loving reds to cooling, passionate blues as they guided fans through the heat map of their own hearts, opening up chords not yet struck within. The entire crowd was vibing with the Aussie takeover on the Americas 2020 Tour, as cheers and tears flooded the venue in equal volumes while RÜFÜS DU SOL broke us down to a level of rawness none of us were truly ready for.
Tyrone Lindqvist at The Sylvee | Photos by Chris Lotten Jon George at The Sylvee | Photos by Chris Lotten
The Sylvee is just over a year old and is growing up so fast, attracting some of the biggest artists to Madison for their events. Located in the Capitol East District in the ever-expanding city of Madison, fans can spend their time before and after the show amongst dozens of happening bars and restaurants just up the road from the historic Wisconsin State Capitol building. The venue is smartly designed to include a lower pit area, a wrap-around upper deck on the main level, and an upper balcony with two rows of seating. For a venue that can hold 2,500 attendees, it’s impressive how the space opened up to allow all music lovers to fully experience RÜFÜS DU SOL on stage. I’ll definitely be going back!
View from the third deck of The Slyvee | Photo by Michelle Stocker RÜFÜS DU SOL performing at The Sylvee | Photo by Chris Lotten
* RÜFÜS DU SOL on Stage Featured Image Via Chris Lotten*
