When Cults played ACL Fest in 2011, they held down a bigger stage. The NYC duo and its band was just steadying a live act after the buzz of their eponymous full-length bow. Returning to Zilker Park Sunday on the last tour stop for second album Static, the Brooklyn quintet swelled the tiny Austin Ventures stage with a roaring haze of pop-tinged shoegaze.
Sound issues challenged the band early as techs scrambled around the stage and frontwoman Madeline Follin’s powerful vocals were buried under a roar of guitar and percussion. Then “Abducted” exploded and “Always Forever” brought the full force of the band’s distorted R&B rhythms to bear as the singer swayed and let her voice drift within the static.
Like the previous weekend’s performance, the set peaked with a stunning cover of the Motels’ “Total Control,” a percussive pummel rolling under Follin’s breathy vocals on a song that suits her perfectly and exhumes some of the band’s deeper influences. Likewise, the amp blowout and pinched chorus of “I Can Hardly Make You Mine,” plus a scowling duet with Cults co-founder Brian Oblivion on “Bumper,” showcased the group’s full range without compromising any pop gleam.
Demonstrating broader appeal in the penultimate spot, “Go Outside” predictably set off the biggest response as the crowd sang along. Then dropped anthemic closer “Keep Your Head Up,” proving yet again that Cults dispenses far more than merely a debut hit.
This article appears in October 10 • 2014.
