MKTO
Brisbane Convention Centre                                    24.04.2014

Last week saw MKTO put in a perfectly adequate effort in Brisbane as part of their ‘Thankyou’ tour.  Their vocals were solid as expected, they expended a sufficient amount of energy to keep the crowd on their feet, and they threw in the necessary mentions of the word ‘Brisbane’ to satiate the local audience.  There was nothing exceptional, nor anything disastrous – making it an enjoyable but forgettable experience.

The duo – Malcolm Kelly and Tony Oller – have good charisma and their singing and rapping combo works well with their pop/rock sound. A juxtaposition to the unusually heavy instrumental piece that kicked off proceedings, but once the two emerged on stage they simmered down into the catchy tunes and vibe that didn’t peak or drop for the entire set, opening with ‘What You’re Looking For’.

MKTO are a seemingly constant fixture in the Top 40 – releasing their debut album in January, they seem to have had a crazy kind of whirlwind success. A sentiment reflected by the short concert runtime – they came, they played, they left. No banter.  The duo smashed out some of their most popular songs early – ‘God Only Knows’ and latest single ‘American Dream’ being knocked over in the first 20 minutes.  Again, everything sounded exactly as you’d expect.

‘Forever Until Tomorrow’, ‘Heartbreak Holiday’ and ‘Hide Your Girl’ ensued without a fuss, and each member had their respective solo moments.  Tony with lovely ballad ‘Wasted’, and Malcolm with the fun ‘Nowhere’ – showing that both are talented, but alone they probably aren’t strong enough for solo careers. Covers of Pharrell Williams smash hit ‘Happy’ and Lorde’s ‘Royals’ were also included, but to be honest they were a bit bland – those songs are so overplayed that they need spicing up if they’re going to be covered.

MKTO finished their set with the insanely catchy ‘Classic’, ‘Get Out Of My Way’ and debut single ‘Thankyou’ which were obvious crowd favourites, departing without fuss and having entertained, but nothing more.

One facet that does make MKTO stand out is that delightfully, their lyrics are about the struggles (albeit picture perfect ones) of the young generation and of course their desire to procure girls.  There’s no drugs, sex, swearing and scandal (yet) which makes their music suitable for all ages to enjoy – something that’s seems quite rare these days, so props for that. But in terms of their live shows, only fans should attend – others may tire quickly of the same act over and over again.

Danielle Muir