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May 02, 2023 By Andy Robbins Photography by Andy Robbins Web Exclusive

TVAM’s Joe Oxley has fronted various live incarnations to bring to life his recorded work. Whether as a solo performer or when joined by others, the one constant has been the retro cut-and-shut visuals which synchronize perfectly with his kaleidoscopic krautrock.

Whether played on his family’s old television set, wheeled out like you’re about to watch a documentary in GCSE geography, or projected across the wall behind them, there has always been something to distract the eye from the personnel on stage.

Tonight though, the videos are beamed onto a side wall, easily missed for anyone who’s gaze is fixed firmly on the Boileroom’s snug stage. Instead, Oxley, along with Jason Hughes on synths and Liam Stewart on drums, is shrouded in a cloak of ominous red light broken only by the venue’s unmissable neon sign that blinks into life behind them. Maybe it’s deceptive, but this stripped back spectacle makes the trio sound more raw and heavier than ever.

The setlist unsurprisingly leans heavily towards last year’s High Art Lite, kicking off with the album’s opener “Future Flesh”. It’s a statement of intent as the dreamy daze of synth swells is shattered by Oxley’s saturated riff exploding to life.

The electronic-glam-stomp of “Every Day In Every Way” follows, like a futuristic robot army fighting a war to the soundtrack of “Ballroom Blitz”.

The giddy rush continues with “Piz Buin”, “Host” and “Double Lucifer” which all sound bigger and bolder than ever as Oxley’s reverb-soaked vocals wash over the monster-sized rhythms that provide rock solid foundations to the whole TVAM sound.

That’s not to say debut album highlights “These Are Not Your Memories”, “Psychic Data” and “Porsche Majeure” are any less emphatic. Fueled by the Death By Audio Fuzz War guitar pedal, designed by A Place To Bury Strangers’ Oliver Ackermann, it’s hardly a surprise that they offer their own glimpses of total sonic annihilation.

Instead, TVAM harness that dizzying rush of loud and distorted guitar riffs and channel them into dancefloor-ready bangers. There’s no better example than the set closing “Total Immersion”. It reaffirms that for a good morning, Britain should be waking up to TVAM.