Crooked Colours

Gifted with a vulnerable, nuanced singer in Phil Slabber, Perth trio Crooked Colours are ideally suited to the emotional side of dance music, not unlike Cut Copy before them. Right from their breakthrough 2017 single “Flow”, Crooked Colours have retained enough lessons from their origins as party-starting DJs to establish themselves as widescreen festival favourites while earning blockbuster remixes from Alison Wonderland and Bag Raiders. But it’s all about balance: Observe how Slabber’s feathery falsetto complements the snappy club summons of “Love Language”, or how he fulfills a smoldering duet with Kiwi electro-pop royalty Ladyhawke on “Never Dance Alone”. Even when paired with guest rapper Ivan Ooze on “I Hope You Get It”, keyboardist/producer Leon Debaughn’s glossy synth wobbles and drummer Liam Merrett-Park’s molasses-paced beats bask in an unrushed subtlety that makes for a sneaky sort of earworm.