Live Review: Majical Cloudz, Sui Zhen

Sui Zhen slowly but steadily wins over the audience with her distinctly modern brand of offbeat, '80s-inspired pop. She proves herself to be a proficient singer, guitarist, producer and keyboardist and, best of all, her songs have actual hooks.

Singer Devon Welsh and producer Matthew Otto of Majical Cloudz assume their respective places on stage. Welsh stands up for a few beats, exuding unbelievable amounts of nervous energy, blinking and nodding his head compulsively. His red dress shirt is tucked into worn black jeans. His recent buzz cut accentuates the bug-eyed anxiety on his face. This guy is a genuine oddball. The stage is bare aside from a lone disco ball hanging above the pair, which adds to the high school talent show vibe. Everything is brightly and evenly lit, as if they don't want any stage trickery to generate excitement or distract from the songs.

As he begins singing Disappeared from last year's Are You Alone?, Welsh's eyes are constantly scanning the audience. He seems determined to make sustained eye contact with every person in the room. This doesn't come across as a supremely confident act, or one aimed to intimidate. You get the sense that Welsh feels it is important that we do this to understand each other, and that it's as unnatural to him as it is to us. Indeed, Welsh doesn't appear to be any more comfortable onstage than anyone else in the room would be. During If You're Lonely he sings about the difficulty he has with believing he can be loved. His nervous tics and nods almost look like he's struggling to accept the love the audience is giving him. He sings each lyric as if it's the most important thing he could possibly communicate to another human being at that moment. Matthew Otto's simple, ambient loops and layers beautifully underscore Welsh's commanding vocals. If you can un-glue your eyes from the singer, Otto is also a compelling presence, slow dancing with his synth.

It is difficult to evaluate or choose highlights from what is essentially an hour of a person baring their soul. I Do Sing For You is indescribably stunning. Bugs Don't Buzz is literally shiver-inducing. After just under an hour, Welsh explains that the duo will play two more songs. "There's a disingenuousness to encores," he says. "So this will be the last song and then the next one will be our encore." As with everything else about Majical Cloudz, it is simple and honest and leaves you aching for more.