Yeasayer, Silver Columns, Babe Shadow

I enter Shunt, the many-chambered venue under the arches of London Bridge station, and walk through the Romanesque vaulted tunnel towards the neon lights and the London leg of Topman’s CTRL Student Tour: a five-stop tour of England bringing free live music to students in Newcastle, Leeds, Exeter, London and Nottingham.

I’m looking forward to a right knees-up London-style, but the entertainment is unceremoniously announced by Channel Four presenter Nick Grimshaw – broadcast to the rather pitiful crowd on two small LCD screens (each event will be broadcast on Channel Four this summer). Nick allegedly chose these bands himself, as did all five Channel Four presenters, but it doesn’t feel very personal. I was hoping for a bit more pizazz.

First on stage are London based band Babe Shadow: Tom Cawte, David Thornley, Mark Thorne and Sam Nadel. Despite the unsatisfactory acoustics rendering the lyrics almost inaudible, Tom Cawte’s smooth voice rings out, accompanied by laid-back, calypso-esque, guitar twanging. Reminiscent of the Mystery Jets and Vampire Weekend but less busy, their buoyant lovelorn songs feel like an Arcadian soundtrack to summer. It’s an uplifting beginning, but the crowd is infuriatingly non-plussed. Where are all the students and why are they not enthused?!

The unlikely-looking duo of Adem Ilhan and Johnny Lynch are Silver Columns, and they skank in rhythmic unison to their inventive bubbling electro-pop, behind a mountain of electronic equipment. Although the beat is decidedly electronic, the bass is strong, and the vocals are "song-y" and clearly enunciated. Hot Chip-esque, their music is entrancing, heartfelt, multi-layered and fun. They are so enthusiastic you have to smile, and when they jump off-stage into the crowd - megaphone and maracas in hand - I am a little embarrassed by the failure of the crowd to get excited.

Headlining tonight is Yeasayer, the experimental-rock-come-electronic-pop band from Brooklyn. A lot of people have a lot of good things to say about Yeasayer, and I am ready to be blown away in an ambient haze of multi-layered, psychedelic, world music. But as Chris Keating, Ira Wolf Tuton, Anand Wilder, Ahmed Gallab and Jason Trammell take their positions and adopt an attitude of earnest nonchalance I become concerned.

Yeasayer’s melodies and harmonies are tight and upbeat, but there is an element of the automatic that renders them too 'cool' for enthusiasm. The electronic drums and percussion announce eclectic influences from house to folk to samba, but it sounds over-produced and plodding. The crowd continues to be sober and unforgiving and front man Chris Keating mortifyingly observes: 'You guys seem very tired'. Maybe the dreadful acoustics have muddied the beat, or perhaps they’re having an off day, but there is a distinguishable lack of passion from all concerned. Just in time, Chris finally gets excited - smiling and jiving to a cracking rendition of the charming pop melody Ambling Alp. He even gets the glacial audience singing along.