nyctaper.com

The glitzy, gender-bending alter-ego of Toronto’s John O’Regan, Diamond Rings brought his ‘80s-inspired glam pop to Le Divan Orange Saturday afternoon as the not-so secret guest.

With his kitschy costumes, cheesy dance moves, and dinky keyboard lines overtop of programmed beats, there’s a lot to not like about O’Regan’s performance. But his ability to write a pop song and his endearing performance stops his act from becoming a novelty.

Playing from his series of 7-inchess as well as his upcoming debut Special Affections, O’Regan commanded the stage, dividing his time equally between guitar and keyboard. Bookended by the Pitchfork-approved “Show Me Your Stuff” and “All Yr Songs,” O’Regan’s set proved that simple is often better, and his straightforward and accessible songs elicited enthusiastic responses from the crowd. Though backed by a computer, his songs had a strangely human quality to them, and O’Regan performed with enough personality that it was clear he is sincere about his schtick. Plus, it’s hard not to smile at lyrics like, “In the summer weather we’ll put on sunscreen together/ I would not want your skin to burn.”