Laneway

It’s a swelteringly hot Australia Day that sees the start of the nationwide St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival in Brisbane this year. There’s barely a cloud to be seen and temperatures are in the 30s as punters stream into the RNA Showgrounds.

Camp Cope are here to kick things off, their set full of energy and feels and the trio owning the stage and their place within Australian music after a huge breakout year in 2016. Julia Jacklin is onstage after, her bluesy sound and smoky voice allowing the crowd a brief period of respite, her recent Like A Version cover of The Strokes’ Someday going over a treat, as does lead single Pool Party, a sentiment everyone sweating their souls out can get behind. Also coming in hot with the hazy summer feels are Chicago outfit Whitney, whose mellow, breezy 70s soft rock throwback sound washes out over the baking crowd to almost hallucinogenic effect, Golden Days positively euphoric in delivery.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Op4HT0-W428

One of the brightest young stars on the bill follows them in Tash Sultana, who took to the stage just hours before coming in at number three on Triple J’s Hottest 100 in what was a triumphant day for her. Sultana is utterly captivating and absolutely shreds the guitar in a way that has the audiences minds melting as they sit on tenterhooks for her entire set. Her journey to here makes a moment like this all the more amazing to behold.

It’s a quick scoot over to the Spinning Top Stage to catch one of Tasmania’s best exports to the rest of the world in Luca Brasi with their hearts sewn permanently to their sleeves. It’s peak heat and the mosh threatens to border on suffocating right around a delirious Anything Near Conviction.

King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard are the batshit conductors of the most frenzied moshpit of the day, Gamma Knife grabbing the crowd by the throat and threatening to leave the tent in rubble before Sydney’s Gang Of Youths get a chance to roll in. They’re as thunderous as always and evoke every emotion conceivable with monolithic renditions of Poison Drum, Strange Diseases and a Magnolia the whole crowd nothing short of bellows back at them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZAP0SE82ic

Some fans may have been left with a bitter taste in their mouth at Young Thug’s withdrawal from the event after so much hype, but 11th hour replacements and local heroes Dune Rats step up to the plate in a big way. It seems like it would make a band’s job so much easier when virtually every single song is a firm crowd favourite and Dunies definitely enjoy that luxury, new songs Scott Green and Bullshit sliding in seamlessly with the old and the band scarcely sounding sharper.

A.B. Original, also acting as today’s hosts, put on an absolute belter of a set as the sun begins to set and finally provide some relief, Briggs and running mate Trials are absolutely fiery in delivery and oozing nonstop charisma and chemistry from beginning to end. On what is such a contentious day for them, the fury and disgust is so palpable in every single one of their songs, January 26 enjoying its Invasion Day debut to rapturous reception.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZ9qeX4gUeo

After sitting through a bit of Tycho and being mesmerised by the crowd and the sound, it’s time for Nick Murphy, who hits all the right notes and leaves the crowd breathless. There are more than a few tears as I look around the crowd in moments and if there was anyone in attendance who didn’t know the words to Talk Is Cheap I’ll be damned.

And then it’s time for Tame Impala and the return of perhaps Australia’s biggest rock export of the last decade. Despite a hard slog of touring their amazing Currents, the Perth outfit don’t show an ounce of fatigue even though the majority of the crowd could make a case for heat exhaustion. Let It Happen billows throughout the tent like a cool breeze, as does Feels Like We Only Go Backwards, the night air humid and buzzing with atmosphere as Kevin Parker and co are received as kings by the Brisbane faithful.

And with that it’s off into the night with either work or having to make a convincing sick phone call in the morning looming for many. Worth it indeed for what was an absolutely fantastic celebration of music, much of it right from our own backyard. On a day that seems to split the nation in half every year, Laneway was nothing but positive and respectful vibes all-round.

Image: Laneway

Another Laneway done and dusted, and another almighty comedown to suffer through. This comedown is one that only comes from an unreal day of magical music moments, and this year provided more than it’s fair share. These are the best bits of Brisbane’s St Jerome’s Laneway Festival for 2016:

SOPHIE but not QT

Splitting their set between two of PC Music‘s biggest names, my expectations were pretty high for these two. I have been following their strange and intriguing musical careers for a while now, and I was thrilled to finally get the chance to catch them both in action. SOPHIE took to the stage first; his rollercoaster brand of electronic, with huge builds and drops that change quickly enough to give you musical whiplash created an unreal atmosphere as everyone tried their best to dance to the erratic, unpredictable music. It’s not the most accessible music by any means, and you are totally forgiven for not “getting it”, but there is something about how bizarre it is that has me hooked. Both acts are more performance artists than musicians, holding up a mirror to the music industry to show how it really is and pushing boundaries to see just how much they can get away with. It was enthralling from start to end, and when QT took to the decks, the Red Bull/Future Classic tent was a writhing pit of bodies. However, I’m not entirely sure what happened, but the vibe shifted dramatically as QT launched into her saccharine pop set. Perhaps it was the time slot, clashing with key players The Internet and The Smith Street Band, or the persistent rain, but whatever happened, it was a strange and underwhelming end to what was a thrilling beginning.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8fwWZD159k

Thundercat, Thundercat, Thundercat

As far as technicality goes, Thundercat was probably one of the most advanced and talented musicians on the bill. Not to overshadow anyone else playing (Lord knows there were some extremely talented musicians in their own right on the lineup), but there is something about Thundercat’s total devotion to his bass guitar that had me utterly transfixed. It was tough dragging myself away from FIDLAR and the raucous moshpit they were riling up over at the Never Let It Rest Stage, but the torn feeling I was experiencing as I headed over for the remainder of Thundercat’s set vanished as soon as I heard him play. The best part of the set was when he dropped the impeccable Kendrick Lamar track, Complexion. His bass sounded totally sublime as he glided his way through the number, his backing band getting down as they worked through the track. Although the crowd was surprisingly smaller than I expected, this was a special moment that I felt lucky to be a part of. Read our interview with Thundercat here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Nq3Ls6kzeE

DIIV’s triumphant return

DIIV have had a rough couple of years. They were at the pinnacle of their career back in 2012, when an unfortunate, casual incident involving heroin and the police saw everything come crashing down. Since then, frontman Zachary Cole Smith has endeavoured to not only get straight and clean, but to deliver the album we were all waiting for, and reward those loyal to DIIV with the record they deserve. Is The Is Are is that record. It’s a behemoth with 17 expansive, sprawling tracks, and in the lead up to its release it seemed DIIV may finally be on their way to being back on top. Laneway marked their return to the scene, and what a return it was. Playing to a small but nonetheless adoring crowd, Smith greeted screaming fans with “Hi, we’re called DIIV and we’re from New York City” before launching into their tremendous set. Featuring a mix of new and old tracks, it was enough to bring a tear to my eye as they ripped into Doused, ending what was one of the best sets of the day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KI79GPXAICM

Grimes showing everyone how it’s done

A festival set can be a tough one to pull off. You’re sharing the stage with countless other bands, you’re playing to a crowd that is increasingly weary after their big day, and you don’t exactly have the luxury of having a lot at your disposal in terms of stage #aesthetic. However, if you’re Grimes, you don’t actually care. Never to do something without giving her all, Claire Boucher marked her return to Australia (the last time she was here was in 2012) with an all-out set up and onstage extravaganza. Back up dancers, extensive set ups for herself and her friend HANA (who supported her at her sideshows), and a setlist so jam-packed she barely had time to speak between songs, Grimes absolutely killed it. Starting off with her comeback single, Flesh without Blood, it was full throttle from start to finish and it was a marvel to watch unfold. Special moments included the astounding Genesis, the breakthrough Oblivion and the frenetic closer of Kill V. Maim. Let’s just hope Grimes comes back sooner rather than later.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2EJMd7ZN7w

Honourable Mentions:

GoldLink – for dropping Justin Bieber‘s Sorry midset
FIDLAR – for getting the crowd so riled up it almost turned into a riot
Shamir – for his nonchalant, shoulder-shrugging delivery of his sassy lyrics and incredibly fun tracks
Flume – for reminding everyone why he is one of the biggest artists in the whole world

Image via brisbane.laneway.com