Birthday bashes are usually a helluva time, but they’re oh so irresistible when a whole bunch of stellar bands are on the bill. Sydney’s beloved Oxford Art Factory is celebrating it’s 10th Birthday this year and to commemorate it, they’re throwing a party called FREEDOM; a four part series of free events curated by music/art collective VOLUMES.
Off with a bang, the first instalment brought together the likes of Body Type, Imperial Broads, Pearls, Felix Lush and The Gooch Palms. And with Round 2 rolling in, things are heating up nicely with Aegean Sun, Sloan Peterson, Crocodylus, Betty & Oswald, Tropical Strength, Flowertruck, Julia Why?, and none other than The Lemon Twigs in the headline spot.
The Twigs have been making waves lately with the release of their debut LP Do Hollywood. Brothers Brian and Michael D’Addario are delightfully off-kilter and boast some intricate arrangements and delectable melodies on their latest record. Their look and sound are fairly removed from this era; it’s like Keith Moon, Pink Floyd and Procol Harum all entered the room at the same time and this is the result. They were in the country for Splendour in the Grass and their sole Sydney sideshow was a slammin’ free gig alongside some of the best talent going in Oz right now. We were stoked to say the very least.
Check out the shots below.
Crocodylus
Betty & Oswald
Tropical Strength
Flowertruck
The Lemon Twigs
Photos: Dani Hansen/Howl & Echoes
I’m only a handful of songs into Uptown Special, the recently released 2015 album by super-duper producer Mark Ronson, but it’s already an irresistible mix of retro funk and something that feels fresh and contemporary. It’s hip-shakingly, knee-wobbling dance-worthy – so good, in fact, that I felt the need to jam-out to it while in the kitchen making peppermint tea. Of course, I don’t need to explain all this – you’ve been gettin’ down to Uptown Funk since its release in November, and finding a new (or renewed) appreciation for Bruno Mars and his retro moves that feel straight out of a Michael Jackson video (think The Way You Make Me Feel, with less night-time, back-alley-stalker-creep). Or perhaps you’ve been hustling to the dirty, psychedelic groove of Daffodils, with Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker. There’s a lot to like on Uptown Special, and that’s only two singles in.
Feel like moving the boogie from the kitchen to the dancefloor? The super-sharp Ronson is putting on an intimate DJ set next Wed, Feb 4: Oxford Art Factory, Sydney. The pre-sale allocation is exhausted, so you better be quick-sticks when general release tickets go on sale tomorrow, Friday 30 January 2015 at 9am. With an 11pm set time it might be way past your bedtime on a school night, but if there was ever a reason to miss your ZZs, it’s a funk-fuelled DJ set from Ronson.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OWkLF2HLp0]
On a stifling Summer evening in Sydney, hundreds of punters packed themselves into the sweaty confines of Oxford Art Factory in anticipation of seeing one act: Odesza. With local Charles Murdoch opening up before the duo made their entrance, the difference between this performance and their last was palpable. Odesza’s last visit, at the Metro Theatre alongside Kele and Hayden James back in June, was a sparsely populated affair. Not as many people knew who the Seattle-based duo, which was lucky for those who did, and got to slip to the front of the mosh with relative ease and plenty of elbow room to dance.
But since then, Odesza, comprising of Harrison Mills and Clayton Knight, has taken off. Tonight was the first of two completely sold out shows, part of their mammoth international In Return World Tour.
Even Odesza themselves seemed to be in awe of their own success, shouting out at one point “Last time we were here no one knew who were were!” But now they had their own headline tour playing to a sold out crowd. The packed venue was heaving, with people even lining the entire ring of the upper level. Everyone was stoked to be there. Odesza was stoked to be there. You could tell from the very beginning, after exploding onto the stage with IPlayYouListen.
The crowd was momentarily taken off guard, before echoing Odesza’s gusto with ecstatic screams of excitement. The hypnotic power they opened up with carried through their entire performance, quickly whipping the crowd into a frenzy as they delivered an impossibly high energy set with tracks Koto and All We Need ft. Shy Girls, off their critically acclaimed 2014 album In Return (read our album review here.) The backdrop was a kaleidoscopic display of colours and images. The silhouettes of cacti were superimposed over a cityscape lit up at night, as bright lights pulsated in time to the beat.
One of the most entertaining things about Odesza is watching both Knight and Mills work in perfect harmony to deliver an incredible display of musical craftsmanship. In precise synchronicity, they turned the knobs and dials with the precision of a well-oiled machine, pumping out Sun Models and My Friends Never Die. Even when turned away from their decks and each other to play the drums, they were in time to each others’ rhythm. Their concentration was so complete that even a fan jumping up from the mosh, dancing between them gratuitously, couldn’t distract them from their performance.
Put your hands up for Seattle, I love that city
As the night progressed, the air became clogged with humidity. By the time Odesza launched into Say My Name, everyone was doused in sweat. Another fan managed to get up on stage, this time a girl, but was promptly escorted off stage by a disgruntled looking stage manager. It was by this time that the concert started to wind down and Odesza finished off with I Want You, before departing the stage much to the disappointment of the crowd. However, they reappeared shortly, reassuring everyone, “Of course we have more for you guys, come on!” before launching into their remixes of Zhu’s Faded and Slow Magic’s Waited 4 U.
And thus concluded a night of electronic awesomeness. I think it really signified an epochal moment for Odesza, demonstrated by the enthusiasm of every single person there. In a relatively short amount of time, they’ve managed to accrue a phenomenal level of success and the kind of recognition that normally takes years to achieve. But that is simply a testament to a pair enormously talented artists capitalising on their ability to produce incredible music.
Odesza will be playing another show at OAF on Thurs Jan 22. It’s sold out, but you can still buy tickets to their NO.SLEEP afterparty at Goodgod, alongside Juan (RUFUS) and more. Click here for more info and here to buy a ticket.
In the meantime, have a listen to their amazing second album In Return below.[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/playlists/50200154″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]
Photography: Chris Elder
The wind is whipped, the spirits are stirred and Young Magic have come out to play. Friday nights on Oxford Street are known for involving the unexpected and surreal, and inside Oxford Art Factory on November 21st the surrealism was well seasoned. On the first night of their Australian tour, Young Magic brought international flavours and simmering mysticism to the stage, with Indonesian vocalist Melati Melay and Australian producer Isaac Emmanuel commanding the room with sound that invigorates and visuals to captivate.
The crowd was sparse at OAF, the dark industrial space feeling less its usual grungy self and more downtown loft as the young and magnetic cool crowd sipped red wine under glowing exposed bulbs. Avivva and Phondupe filled the space with soothing electronica as the crowd filtered in, loopy experimental remixes and tracks from their EPs providing a rich backdrop for a Friday night wind-down. Opening for Young Magic was soloist Alex Ward aka Moon Holiday, who with just one girl, a laptop and a looping desk created gorgeous spacescapes of moans and calls to set the tone of the evening. Seeing a female artist producing the beats as well as providing the vocals is always a treasure, and while Ward has had great success collaborating with artists such as Flume and Samaris, she appeared in her element behind the board on her own. Her sound is transportative, and the concrete and steel of OAF was slowly turned into an overgrown grotto as her trickling and twinkling beats filled the muggy air. I enjoyed her style of electronica with natural tones, sounding earthy and grounded rather than metallic or jarring. Her tracks are filled with drips and snaps, even a panpipe or two, and its liquid trippy nature would make it a come-down dream.
Young Magic made their entrance via a projection of slow-mo monastic dances and meditations, swirling robes and painted faces filling the walls as their silhouettes appeared on stage. Two sets of electronic drums, a sampling pad and Melati’s graphic jumpsuit dominated the space, and from the first thudding bassline the audience was hooked. With long jet black hair and a startling stare, Melati was a beautiful banshee giving it her all and absolutely committing to the spectacle of the show. The sound was part assault-with-a-blunt-object, part interplanetary-orgasm as the crash and call of tracks like “Night in the Ocean” shot reverb daggers through the crowd while Melati’s spectral, acheing voice pulled you into a hypnotic sway.
The animalistic syncopation of the performance was absolutely captivating, with Melati twisting through pagan dance moves while Emmanuel ground up on the synth desk. The stage was in constant flowing motion, and the sensation of being submerged in stormy, sublime chaos was only amplified by the ever-changing projections and haunting stage presence of Melati. When the final beat was struck and the ebb and flow of Young Magic’s stuttering waves settled, the blissful crowd drifted rather than walked out the door, dream-state complete.
Young Magic is now touring the rest of the east coast.
22-Nov-14 / Melbourne, Australia Shebeen
24-Nov-14 / Victoria, Australia Strawberry Fields Festival
27-Nov-14 / Brisbane, Australia Black Bear Lodge
28-Nov-14 / Gold Coast, Australia Elsewhere