Busybee
Norgdom
Perth Music2007 Perth Good Vibrations Review
There is one thing that is certain when a Good Vibrations festival comes to town; the next day thousands of people are going to have sore calf muscles. Compared to other summer music festivals Good Vibrations is all about having a good time and dancing. I arrived at the beautiful Belvoir Amphitheatre in the early afternoon and already people were dancing everywhere – on the grass in front of the main stage, on the steps in front of the amphitheatre, under tents, in front of bars, waiting in line for the toilets and so on.
I got to the Amphitheatre stage (or Roots stage as it was called on the day) just in time to catch FDEL wrapping up his set. The crowd were loving the local DJ and were even more excited when another local (Optimus from Downsyde) joined FDEL onstage for a few songs.
Getting over to the main stage saw Sydney four piece Van She start their set to a growing crowd. With an 80’s sound that a lot of the crowd looked like they lived in anyway, Van She rocked out and funked out at the same time. Highlights were dedicating a song to a friend that is addicted to Ice, Sex City and Kelly.
Nightmares On Wax were next up on the Roots stage and it was the perfect spot for the crowd to just chill out and enjoy the music. Either dancing on the theatre steps or chatting to friends it seemed everyone was having a great time. The crowd was really building up at this stage of the day but even when someone accidentally bumped into me or stepped on my foot they made sure they apologized and wished me all the best for the day. It was definitely a great atmosphere.
It was the first time UK outfit Cicada had visited Perth and all the dancing that was occurring in front of the stage must have been a great site to see and a perfect introduction to the local dance scene. Although the heat was mentioned and Cicada front woman Heidrun Björnsdottir seemed a little uncomfortable due to the hot sun, some great tunes were played and enjoyed by all.
The ‘Godfather of Noyze’ Rahzel was highly anticipated on the Roots stage and was accompanied by DJ JS-One. I’ve seen many hip-hop artists before but Rahzel and JS-One really defined the genre on this day. Rahzel beat boxed not only with ease but was able to make it sound like there were four or five separate beat boxers on stage at once. One person dropping the beat, the chorus, the verse and the bass all at once is quite the spectacle and something everyone should experience. The definite highlight was ‘If Your Mother Only Knew’.
As it was announced that Jurassic 5 were splitting up after this tour, this performance was definitely one not to miss. And the super MC’s did not disappoint. Playing a full set of old songs, hits and songs off their most recent album, the now packed Roots stage were hanging off every rhyme. Speaking of hanging, half way through the set one Jurassic 5 fan decided it would be a good idea to climb one of the trees in the middle of the stage steps and hang off one of the branches. Well this didn’t last long and as he fell straight down onto the crowd underneath most were holding their breath thinking the worst. But after he signaled all was ok the entire crowd cheered and focused back on the act on stage.
Back on the main stage I only got to see a few songs by Sneaky Sound System but the good thing was that they left their radio songs to the end. ‘I Love It’, ‘Pictures’ and ‘Goodbye’ were all played at the end and with the sun finally set, the crowd were seeing the end of the night on the horizon.
Legends of hip hop Beastie Boys came out on stage dressed in suits and looked like they were ready for business. Besides the fact that they thought they were in Perf, MCA, Mike D, Ad-rock and Mixmaster Mike looked like they were really enjoying themselves. Tonight was their last show in Australia for this tour and after 20 years in music nobody knows how many tours are in the future. Many hits were played including Root Down, Intergalactic, No Sleep Til Brooklyn, Brass Monkey, Triple Trouble, So What‘cha Want, 3 MC’s And 1 DJ, Shake Your Rump, Body Movin and the finale was dedicated to George W. Bush: Sabotage.
Beastie Boys - Intergalactic
Jurassic 5
FDEL feat. Optimus from Downsyde
