Aussie Immersion
By Michael Bertin, Fri., March 14, 2014
Dub Fx
9pm, Maggie Mae'sBenjamin Stanford uses loops, mostly vocal, to create backing tracks over which he raps. It's a mélange of techno street reggae that's helped him turn busking into an internationally viable career. Not bad for a dude with a mic and some pedals.
Thief
9pm, Maggie Mae's RooftopThief is PJ Wolf, who ditched the guitars and drums for a computer and changed his name to Thief Urban, then just Thief. His live background gives him a leg up when approaching super shiny software music.
Seekae
9:45pm, the MadisonThe Sydney trio purveys lush post-dub ambient IDM. Decoder Ring-y.
High Tension
10pm, Headhunters PatioDon't fuck with High Tension singer Karina Utomo. The band will be rocking out sort of metalesque when she goes from singing to a wicked banshee scream. Badass and terrifying.
Touch Sensitive
10:45pm, the MadisonThe antipodal version of Motor City Drum Ensemble.
Boy and Bear
11:15pm, ParishB&B supported Mumford & Sons on their last Aussie tour. Last year's Harlequin Dream debuted at No. 1 on the ARIA album charts.
KLP
12mid, Maggie Mae'sShort for Kristy Lee Peters' breathy and breezy electro-pop. Much more song-centric, in the sense that attention span seems to be an idea she's familiar with, than a lot of the DJ world.
DZ Deathrays
12mid, Bar 96Punkish, grunge-like. Is the latter movement so old that it's now a nostalgic influence? Brisbane's answer to Japandroids.
Strange Talk
12mid, Maggie Mae's RooftopSynths and falsetto vocals that opened for Cut Copy.
Wave Racer
12:15am, the MadisonThomas Purcell branched off from the house pair of Pablo J & the Lobsterettes. He borrows heavily from Cashmere Cat and uses vocoders as if a ban on them is imminent.
Owl Eyes
1am, Maggie Mae's RooftopBrooke Addamo was a contestant on Australian Idol back in 2008.
Peking Duk
1am, Maggie Mae'sTwo guys and a Macbook, Adam Hyde and Reuben Styles got recognition from remixing Passion Pit's "Take a Walk."