“There was movement at the Forum, for the word has passed around…”

That really isn’t going to work as an opening, is it? A night featuring some of the finest beat driven music Sydney has heard in a long time has about as much to do with Banjo Patterson as a wildebeest has to do with Sir Sidney Nolan. However, this was a night in respect of which there had been a great deal of anticipation, and every ounce of that anticipation proved to be deserved.

Arriving early at the Forum, I got a chance to appreciate the layout of a venue I’ve not been to before while checking out some expertly selected warm-up music by Noel Boogie. It’s a venue that probably deserves more use – great sight lines from a bunch of angles, and solid sound (albeit very boomy on the main floor before you get enough people to soak up the reverb). Bumping into Russ Dewbury I ascertained the set times, although I could have done that in a less wanky, name-dropping way by consulting the piece of paper taped to one of the walls. Dewbury, coincidentally, was on next, playing to a still fairly empty venue. TM Juke and Cut Chemist featured early in a set that then moved towards the dancefloor jazz end of the very broad spectrum of music that Russ plays. My feet were tapping, the folk were starting to roll in, and I could get back and forth to the bar without too much difficulty. The heavens were all starting to align.

Next train to depart from the beat platform was Rephrase, and this train had a full head of steam. Having previously only seen the Rephrase live show with Jamie himself playing tenor sax and laptop, the addition of Noel Boogie on turntables and another bloke on a keyboard and sundry electronic stuff meant that there was a lot happening both sonically and visually. I know, “sundry electronic stuff” isn’t a great description, but despite getting up on the balcony to get a better view, I can’t give you any more detail than that. I’m pretty sure it was neither a dialysis machine or an ironing press, if that helps. Seek out the Rephrase live experience, gang; and then buy me a beer to thank me for pointing you in the direction of one of the best Australian producers of that genre of music which is best described as “soundtrack to your summer”.

Freddie Cruger aka Red Astaire next, and what did the multi-monikered Swede have for us? The answer, after a wonderfully crunchy start, was disco. Now, it is possible to have too much disco. For mine, Kool And The Gang’s “Let’s Groove” is too much disco. The set worked its way back to goodness especially when the man dropped his own tracks like “Wildstyle” (from Red Astaire) and “The Hustle” (from Freddie Cruger). One of the things I rate most highly about international DJs is hearing them play with their own tracks in a way that no-one without their own intimate knowledge of the track can do. In his recent album “Soul Search” Freddie Cruger has an absolute treasure trove of tracks to do this with. It would have been nice to have a little more of it.

However, all of this was just a warm-up for the band that bill themselves, with no lack of justification, as the finest funk band in the world. Accompanied by Seattle vocalist Choklate, they powered their way through a selection of material from their most recent album “Hit the Floor”, which was an instruction you could not ignore. Superb musicianship is Breakestra’s hallmark and from the delicateness of the flute lines to guttural, visceral bass notes that only a bass saxophone can produce, this was pure joy bottled, compressed, and poured into the speakers. A generous encore seemed to indicate that they were enjoying it as much as we were.

It was good to see a solid crowd for a superb night; a deserved result for the promoters, Niche Productions, whose passion for the music they love comes through in everything they do. It’s good to have friends who find you great music, but it’s even better to have promoters who will bring that music to Sydney for you. Top work chaps, more of the same (only different), please!