Sound Clash 3 provided a soulfully inspiring mix of the Melbourne and Sydney music scenes, bringing together hip hop Djs, R&B divas, Latin jazz and hip hop outfits.

Openers Killa Queenz (Sydney) dressed in gold lame warmed the crowd up with their hip hop beats and posturing and local DJ Mu-gen kept the crowd happy with his hip hop classics; however it was producer Thief a.k.a. Melbourne’s DJ Gsan and soul/R&B diva Paris Wells who certainly stepped the energy in the room up a notch. While Paris strutted the stage with her teased peroxide blonde locks and cabaret style fishnets and mini shorts, Thief wove a net of dirty, trip hop, jazz, hip hop, R&B and soul inspired sounds, including some Paris originals like Da Da Dat (a new single) and What Do I Deserve. With looks and attitude to kill and sounds the please, this pair are definitely ones to watch. Wells’ has already scored the support with Lily Allen in Melbourne, but she wouldn’t be out of place among other acts such as Amy Winehouse and the likes.

Having recently released their new album Rawville, as well as garnering notable attention internationally for their last album, The Bamboos have been picking up a lot of local support, with their name plastered all over street press pages and live music posters of late. Led by the well known DJ/solo producer and guitarist Lance Ferguson a.k.a. Lanu/No Comply, the six piece also adds keys, bass, drums, sax/flute, trumpet and guest vocalists to their infectious mix of white boy funk and soul. With over six years experience playing together, the outfit were extremely tight, cleverly creating the feel of a non-stop DJ mix, but with the personality of a live set. While the first half of their set was purely instrumental, guest rapper One Six and vocalist Kylie Auldist joined the boys for the second half of the set. Auldist didn’t miss a beat and strolled the stage hitting every note with grace and ease. Her deep, warm and velvety textured vocals sat beautifully amongst the sweet and soulful Latin jazz flavours of the band.

With two successful Triple J singles under their belts and Fox Sports picking up the TV single on one of their advertising campaigns, True Live are really starting to make their mark on the Australian independent music scene and crossing over into the mainstream. Marrying the funky end of the rock world (Red Hot Chili Peppers and Rage Against The Machine) with Mozart, jazz beatnik and hip hop, the six-piece create a unique and spellbinding concoction of contemporary beats. Whether singing or rapping vocalist RHyNO MC oozed presence as he prowled the stage. His afro bounced just as much as the crowd did throughout the marathon set. The respect among the band including violin, keys, cello, drums and double bass was in-penetrable. Playing all their hit singles such as TV and Keep Myself Awake, they even added a touch of DJ Shadow’s classic Organ Grinder, plus an encore medley of classics like Led Zeppelin’s Whole Lotta Love, ACDC’s Back In Black, Ray Charles’ I Gotta Woman and Snoop Dog’s Drop It Like It’s Hot. With their clarity, ease and energy, (not even marred by some sound difficulties) it’s amazing these guys have only been playing together for just over three years.

Not the usual live music or clubbing experience, Sound Clash this is a great value and highly recommended night out for urban music connoisseurs!