Let me start this review by saying that Tayo is a DUDE. Yes, this was quoted numerous times from various people throughout the day. And I would have to agree. Prior to his set, he hung around the bar drinking and talking with punters. He got along so well with everyone, I had mistaken him for one of the punters that was here to see… himself. Not only was Tayo a dude, but he plays wicked booty bouncing tribal beats. I was never more sure of this when he took to the decks and started pumping out his primalistic, tribal beats. His music is in a word… WILD. And by that I mean, “tribal dancing around a fire, half-naked, covered in paint, chanting like you mean it” wild… But maybe that was just me.

To give you a better idea, his set consisted of remixed tracks from Baobinga, M.I.A, DMX, Debbie Deb as well as classic thumping tunes like Rocker from Alter Ego. The word ‘remixing’ doesn’t really do Tayo justice, he completely reworks the tracks with his own untamed jungle flavor into a completely new sound. Tayo bought a completely new twist, so much more than just a standard breaks remix, and the crowd filled the dance floor and stuck there for every last beat.

Having the job of being the DJ Supporting Tayo is a challenge in itself. Tayo has established himself as a true character defining his music rather than the music defining him, and the contrast between Tayo and support were like chalk and cheese. And the event itself as a whole had really great elements and not so great elements. The venue was pimp and La Di Da deserve applaud for their decor and design. The space is a work of art, daring to be different with its eastern inspired design. The sound was great too, giving us beats in full flavor, yet not giving me an anuerism. However, going to a bar/club for a Sunday session is still something relatively new and unfamiliar to the wider Melbourne community. On one hand, the place didn’t have the vibe that the whole venue was alive and rocking out like there’s no tomorrow. The other hand, its nice to have a day to recover before work and have respectable toilets where you can comfortably take a shit.

The event was enjoyable for everyone, if not a bit inconsistent at the best of times and schizophrenic at the worst. There was this crazy tribal dance revolution going on inside and a few meters away outside was a VERY chilled out Sunday session. The music jumped from ‘wild tribal fever’, straight into minimal/electro house. Don’t get me wrong, both are great, but I was left confused on the dance floor, questioning whether I should be dancing around like I wanted to be reborn as some crazy tribal dancing spirit filling the world with (sometimes quite horrid) dancing, or if i should be winking, pelvic thrusting and dry rooting all the hot girls in the venue…

But, like I said… Tayo was a DUDE.