CHANGE CITY :
The day party is an interesting beast … Especially when it’s a 24 hour effort: it’s a mighty big challenge to keep the vibe of the show rolling from dawn until dusk and beyond. But if you get it right like the Darkbeat crew did, then it’s bound to work oh so well, and maybe even change the way that people view the whole party experience. And the successful recipe? Pick the right weekend of the year, talk it up, get a fine selection of internationals, add water, mix the line up and pour onto a hot dance floor. Bring to the boil, simmer, repeat for 24 hours. So here we go with the second phase of the Darbeat 5th Birthday where they shifted proceedings from the water over to the night’s spiritual home of Brown Alley.
How could anyone write an article about Dave Seaman and a boat cruise without a whole swag of corny one liners? But Dave sank all hopes and left stains on his reputation (of the Seaman variety?) by not showing on the boat after an allegedly late night in Sydney. Whilst I wasn’t on board, the word is the local DJs and other international guests loved up to their legendary status and filled the gaps to the delight of everyone on board. Word.
I opened my Good Friday Darkbeat experience, along with the other land lubbers, to the sounds of Gavin Keitel at about 5pm – I was surprised to see Gav on the decks, but the Seaman reshuffle (which was hard to swallow for some) meant that DJ schedules were all over the shop, so Gav kept rollin’ on. Not that the venue was empty, but hey, 5pm ain’t everybody’s cup of tea. Dunno why – great time to go out, hear some quality tunes, kick back with some friends and relax… It’s a Good Friday, after all. And apart from the one punter who insisted on giving me grief for taking pics, there was a fantastic vibe in the crowd all day long. There was enough room to move around which meant that if you wanted to dance, you could, but if you wanted to just hang out and chat with a random, then that was fine too. It was friendly, relaxed and everyone was in on the party spirit.
Next up came Phil K – loved or loathed, but a mostly misunderstood genius. What exactly is the right musical pace for 6pm on a Friday? Phil K had the answers. His set was experimental, a little housey, a little tribal and seldom topping over 135 BPM. It was anything but formulaic, and it was the most interesting of all the sets I heard and set the tone for the rest of the party. I danced, I listened, I watched and I was impressed. My only downside was just as Phil built it, it hit a tangent and then took some time to get a groove back.
Rollin Connection came next and yep, they certainly did nail it. By now, peeps were rolling in straight off the boat, bypassing customs and the club was filling up. Rollins Connection gave the party the lift it needed, a little tighter and a whole lot more dancing was involved. Arguably harder than expected, but in the context of a party that was nearly 8 hours old for some, it was exactly what the doctor ordered. By time the much vaunted Nic Fanciulli hit the decks, the sun was down and the party developed a new energy; the bustling crowd was seriously in party mode. Any hint of relaxed and kicking back was gone as the crowd drew to dance. After Rollins Connection, maybe Nick needed to do more but as a set in its own right, it hit the spot.
To the delight of the crowd, Captain Dave Seaman scrubbed away the stain of his earlier no-show and with a bit of beauty sleep under his belt, hit the decks for the Melbourne crowd. Dave has a huge reputation and a mega following in Melbourne, and it was the set I was looking forward to the most. However, compared to the massive hands in the air of the past, it seemed to roll on from Fanciulli a little to Seamanlessly. As opposed to making a statement, it lacked cohesion. But the crowd just lapped it up, and if crowd reaction is anything to go by then I may just be in the minority with my thoughts.
By this time, 8 hours into my own party experience, things were starting to strain and stretch and the energy levels were a waning. But more fresh bodies through the door kept it rollin’ and the tunes kept a coming. Layo & Bushwacka! – again interesting, but they really strayed into some weird territory; maybe too much influence from the experimental Phil K set from earlier on. They played to a different energy that missed the mark for those who had been at the party for some time. Unfortunately, it needed to be something special in order to stand out as the music smorgasbord had been pretty rich until then. Chris Fortier again moved things in different directions: maybe I was just fatigued, but I kept losing the pace and found his set hard to comprehend, but there was still a good crowd there loving it. He threw in some really weird samples but hey, we’d be whinging if it was formulaic.
It was a great party, stellar in fact; one to remember and truly awesome to be at. I see a permanent fixture in my calendar coming up for years to come. The crowd was up for it, the sound was stellar and a great selection of artists to groove from midday to midday. I’m a convert of the format, and I’d love to see more in the Melbourne scene. Happy birthday Darkbeat – tops work all over. Happy Easter to everyone, and I’ll see you all at next year’s shindig.
Rocca says...
"How could anyone write an article about Dave Seaman and a boat cruise without a whole swag of corny one liners? But Dave sank all hopes and left stains on his reputation (of the Seaman variety?) by not showing on the boat after an allegedly late night in Sydney." haha love it! :D i was shattered he didn't turn up, so much potential material gone!!
DANCINGDI says...
Well done.!! Telling it as you saw it, and capturing the fantastic feel of the whole party. You should have added what you said to me about it being one of the best crowds you had ever partied with!! :lol: