Barcelona based, American born electronic producer Filastine and Rio based DJ producer Maga Bo are on the tail end of a 10 date Australian tour presented by Uber Lingua.

Kicking off at the Peats Ridge New Years Festival in Glenworth Valley NSW and moving onto shows in Newcastle, Sydney, Hobart, Brisbane and Byron Bay, Filastine’s long-awaited return, follows a Melbourne show at St Jerome’s Laneway some three years ago, leaving those in the know with much anticipation.

Straight out of the favela, former Filastine collaborator, and dread-locked Brazilian Maga Bo took to the stage first, armed with his portable laptop studio and at least two hours of ghetto, Afro-vibes, ragga, breakbeat, Baille funk, dancehall and other drum n bass, jungle, hip hop and worldly rhymes and riddims. Maga Bo rocked the dance floor inspiring afro-funk, hip hop, jungle, dancehall and samba styles amongst the crowd, with a level of deep earthy chesty rumbles permeating the soundstage.

Possessing one of the more unique set ups in the diverse world of live electronic music making, Filastine’s gritty and edgy approach brings to mind the words electronic warfare and rhythmic revolutionary.

The sonic renegade took to the stage about 20 minutes behind schedule, and didn’t play longer than an hour despite the enthusiastic cries and cheers of the audience. His trademark run of the mill shopping trolley was wheeled in early in the night. Definitely one of the weirdest artist tech rider requests Uber Lingua promoter and DJ, bP (a.k.a. Brendan Palmer) assured me.

Utilizing a snare, hand drum, drum trigger pad and shopping trolley for percussion, a mini mega phone for live vocals, and a foundation laptop of beats and samples, Filastine played a mix of tracks from his new album, Dirty Bomb, available locally through the newly launched Uber Lingua label, and a few tracks off his former album Burn It, much to the delight of the crowd, including amongst others, the opener Judas Goat, featuring samples of George Bush from his much hated homeland.

Filastine’s broken beat improvisation and driving live percussion exploded throughout the set, joining dancer and producer in a live frenzy, taking the experience to the next level. He even rolled backwards onto the ground and kicked the trolley during one section, which as he commented on later in conversation, that this treatment is always a good sign of his happiness. An experimental fusion of noises, breakbeat and Spanish hip hop, in general Filastine’s set showcased a harsher, less melodic and more minimal side to this techno terrorist, and less of the Spanish and gypsy vibe which dominated his album Burn It.

Heavy on the distortion and bass rumbles, bordering on feedback, Filastine smiled with delight bearing a shiny golden front tooth. With a touch of coyness and excitement he also gave us some hint that he had found, whilst in Indonesia, prior to his Australian dates, a new vocal collaborative partner which he has been advertising for on his MySpace page.

Local dance crew Underbelly, with dancers Andrea Makris, Melusina and Malia shimmied up a storm between sets, first off with a tribal fusion inspired bellydance and hula-hooping combination, followed by a glowing white sea of poi, stick and veils, to a soundtrack of Arabic flavoured drum n bass. Props must also go out to the VJ team who provided a colourful and mesmerising mash up of kitsch and trans-continental visuals throughout the night. And finally to the Uber Lingua DJs for providing a diverse set of warm up tunes!