It was a blue sky day but as the night’s festivities encroached mother nature became as excited as the punters; The wind howled in with icy force and the light rain stung like needles. I moved my feet, in a gym-like warm-up, as fast as the head wind permitted. I wanted to get amongst the driving beats of what was set to be an epic night as Fuzzy and Lexington brought Canberra 360.

Perhaps it was because this was a line up most under agers could only dream of witnessing, or the solid presale numbers, but the wild weather did not deter the early birds. Upon entering I didn’t know where I was, this did not feel like my (somewhat daggy) UC refectory. The stage was huge and high with a gigantic round screen as a backdrop radiating an array of lights and lasers. Either side of it stood horizontal light bars stacked in mirrored descending order from each side.

Though the legally drinking punters were separated from the crowd with a wrist band the underage females were identified by their heels, short dresses, hours worth of make up and carefully hair sprayed hair. The boys were a little more incognito though often topless. The tobacco companies apparently need not worry as under agers seemed to spend half the night in the alcohol-free beer garden using a cigarette as a testament of their maturity.

Bricksta was on the decks first, getting the early crowd pumping with a solid hip hop influenced house and breaks set. The 18+ bar area was near empty, proving it was the young guns out to get their monies worth. I grabbed a drink and stood as close to the action as the moat of security guards and fences would permit. Feeling distant and excluded from burgeoning mosh pit I skulled my can and rejoined the throng.

RyFy was next on the decks throwing bites of mainstream electro house to the hungry crew before him. He catered for the more educated music fanatics by adding some underground beats, loops and tracks in the mix. His energetic performance had him breaking into a sweat in no time, bouncing around only pausing to grab the next CD. The big and lyrical beats were easy for the newbies to follow and feel comfortable with as their glow sticks pumped the air.

Jeff Drake was a DJ I had not seen since Foreshore ‘08 and he quickly proved he had lost none of his touch, knowing every lyric and beat in every song he spun. Drake provided comprehensive samples blended with continuous beats through a host of tracks. As more over 18’s flocked in Drake was standing atop the speakers filling the entire stage with his presence to a remix of I’m in Miami Bitch by LMFAO flowing into Parlez-vous Français by Art vs Science. Drake busted out a new favourite of mine in Steve Aoki’s I’m In The House amongst an intensely infectious track selection using his personal energy. He threw his head phones back on his head and let his hands fly over the decks before unleashing a remix Eric Morillo’s I’ve Got The Pills with a heavy electro beat confidently adding his own touches.

A-Trak stopped the music introducing himself and those to follow as the round screen faded out and the lighting bars blared over the crowd, creating a totally new effect and vibe. He then began with a scratch session and long intro before letting the beat drop to a mental crowd. A-Trak dropped Say Woah into an Everybody Dance Now remix, not that any one needed encouragement. After Fake Blood’s Mars and some ever popular Run DMC his set ended like it began; with some wicked scratching and a thank you to the crowd, passing the hat to Tiga.

Tiga entered the stage to great applause (mustered by A-Trak) and began with a funky slightly down tempo track. The bar area was full to the brim and a revolving door of smokers of all ages never left the beer garden empty. A tiny technical glitch in Tiga’s second track had people flock on stage while A-Trak MC’d to keep the vibe up. A minimal house beat was pulsing again in under thirty seconds- good work guys. Tiga’s accessible techno set worked well to bridge the changing crowd as the youngster’s energy waned (seen plonked in packs on the green carpeted area) and over 18’s began to conquer the barrier. Tiga signed off using a Prodigy sample of Thunder as the final act of the night came on.

As I again braved the mass of topless boys in the mosh
pit MSTRKRFT drained the bar, increasing the crush of the dance floor. MSTRKRFT were such a duo, the team work seamless, playing to the crowd with Justice’s D.A.N.C.E with a metallic electro beat allowing for long builds and overlays into the next tune. The last track of the night was the most unexpected. As dance staple Satisfaction died out Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody played in full causing all ages to responded with the same gusto as if they were at a Queen concert. And then it was over… The lights were cut and MSTRKRFT exited stage left. The crowd however stayed put, chanting MAST-ER-KRAFT, over and over, stamping their feet and whooping. And it worked. Never before have I seen a DJ receive an encore. The suspense and anticipation build as high as the beats had all night, and when it was about to reach breaking point the familiar opening bars of The Bloody Beetroot’s Warp nearly caused a riot. What a finish! The crowd went the hardest they had gone all night, and though none wanted to leave we slowly filtered out- highly anticipating the festival season to kick into full swing.