January in Sydney brings a multitude of delights, not least of which is the Becks Festival Bar in the Hyde Park Barracks. Year in, year out, Sydney-siders have been able to rely on a handful of must-see gigs at this charming venue each year, and while this year may perhaps boast a slightly weaker lineup than in the past, there’s still plenty to be excited about. The organizers have slightly re-jigged the setup this year, providing some much needed seating and a generally more well thought out arrangement.

Other than that, it’s business as usual, and business as usual is an excellent description for local DJ Noel Boogie’s opening set. Last seen keeping things fresh between sets at the immensely epic Days Like This! festival, he played an excellent and somewhat under-appreciated set of downbeat funk and hip-hop. It seems rare that the local DJs get the respect they deserve at Becks Bar, and tonight was no different, despite the fact that Noel Boogie’s set was probably the highlight of the night.

Chasm and Vida Sunshine were the local support act, and for mine it was a case of the whole being less than the sum of its parts. Chasm’s work with Astronomy Class and his solo work is top notch, as is Vida Sunshine’s. However I just wasn’t feeling the dancehall vibes that they produced. The best part of their set when they were joined by MC Jeswon of the Thundamentals, who added some much need body to their sound, which was just a bit thin for the majority of the time. Their recorded work certainly sounds good, so maybe it was just a problem borne of inexperience in this case.

The same excuse cannot be used by Grandmaster Flash. Often big “names” can be very hit and miss, with the artist relying on past glory to sell tickets, so I approached this gig with suitably low expectations – but not low enough. Things started innocuously enough with some hype and the invitation “Somebody SCREAM!” – a phrase that we’d be more than sick of within half an hour. Queen’s We Will Rock You opened things out, quickly followed by the Jackson 5 with I Want You Back. Great tracks, no doubt, but despite a few highlights such as Roots Manuva’s Witness the Fitness, one of the originators played very little hip-hop, instead opting to play Smells Like Teen Spirit and other such dross, all interspersed with the ubiquitous “Somebody SCREAM!” Although there was a little proper electro, including The Message and Rappers Delight, these were few and far between, which is somewhat odd for someone who know doubt has an amazing collection of that sort of music. I guess my problem was that anyone could have played this set, including the some guy from MobyDisc. I read an interview in the lead up to the gig where Flash said that his father still maintained that he had the stronger record collection, and based on this effort, there’s no doubt.

Apparently Noel Boogie was given a “do not play list” that was dated 2008, which tells you something about the freshness of the set. This was a set of boring, uninspired cheese, made better only by the fact that locals Hermitude were playing for free in the Spiegel Tent just over in Hyde Park.