Listen Out 2014 Review

Ashley Leszczuk reviews Listen Out 2014 for BBM…

Thousands descended upon Centennial Park to embark on the now annual dance pilgrimage which is Listen Out, and boy, what a party was had.

With Australia’s finest dance DJs and producers on show, mixed in with international stars of the music scene, the scene was set for an afternoon of lost inhibitions and funky two-step moves.

Having arrived, grabbed a drink and got my bearings, the first thing that hits you is, whilst it is deemed a “festival”, with only two main stages and a smaller DJ booth stage, this is the perfect size to simply meander from one set to another.

With beverage in hand, it was off to see Young Fathers, a Scotland-based hip hop group of such raw aggression, yet harmonic and tribal, drum-pounding, electronic-psychedelic noise, it was, quite simply, the best way to dust off those dancing shoes.

Having followed them back home in the UK, I was keen to see these guys do what they do best; set the party off. With an almost hypnotic mix of vocals, these guys could have held their own on any festival stage in the world. From tracks ‘Queen is Dead’ to the monster tune ‘Get Up’, what a start to the day, and, honestly, my favourite act of the entire event.

From here on in, this set the mood for the rest of the day which was to basically bounce between stages and bar, from one top act to the next.

Yahtzel was wowing the ever-increasing masses back on the Atari stage, with his innovative mix of electronic-indie tunes, turning the swathes of people into a mash of rhythmic bodies.

Over on the 909 stage, the Californian electronic musician Schlomo was representing the “rest of the world” contingent, breaking down new beats in the mid-afternoon sun.

Prior to Chet Faker’s early evening set, Perth’s Ta-Ku was keeping the party alive with his style of progressive, hip-hop and R&B inspired tunes. With remixes including tracks by Pharrell Williams and Ludacris, this was a step away from the electronic sound of other DJs, showcasing his blend of festival crowd-pleasers.

The park was now full to capacity, and with such DJs and producers putting on a show to almost out-dance, out-loud the next on stage, it was time for a bit of a breather.

Crowd favourite, Chet Faker, was there to bring the sun down, on what had been a hot afternoon of sweltering temperatures, and even more sweltering beats.

Faker didn’t disappoint, with his soulful voice combining perfectly with his jazz-infused electronic melodies, he brought the house down with hits including ‘Talk Is Cheap’, ‘Cigarettes and Chocolate’ and his famed cover of a festival-favourite, ‘No Diggity’.

From here, we meandered back over to the 909 stage where Schoolboy Q was performing his blistering catalogue of gangster rap-esque, hip-hop, for all the G’s and Hustler’s in the crowd.

Having caught the last 20 minutes of the rather cryptic, enigmatic producer Zhu, we were hugely impressed with his liquid-funk sound. Suddenly everyone’s legs were back alive, the strain of the day’s dancing having been lifted, and we were back to cutting some shapes to the awesome tunes spiralling out of Zhu’s speakers.

UK producer, Four Tet, then let us in for an explosive set, which he has become famed for around the world. There was a strong crowd for his appearance, still moving and gyrating with every mix and every break provided by this electronic maestro from London.

After a long, hot day of dancing, hip-hopping, two-stepping, the scene was set for Flume’s finale back on the main Atari stage. This being his only show of 2014, the masses had arrived en cue and they were not disappointed.

From the intense ‘On Top’, which saw the crowd whipped into a frenzy of hyper-excited, electronic-inspired youth DJ wannabes, to his remixed version of Lorde’s ‘Tennis Court’, there was no stopping him, nor the fans either. A very suitable end to a very frenetic day.

For dance fans across Australia, Listen Out can surely hold its own as a more boutique, smaller festival for years to come. Not over-hyped, not over-crowded, by sticking to this party-like atmosphere, Listen Out 2014 was spot on, but the pressure is on for next year.

By Ashley Leszczuk