Sugar Mountain

A festival where music, art and new media combine, Sugar Mountain returns to Melbourne on 24th January with an exciting line-up that will get your creative senses tingling.

Taking over the Victorian College of the Arts across five stages, music performances come courtesy of hip-hop, disco, electronic and punk – to call it a mixed bag would be an understatement.

Representing New York hip-hop, rap legend, Nas, will be the headliner of the day, performing the very best from his long career. Renowned for his ‘Illmatic’ debut dating back an incredible 20 years, Nas will be treating ticket-holders to ‘NY State Of Mind’, ‘Life’s A Bitch’ and ‘Represent’.

Also coming all the way from the US are ODESZA, an electronic duo that will grip the crowd with their drumbeats and pop-infused tracks. Only forming in 2012, Harrison Mills and Clayton Knight have already released two albums, the critically acclaimed ‘Summer’s Gone’ and recently-released ‘In Return’, both of which manage to hypnotise the listener from start to finish.

Meanwhile, fabulous foursome, Horse Meat Disco, will be taking the glitter ball and hanging it well and truly over Sugar Mountain. The DJ collective, famous for their residencies in London and “queer party for everyone” concept, will be playing their favourite disco tunes that you can find on their own compilations including 2014’s ‘Horse Meat Disco IV’.

You can also see live performances from Body/ Head (Kim Gordon + Bill Nace), Soul Clap, SWANS, Ariel Pink, The 2 Bears, Iceage, Dan Deacon and many more.

So, what of the artists? From album covers and abstract paintings to light and sound installations, artists from all over the world are coming to Melbourne to show you their creations. Leif Podhajsky has a portfolio rich with album covers that he has created for Foals, Tame Impala and The Horrors, as well as work for brands including Nike, Sony and Vice. If you like multi-mediums, LA-based Abby Portner has a history in painting, filmmaking, animating, designing and drawing. You can also discover the works of Ash Keating, Robin Fox, Hisham Bharoocha and Ghostpatrol.

Featuring a collaboration with Boiler Room TV, the main stage will host the headliners on Dodds Street, the car park will be turned into an outdoor music sanctuary, the Cave will allow artists to express themselves, and food and drink will be supplied by all your favourite Melbourne bars and restaurants.

If Sugar Mountain sounds like something you can’t afford to miss – and let’s face it, who could? – tickets are available right now from $130pp + booking fee and are available from sugarmountainfestival.com.