Live Review

Splendour In The Grass 2012

Another year, another Splendour in the Grass, or should I say Splendour in the mud. The 3-day Splendour experience has been an adventure of dirt, laughter and mind-blowing music.

Leaving our Brisbane lives behind and heading towards Byron Bay on the Thursday morning could not be anymore exciting as we tetris-ed our gear for the adventure ahead of us. The amount of unnecessary costumes, food and anonymous items that were tightly squeezed into the boot and backseats of our car gave us just enough space to peep through the back window.

After setting up our settlement of tents just before the sun had set, we began our pre-festival rituals which led on to making new friends and meeting up with old ones.

Waking up on the first day bright and early we headed into the festival with our newly made mates and started off with an amazing Melbourne Producer. Chet Faker began my Splendour journey with Jeans & Wallet from his recent EP; Thinking in Textures. It wasn't too long before his chilled out, futuristic set lead to his final song; I'm Into You.

Deciding to stay in the GW MClenann tent, we sat down and listened to Ben Howard , who was definitely a surprising highlight. The folk rocker played a vibrant mixture of melodies which was topped off by a heavy storm.

We explored the festival grounds and discovered what the markets had to offer.

We entered the Super Top as Spiderbait smashed out their set including an amazing cover of Smells Like Teen Spirit

Being in prime position for US indie rock band The Shins was definitely worth soldiering through the mosh of people and stomping through knee-deep mud, because the experience from second row was like no other!

As the crowd applauded frontman James Mercer and the band onto the stage the lights dimmed and the spotlight was on the band. They opened the set with their classic hit Caring is Creepy from their debut album "Oh, Inverted World". I would be lying if I said it wasn't a set full of emotional classics. Their final song was 'New Slang' which brought a slight tear to my eye.

Trying to get a good spot for the rock god, Jack White was a bit of a mission as the atmosphere for the penultimate act At The Drive In was insane.

I ended up leaving the crowd to enjoy the legendary music of Jack White from the far back. A couple songs were played from his new album; Blunderbuss. The final guitar riffs of Seven Nation Army was the best experience and fantastic way to end day one.

Day two started off with a bang with exciting sets from Jinja Safari and Last Dinosaurs who always manage to bring a fresh set to all their shows.

I managed to catch a couple of funky tunes from The Beautiful Girls but ended up making my way to Ladyhawke. Pip put on an amazing show and ended up playing her well-known hit 'Sunday Drive'.

My mates and I made our way to the GW Mclennan tent, the to fight our way to the front for Lana Del Rey. It was probably the best decision of our lives to as Lana played an emotional set of soothing tunes. She even walked down to the front pit and shook all of our hands whilst singing Million Dollar Man. She finished her set with her first song from her debut album; Born to Die.

As we stomped through the mud from the GW Mclennan to the Super Top we pushed our way to the front of the main stage to catch the final tune Miike Snow played for us; Animal. The crowd went hectic and the lights just went everywhere.

Bloc Party was up next and the tent had already began overflowing with people. One daring dude even climbed up the scaffolding to get a prime spot for Bloc party. As Bloc Party came on the hands went into the air, lights flashed everywhere and coloured strobes blinded the crowd. Their set began with 'Mercury' and continued on with some classics and their new song 'Octopus'. Kele took control of the stage and had the crowd under a mesmerising spell. The British Indie rock band ended our second Splendour day with ‘Helicopter’.

We began day three early, which might have been a mistake as the pain and hangovers started to catch up. However, we powered through and danced our way to the front of Parachute Youth, who busted out their hit single ‘Can’t Get Better than this’. The crazy dance vibe soon caught on and my hangover was nothing but history.

The Medics were up next and I danced away to the beautiful guitar riffs and their amazing tunes from their album ‘Foundations’.

A sit-down rest had to happen before we went to catch Husky, but the mellow soothing tunes of ‘History Door’ and ‘Forever So’ almost put me to sleep.

A prime spot for Django Django was definitely needed as we all warmed up and prepared ourselves for some crazy dance moves. We pushed our way through to the very front and cheered on as the British mind-blowing quartet came out all in the same red polka dot t-shirt. Django Django strummed away making each and every song an exciting new experience all the way through to their last song 'Default'.

Angus Stone was also on my agenda, but time was of the essence, we sat down just outside the tent and had him serenade us with his folky tunes and hit single 'Broken Brights'.

We caught the end of Blue King Browns set which to my surprise was a splendid addition to my list of artists.

As the crowd got ready for the sassy rapper known as Azealia Banks to cover the stage, Nina Las Vegas of Triple J warmed us up with some sick house-party tunes. As the curtain opened up, Azealia Banks skipped onto stage with her sick-ass comic-covered tights, and her mermaid braid. The crowd went crazy when '212' came on with hands in the air and the screams of 'imma ruin you cunt' floating through to the Super Top, from what I was told. After she left the stage, the crowd soon realised there was another 33 unexplained minutes of her set to go.

Whether to stay for Gossip or watch the Smashing Pumpkins was an intense debate but we finally decided we wanted to end our night with Gossip and it was definitely a great decision. Boobs flew out and balls hung low on the stage. Beth Ditto was a legend, and her humorous set left me with smiles and goosebumps. My Splendour journey ended with Heavy Cross and what a great way to end my Splendour journey.

For those who couldn't get a hold of a ticket, I suggest you get better at fast-clicking next year as I am sure Splendour in the Grass 2013 will be as good, if not bigger and better than Splendour in the Grass 2012.

Words by Pak Yiu -- Friday

It’s during the Friday mid-afternoon set of Ben Howard that Splendour in the Grass receives its first and last dose of truly awful weather. Clear blue skies suddenly darken and in less than an hour enough water plummets to the ground to keep festival goers wading through sticky brown mud for the rest of the weekend. As crowds gather under the GW McLennan tent to avoid the downpour, Ben Howard and band give the crowd a spine tingling performance.

By the time local lass Emma Louise takes to the stage, the skies are clear once again. The softly spoken young talent gives the crowd a taste of her tender voice without the aid of any instruments before launching into her first song 17 Hours, followed by Al’s Song. The next tune begins and the crowd recognises the melodic beat, soon joined by the Emma’s soft vocals. It’s the moody, dream-like hit Boy and the crowd erupt in excitement. Shortly after, her new song Stainache showcases Emma’s impressive vocal range and is followed by Darts, then Cages. Flannalette Sheets is next and like the rest of her set Emma’s performance is refrained and delicate but still dripping with emotion. But it is her recent smash hit Jungle that gets the mellow crowd into a slight frenzy. As the softer verses build up to the explosive chorus, it is enough to get bodies moving and arms flailing as Emma finishes her set on a massive high.

The next performance is London soul act Michael Kiwanuka and band, who plays as the final rays of the sun fade to bring in the first night of Splendour in the Grass.

Shortly after Bertie Blackman takes to the stage in the Mix Up Tent. Her edgy psychedelic rock sounds cascade over the crowd who soak up Bertie’s rebellious attitude.

She is followed by DJs Nice and Ego who know exactly what the crowd needs to get going on a Friday night – a bit of Arnie. With giant projectors featuring a video montage of some old school gym moves from the likes of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Richie Simmons, the duo creates a fun and light hearted atmosphere.

A little later Gypsy and the Cat take over the Mix Up stage and their dreamy indie pop is pumped with enough volume and energy to keep the crowd jumping.

Saturday

It’s been a killer year for Brissy boys the Last Dinosaurs with their first album In A Million Years being released and receiving rave reviews around the world, and now – a main stage gig at one of Australia’s biggest festivals. And the fact that bucket loads of excitable young fans have poured into the Super Top tent is further recognition of their success. The Last Dinosaurs kick off the set with Time and Place. Sunday Night is up next and then Saturn. The band looks comfortable but still thrust some pizazz into their show to keep the audience pumped. Weekend, I Can’t Help You and Beauxmont are next, and then they launch into an impressive cover of Modjo’s Lady and Spiller’s Groovejet, an intuitive pick that the crowd eat up. Andy then leads into Honolulu and the mood turns up a notch with the catchy chorus giving the crowd a chance to shout and sing along. When it’s time for their closing number, the opening riff of Zoom is met with cheers and fist pumps. It’s clearly well known to the ecstatic crowd who dance along with as much gusto as only such a catchy hit deserves.

Jinja Safari are on the GW McLennan stage just before sundown and their fun, tropical infused songs are presented with quirky energy by the Sydneysiders.

Band of Skulls play at the Super Top Tent underneath a darkening sky. Their heavy brooding sound is unmistakable and their performance adds only more grunge.

Muscles is right at home in the Mix Up tent in the early evening, appearing on stage first in a strange cage like apparatus and then emerging from it in a green polka dot spandex suit. His extended remixes of Icecream and Sweaty are great fun.

Miike Snow’s set at the Super Top feels eerily charged. They hardly acknowledge the crowd but you feel their intensity pour through their each song. They wrap the set up with widely known hit Animal.

Sunday

The Rubens’ success has been fast and furious. For a band that formed only a year and a half ago and doesn’t yet have an album to their name, to draw such a crowd to the GW McLennan tent early on a Sunday afternoon is testimony to this success. It was a chance to showcase their new album which the band has just finished recording in the US and is due out in September. Fans expectations are reached as each song is a nicely packaged bluesy rock bite accompanied by the irresistible drawl of lead singer Zaac Margin. He performs well despite admitting he is a little hoarse after two days of Splendour under his belt. Zaac’s under par crooning still manages to capture the large audience which he admits is probably 20 times larger than any audience they have previously played for. Especially during popular hit Lay it Down, which they play second last. It is also endearing to see Zaac so humble and appreciative of the success the band has so quickly enjoyed, which he describes as “something you dream of”. Last up they play faster number Don’t Ever Want To Be Found, whose bouncy beat is a great send off by the friendly brothers and co.

Next up is the impeccable Husky , whose musical talent is evident as they play their songs flawlessly, breaking out into various mind blowing instrumental solos throughout their set.

The afternoon is getting on and Django Django create a racing, high voltage mood in the Mix Up Tent. In between each funky tune they scream and shout to the audience.

San Cisco don’t suffer for their youth putting on a confident and well-polished show at the GW McLennan Tent as Sunday begins to turn to night.

Wolfmother are on at the Super Top a little later with nothing left to prove, yet they still give a blistering set to seal their title as Australian rock gods. Their drawn out instrumental s during Woman and Joker and the Thief are epic and receive a much warranted uproar from the audience.

Words by Ashleigh Bond

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