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Review & Photos: Splendour In The Grass Day 1

This year Splendour gave lucky music fans the chance to experience some of the greatest musicians and artists the world has to offer.

If there is one guideline to abide by for the Splendour In The Grass experience, it is: “Patience”. The journey alone from Adelaide is one which, even via flights, is arduous at best; but the views which greet the festival attendees on this mission are without doubt a visual bliss to constantly marvel at. After a flight to Gold Coast airport, a bus into Byron Bay and then, with any luck, one of the dozens of shuttle buses into the parklands (this was where the “patience” element is excessively tested), the arrival at the parklands provokes both fear and excitement as the enormity of this festival is rather hard to digest. For this writer, having to setup camp also included an adventure of misinformation and becoming misplaced numerous times (not the easiest when one is carting around quite a bit of baggage), however the patience came with a magnificent reward atop a hill in front of the main amphitheatre where numerous lucky music fans were to experience some of the great musicians and artists the world has to offer.

Melbourne’s rock outfit Kingwood were this scribe’s proper initiation into the festival and they quickly created a stir amongst the ocean of people with their cover of Destiny’s Child’s Say My Name, although the song choice is rather tacky, the back up singers and brass section utilised in this live rendition does make for an authentic and near cinematic experience. Creepin allowed for a bit more “grunt and kick” with Kingswood’s pop-rock formula and stimulated a monstrous sing-along from the sun-drenched fans; to be frank though, the whole performance had maybe a little too much sugar and not enough spice.

Victoria’s Big Scary followed in the same amphitheatre and truthfully added a much more genuine artistry into the fold. Finding a musical identity landing somewhere between Bear Colony, Thom Yorke, Minus The Bear and Jeff Buckley, it was a transfixing showcase that most likely had many confused yet captivated by the same measure. Luck Now, Twin Rivers and closer The Opposite Of Us (which ignited quite an adoring reaction) were the highlights and it felt that Splendour was properly underway.

It is sincerely doubtful that there is any other individual musician out there who generates a larger response from just the banner of their name being shown. Melbourne’s Tash Sultana is practically considered ethereal by her legion of fans worldwide and she proves why to them night after night when she performs. Jungle was a whirr of insatiable expressiveness, but all-in-all her looping-soul-reggae-rock formula hypnotises everyone in its presence. It is going to be an immeasurable reaction when Tash releases her debut album next year, potentially it will alter Australian music for the better.

Moving away from the amphitheatre to the GW McLennan Tent, this was to be the first international band this writer had planned to witness, New Jersey’s Real Estate. With a small yet intimate and excited audience in tow, the quintet wooed their onlookers with their polite pop country folk recipe. With influences ranging from an acoustic Jimmy Eat World with a hint of Band Of Horses and at times a pinch of stripped back Foo Fighters, it was slightly disappointing more music aficionados were not in attendance. Serve The Song, Darling and Crime charmed their way into those who witnessed the show’s hearts and hopefully the five-piece return sooner than the three years it took for them to return.

Another victorious Victorian brought a capacity crowd to the amphitheatre, his name James Gabriel Keogh or better known as Vance Joy. There were unexaggerated formidable eruptions throughout the set for anything from a favourite track or just a compliment from the man to the crowd; his successes were proven to be deserved with his indie-pop-folk anthems. With the charm of both Frank Turner and Ed Sheeran, songs such as: Red Eye, Winds Of Change, Wasted Time, a cover of Paul Simon’s If You Call Me Al, Mess Is Mine and notable others, there was a headline presence about him and his band, it was going to be a challenge to surpass.

LA’s pop-rock sister trio HAIM took upon the challenge of the previous act’s dominance, converted it to their own energy and made Splendour their home. Little Of Your Love was explosive and not justified in its recorded version compared to the live setting (the song would also work nicely on the Sister Act film soundtrack), If I Could Change Your Mind should have Disney knocking at their door for their next summer blockbuster and Don’t Save Me would have had Depeche Mode jealous. At this juncture it was understandably elementary to forget that there were two days left of the event.

To close out day number one, a cluster of globally adored dream-pop Brits by the name of The XX undertook the responsibility with grace and sophistication. Working with an audience of this size requires a finesse and this trio have that duty refined; a discreet yet entrancing instrumental introduction lead into Swept Away and it was oddly subtle yet flawless. Say Something Loving exhibited a vocal tennis match of inhumane capability and Islands literally transported the onlookers into another universe owned by the three-piece. This scribe has not comprehended the worldwide affection for The XX thus far, but this experience left myself and thousands of others in awe.

Splendour In The Grass
North Byron Parklands
21-23 July 2017
By Will Oakeshott
Friday 21st July 2017

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