After a sold-out Sydney leg, The Plot brought a wealthy depth of talent to both Melbourne’s Palace Theatre and Ding Dong Lounge. The decision to use two separate venues was a strategically effective move; the change of scenery paved the way for an intriguingly unique setting.
The Indian Summer boys, who are due to play at the 2014 SXSW, had a decent turnout at Ding Dong Lounge. They ended the set with their stellar single ‘No Use’ while each punter busted out a move or two.
After a swift and smooth transition, the duo Willow Beats appeared and jumped into ‘Elemental’. Despite starting off with a few minor technical glitches, they covered this seamlessly through their unique, captivating, and vivacious live presence.
The fervently animated dance moves that emerged from the crowd made up for the slightly spacious room. Powering through ‘From Under The Ground’, ‘Grom The Betrayer’, ‘Blue’, and ‘Sawtooth’ to an eager crowd proved the success of both their debut EP and their second, Alchemy.
The set clashes didn’t seem too bad at first. The overlaps allowed for at least partial viewing of each act – however, trying to catch the last 20 minutes of a set as well as travelling between venues proved to be difficult. Because of this, missing Wave Racer was a deep regret.
Despite losing most of the crowd to Wave Racer, Purple Sneakers DJs kept their spirits up and played a selection of beauties to an intimate room. The talented duo understand how to seamlessly mix and select crowd pleasers such as Chordashian’s ‘Keep On’ and ‘Garden’ by Total Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs.
Elizabeth Rose started her set with ‘Ready’ decked out in a sequined turquoise skirt, House Of Cards tee, and her signature fake lashes. The singer-songwriter played an exciting progression of soon-to-be-released tunes inspired by 90s RnB.
Encouraging the audience to sing the chorus of her triple j Like A Version cover of Corona’s ‘Rhythm Of The Night’ was easily one of the highlights of the day, and ending the set with her latest single ‘The Good Life’ only heightened the upbeat mood in the room.
Drawing a massive crowd, Naysayer & Gilsun showcased their impressive talent through their hype-worthy AV show. Part DJs, part cinematographers, part geniuses.
The duo played Cirez D’s ‘On Off’ to a backdrop of re-worked movie scenes on a large projector screen. Understandably, the crowd was a mix of standing and sitting. The aural vibe made you want to dance, however when juxtaposed against the visuals, it trapped and transfixed the crowd into a continual mind battle between the two.
Close-up visuals of John Travolta, Drew Barrymore, Neve Campbell, Jude Law, Natalie Portman, and Claire Danes frequented the screen, while circulating strobes were used to enhance visual stimulation. Luke Neher and Sam Gill sure know how to control a crowd, creating eerie standstill moments and enhancing floor vibration to the point of cautious collapse.
DJ Snake was the first of the day to encourage audience interaction and participation. The French producer created a set that married chart toppers with some hard-hitting electro-trap. Experimenting with Icona Pop, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Zombie Nation, Michael Jackson, and Flux Pavilion, he catered for a ‘pop’ audience.
Notable favourites were his mixes of Kanye West’s ‘New Slaves’ and AlunaGeorge’s ‘You Know You Like It’. DJ Snake accelerated the hype by using Fatman Scoop as an intro into his own most recognisable track, ‘Bird Machine’. As the song began to build, he encouraged the audience to cross their hands over to resemble bird wings. Once unleashed, the Palace turned into an mesmerising illusion of an electronic birdcage. Utter magic.
That being said, the DJ went overtime and pompously ordered around the ‘lighting guy’ throughout the set, losing a few votes – but nothing a bit of Flume and Disclosure in-between set music didn’t half cure.
Miami Horror are back! Opening with ‘Don’t Be On With Her’ followed by ‘Moon Theory’, each band member was cohesive and projected exuberance. ‘Make You Mine’ saw the first person on shoulders as the pace increased before the tempo slowed and led into their latest single ‘Real Slow’. The crowd’s knowledge and interaction with their new songs illustrated a loyal following and anticipation for their new album release.
Clashing with Alison Wonderland didn’t hamper Gold Fields’ set. Instead, it created an illusion of a secret show. The light shining in lead singer Mark Fuller’s eyes created a slightly awkward beginning, however once rectified the band appeared more at ease in the dark and began belting out their hits ‘Treehouse’ and ‘You’re Still Gone’.
Gold Fields were an impressive live act that barely stopped for a sip of beer, let alone a breath. Informing the crowd that their first ever gig was roughly three years ago at Ding Dong illuminated the atmosphere.
Easily the stand-out of the festival, the quintet’s cover of Underworld’s ‘Born Slippy’ created havoc and caused chills. Ending with ‘Dark Again’ and ‘Moves’ had the crowd fully involved, collectively singing choruses and bringing personality to the dance floor.
DJ Snake’s overtime worked in Alison Wonderland’s favour as punters who saw Gold Fields still managed to catch a decent amount of her set. The Palace was vibrating, and Wonderland had the packed room dancing to tunes like Drake’s ‘Over’, Coolio’s ‘Gangsta’s Paradise’, and Pusha T’s ‘Numbers On The Board’. The raised platform fronting ‘AW’ and two diagonal cubes either side projecting continually changing visuals meant the set only got better.
During Disclosure’s ‘When A Fire Starts To Burn’, the lighting shone onto a large disco ball creating a starry venue. Topping that, large beach balls and confetti engulfed the audience for Gesaffelstein’s ‘Control Movement’ that mixed into Fatboy Slim’s ‘Right Here, Right Now’.
Wonderland’s single ‘Get Ready’, featuring Fishing, had people on shoulders. A large group of The Plot artists emerged from the wings for Kanye West’s ‘Mercy’ and a mix that married a selection of tunes like Flosstradamus’s ‘Roll Up’, Disclosure’s ‘You And Me’, Jay Z’s ’99 Problems’, as well as a killer mash-up of Bill Withers’ ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’ with Massive Attack’s ‘Teardrop’.
As the other artists receded, Wonderland came out from behind the decks with her infamous gigantic bottle of vodka to interact with the crowd. The finale included Pharoahe Monch’s ‘Simon Says’, Skee-Lo’s ‘I Wish’, and Khia’s ‘My Neck, My Back’ before all artists re-joined her on stage for Douster’s ‘King Of Africa’.
All artists stood on stage and danced as a beautifully little but talented family – a fitting end to The Plot 2013.
