The Kite String Tangle

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Hot Dub Time Machine is King of two things. Wine regions and winding it back. When you mix the two together, you get all the fun of a wine tour (only with music that isn’t being performed by a semi-professional cover artist) and all the fun of a festival without having to fight through thousands of people to see your favourite acts. Wine Machine is a happy medium to all the best things you can do with your Saturday. This is why the all-Australian mini-festival has come back to bless the country’s various valleys (Swan, Hunter, Yarra etc.) a second year.

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Luen Jacobs

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Luke Million

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Once again, a star-studded line-up joined the bill in support of our home-grown international sensation. Acts like the legendary Sneaky Sound System came out of hiding for the occasion, alongside other great talents like Luke Million and The Kite String Tangle. Paces replaced Touch Sensitive for the WA show, a replacement favourable by myself and many others. Triple J Hack’s very own Tom Tilley MC’d the event. Beyond people, the festival was picturesque. Oakover’s beautiful lake makes for a lovely little view, especially from a pedal boat. Other great views included the entire field from the fast motion (slightly tilted) ferris wheel ride. Wooden barrels x ferry light decor topped off the beauty that already is the Swan Valley Wine Region.

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Paces

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Owl Eyes

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The Kite String Tangle was a perfect fit for the sundown performance. The cool, groovy vibes this artist puts out were fitting to the mood of the crowd. As laid back as his music tends to be, his job was never to pump them up, though at times he still did. A mutual appreciation was definitely there throughout. People were swaying side to side, all with a very airy feel about them (and smiles on their dials). A majority of the mosh recalled songs from The Vessel EP such as Arcadia and Given the Chance but lacked knowledge of his latest works. This however stopped nobody from getting into it. Selfish stood out from amongst his new stuff, probably because it’s one of his most upbeat, dubby songs (which received the most radio air time).

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Sneaky Sound System

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Sneaky Sound System

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Unfortunately, TKST’s debut title album was under appreciated and under-advertised. A lot of his newer songs are more evolved and have more breadth. You might even classify them as bangers. (Don’t get me wrong though, his older stuff is close to my heart and maybe more classic). I would have liked to see TKST performing at more festivals in the months leading up to and all throughout its release for a much better, more deserved reaction to the pure talent on showcase. His interesting choice and use of instruments, and the fact that he records all his music solo, sets the Brisbane based act apart from many others on the market currently.

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Sneaky Sound System

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The set came to a close with feel-good track Praise You by Fatboy Slim and sent the crowd into a frenzy for the long-awaited performance of Sneaky Sound System. Long awaited by at least me and my friends. The fact that these legends were in town had gone under the radar somehow by what seemed like a majority of attendees. I have to give it to lead singer, Connie Mitchell. The resemblance between her performance and her recordings was uncanny. It’s clear she has been performing (with Sneaky Sound System) since 2001. Off the top of your head you might only be able to think of their stand-out smash hit UFO, but you only need to scratch the surface of a YouTube search to discover all that this group has to offer. Classics such as “I Love It”, “Pictures” and “Kansas City” had the crowd movin’ and groovin’. I personally felt a sort of honour watching the veterans. Like I had earned a badge or done my time to get there. It was also just starting to get dark by this point and many people started shifting into higher gears.

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Hot Dub Time Machine

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Hot Dub Time Machine

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I don’t mean to discredit their sound, but between lyrical parts I feel things were a little bit too scratchy and frantic at times, maybe even repetitive. A lot of long pauses between singing that could have definitely been filled, even if with a cover. I would have loved to hear their take on a more recent banger of a track. My longing for vocals indicates to me that perhaps the two are better together than they are apart (the sound and the voice). Connie’s vocals are amazing but what makes them stand out more than anything is the beat they accompany. The group may just be staying true to the way they performed during their prime and might want to keep the sound authentic to its era, but if their plan moving forward is to make a comeback, they may need to adjust a few things. All in all, it was great to get to see the Aussie icons and most people seemed to really enjoy the nostalgia the set presented.

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Hot Dub Time Machine

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Hot Dub Time Machine

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Slotted in right before the man himself, Mr Wine Machine, was Paces. The Electropop producer did a spectacular job of introducing the finale with upbeat tracks like “Nothing’s Forever ft. KUČKA”, “1993” and his Like A Version covering LDRU, featuring Guy Sebastian “Keeping Score”. For the first time of the day, what looked like a majority of the festival were front and centre, on their feet. We finally had that closed-in, crowded together mosh that is so loved (and hated at the same time). Samples from the stand-out tune “Savage” were brought in throughout the set to foreshadow the big bang that would be the send-off. And that it was. Savage is a really impressive, cool and catchy tune which has elevated Paces career and will hopefully launch him into the production of many more songs at this level.

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Hot Dub Time Machine

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Hot Dub Time Machine

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As the clock ticked forward, we closer approached that ticking back we all came for. Sending it back to the 1950’s, Hot Dub opened the show with tracks like Rock Around the Clock, one to make the grandparents proud. If they could see youngens having a blast to this tune two generations on, I’m sure it would fill their hearts with joy and reminiscence. As the artist descends through the decades and samples well known parts of well-loved songs through time, he creates something no short of magic. Hot Dub Time Machine has introduced a very niche type of performance, one that could not be copied successfully by others. It appeals to the music lover in us all, no matter what genre or era tickles your fancy. It takes you on a journey from past to present and sparks memories in fans along the way. Songs you forgot you loved, songs you forgot existed, songs you could never forget. A wide range of up-beat, dance inducing numbers. The jam-packed hour and a half set HDTM puts on is a testament to his passion and commitment for the art and is part of what makes his set an impactful one. He must also be commended for his support of women. On top of shouting out the ladies several times, he played an equal ratio of female to male vocals. Something which isn’t often seen, but it immensely appreciated by women everywhere. Songs like “If You Wanna Be My Lover” by the Spice Girls, Destiny’s Child’s “Independent Women” and “We Found Love” sung by Rihanna (and written by Jessie J) are classic examples of the girl-gang support on display. Hot Dub also made an effort to make a personal connection with the audience of Perth. Many Australian melodies made up the set but never more than in the period of the last 5 years. Hot Dub even said, “Don’t let anybody tell you about the best time in Australian music. The best time in Australian music is RIGHT NOW”. I couldn’t agree more. “High” by Peking Duk confirmed that the current era is a spectacular one for this country. Concluding the set in natural 2017 fashion was Kendrick Lamar’s Hottest 100 chart topping track “Humble”, one that always gets people bouncing up and down, followed by Flight Facilities latest track which had “never before played live in this country”. A fantastic close to an all-round fantastic set. I would recommend people of all walks of life to check this guy out for a brilliant time.

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Hot Dub Time Machine

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Hot Dub Time Machine

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Check out Karen Lowe’s gallery of this event HERE

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Follow HOT DUB TIME MACHINE

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AMNPLIFY – NS