GUD VIBRATIONS

@ Hordern Pavilion

20/04/18

(Live Review)

Reviewer: Chantelle Angileri

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Considering what has taken place in terms of Sydney’s nightlife, it has almost become too difficult to acknowledge that a night of crazy ass dance moves still exists around here. Although when Gud Vibrations announces a mental lineup including Whipped Cream, YEAHME2, Valentino Khan, NGHTMRE and Slander, your questioning on whether a wild night can still exist… automatically becomes irrelevant.

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After passing Hordern Pavilion’s fairly intense security, the crowd started to build during the two opening sets. Whipped Cream and YEAHME2 dropped some wicked tunes to amp up the crowd for the wildness that was about to take place during the remainder of the night.

YEAHME2 mixed up some old school sounds including Justin Timberlake’s Like I Love You and Gwen Stefani’s Hollaback Girl. Just when I thought I had heard nearly every electronic version of these somewhat ‘old school’ tracks, YEAHME2 was surprisingly still able to drop something fresh with his own edit to each. He finished off his set with his and A-Trak’s new song Prayer Hands which included some house beats and mega fast-paced chant-like vocals, a sick way to finish the set.

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Valentino Khan was next in line and one who I personally would consider a headliner for the night. It has been a long time coming for me to witness this man in action and he truly exceeded my expectations.

Being an idol in terms of experimenting with various styles and sounds and yet, Valentino Khan doesn’t let his fans down within the process. His versatility in producing a plethora of electronic beats was clear last night as he played some earlier releases including Rock It, Make Some Noise and Deep Down Low.

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Later on through his set, Valentino Khan dropped some newer tracks including Lick It, Pump and Gold. At this point, I was somewhat let down by the backdrop and was hoping something would shift quickly as the black, rippled, plastic sheet didn’t do Valentino Khan justice.

Sure, there were some screens placed on either side of the stage playing a variety of multicoloured videos, images and emblems which were well suited. Sure, there were a few beams of multicoloured lights aiming towards the crowd swaying from one side to another. However, seeing as it was Gud Vibrations, we wanted more!

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The backdrop dropped. Everyone cheered once the entire stage production had become exposed. NGHTMARE and Slander were elevated on a podium while being surrounded by beams of flashing lights. Lasers were constantly changing at a rapid speed and truly made the atmosphere a hell of a lot more intense. This is exactly what the crowd had been waiting for.

As their set commenced audience members were elevated on shoulders and headbangers were going fucking mental. Not only did the volume increase but the energy within that room continued to build for the rest of the night.

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There was a shift in genre from earlier in the night as it started with slightly more commercial trap and electro house beats but it was NGHTMARE and Slander who brought out epic dubstep and heavy bass beats. The three dropped tracks including Slander and Wavedash’s Move Back and NGHTMARE and Flosstradamus’ Lighter’s Up.

It was a night of high spirits and badass beats. Sydney’s nightlife may have gone to shit but last night felt like old times as Gud Vibrations brought the party back to Sydney for one night.

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