With the huge lead up behind it, Stereosonic is the second biggest of the major dance festivals to hit Australia, has come and gone with an exhausted but buzzing crowd in its wake.

Bagraiders on most occasions put on a good show of electro/house mixes and are riding high on their hit Shooting Star feat Rhys from Ted & Francis. The track has transcended regular dance stations and has even broken into the mainstream, which has seen the act’s profile skyrocket. They probably deserved a later slot as a result. As so often happens at dance festivals later in the day, the DJ Deluxe Shooting Star mix really went off.

Grafton Primary is fast becoming a festival regular with popular sets at Parklife, Summer Break and now Stereosonic. The act has a great on stage sound characterized primarily by powerful synth harmonies and patterns with strong vocals over the top. Their only problem is bad timing which has seen them cast in the shadow of bigger musical brands, The Presets, Pnau, Midnight Juggernauts, Cut Copy and Empire of the Sun.

Adelaide expat DJ Minx has been plying her trade in front of local and interstate audiences for years. Garnering a great local rep and wide respect in this town. Generally, the Minx mixes tend to have great constant momentum with gentle pulses and smooth, pleasant transitions. Her set gradually crossed a spectrum of dance subgenres with seamless ease. Her Calvin Harris and Daft Punk Around the World mix went down a treat with her eager hometown fanbase.

Loot & Plunder were another local crew who did this city proud with their strong electro set and cuts. With one of the genuinely consistently good sets they were able to garner a surprisingly strong crowd later in the day. Their Art vs Science mix was one of the big anthems of the festival. Other locals to shine on the night were synth rockers Jupiter Lead who were mixed beautifully with strong vocals, smooth synth layers and great stage presence. Unfortunately they didn’t pull a huge crowd, but kudos to the sound tech for a great live mix. The Cut Copy DJs were a little low key compared to the more up tempo sounds from the other stages. The cruisey 70s soul sounds could have worked on any arena but almost felt a little out of place given the vibe of the festival.

Rising Canadian cult star Deadmau5 arguably took a long time to work into a decent groove unless you were one of the punters more enamoured of his more minimal material. Halfway through the set he brought in some more engaging house and electro mixes which got punters moving and really brought the set up a notch overall. Predictably as Deadmau5 gradually weaved his smash hit Ghosts n Stuff into the mix the crowd’s anticipation began to swell as the set was brought to a crescendo.

Multiple award winning DJ Fedde LeGrand’s progressive house style was fairly solid and stock standard., but as a bigger dance icon his set did prove very popular. The man made famous by huge award winning tech/house hit Put Your Hands Up 4 Detroit was a big crowd puller though the overall set was a little underwhelming for mine. Dance festival regulars Ajax focused on a more bouncy techno sound which was well received. Their style whilst popular could use a bit more melody and vibe in the sound, especially at big festivals like this one. The Swedes were well represented with deep/funky/acid house giant Axwell pulling a huge receptive crowd with his big ambient sound swells. Later on, the house beats of countryman John Dahlback were solid, if unspectacular throughout, failing to reach the same peaks.

Headline act for Adelaide’s Stereosonic The Bloody Beetroots have a huge local following. The massive Italian duo were introduced by two MCs who hyped up the crowd. When the stars took to the stage in their trademark Venom masks, the crowd went bunta. Then for the next hour the onslaught of dirty rave electro went on with arguably dance hit of the year WARP feat Steve Aoki setting the crowd on fire. The cult act are arguably one of the biggest musical icons going around in Europe and Australia and on the basis of tonight’s show, it’s easy to see why.

Overall, Stereosonic can be seen to be a success for those more into more standard house dance styles. For mine the festival doesn’t reach the peaks of Parklife and features less edgier and simultaneously poppier elements. That being said, the range of DJs work well together on the whole and the event will continue to grow in stature, mirroring its big brother Parklife. The rise and rise of dance festivals is reflecting a massive shift in the musical climate and it’s conceivable that for better or worse, they could one day outgrow the major rock festival.