Foreshore Summer MusicFestival 2010, East-WestLawns, Commonwealth Place,Canberra(27/11/2010)

Mon 29th Nov, 2010 in Gig Reviews

CHECK OUT ALL THE FASHION, FUN AND ACTION FROM THE DAY!

The Foreshore Summer Music Festival presented by Kicks Entertainment sold out almost a month prior to the gates opening. This resulted with late festival goers paying almost double for tickets from anywhere they could get ‘em to secure entrance to this must-be-at event.

Unlike the previous three years, the venue location moved to the lush green lawns in the heart of the Parliamentary Triangle’s East-West lawns to accommodate the extra bodies increasing the capacity to about 16,000. It didn’t seem to revel in the whole Foreshore by the foreshore qualities, but it was pretty enough. Upon entry and in various locations signs humourously (but probably most seriously) stated: Please do not climb trees/do not attempt to jump into the lake/dance on the ceiling or you will be ejected from this festival.

The original weather forecast for the day predicted a chance of showers and storms. One punter was so sure that it would, got out his poncho and exclaimed to his mates: “What is Foreshore without a bit of rain?” To his surprise, other than a few threatening clouds, Foreshore had clear skies almost all day. It seemed the gods of above were saving every droplet for Sunday. Instead of rain, there was an abundance of glorious hot sun. For those who who feared the sun, there were plenty of areas to hide away in under the massive trees or shelter. The ultimate quest for a drink proved no problem either. Although alcohol was typically expensive, the many bars meant happy people – and the recycling system worked a treat too!

For the music lovers, there were three stages to run between; Kicks, Hi-top and Block Party stages. This wasn’t the kind of festival where you just stick at one stage – everybody had the same dilemma deciding which gig to go to next. Just a bit after midday, on the Kicks stage, a pack of strange looking rainbow animal like musicians who turned out to be the Foreshore Sound Search Band winners, Fun Machine. Other than being weird looking, they were actually well deserved on this place at Foreshore.

Around 2:30 pm, a whole lot of people seemed to realise that Calvin Harris was on stage, and literally started running to the main stage. Harris, was one of the major draw cards for this event having had a Facebook petition to get him here, but his set was a little lacking. He has a great DJ set, but it doesn’t show off the true talent this man has.

From 3 pm, at the Hi-top stage, many found themselves catching the world’s biggest dance music act – Tiësto. It was a little surreal to see him playing in a small tent to quite a few but not his usual sized crowd. Perhaps it was also broad daylight, perhaps this reviewer wasn’t in the right mindset for trance like music, it just didn’t seem right. Still Tiësto’s two hour set was pretty unreal.

Other acts that deserve praise for their wit, banter and talent are Krafty Kutz, Luciano, Yolanda Be Cool, Major Lazer, Tim & Jean and Cassian. Not to mention the amazing guys doing breaks/cross overs for all the acts.

As the sun began to retire for the day, the vibe of the festival seemed to perk up after a tiresome heat hit. The music also become more enticing. Miami Horror – cutting edge musicians that they are – had the front row losing their minds in their sounds. Followed by the outstanding Art vs Science who always know how to make Canberra festivals very fun and energetic, all the favourites were there. Cut Copy was fantastic breaking into their much loved old songs like Hearts On Fire and Out There On The Ice but their show seemed a little dull and rehearsed. Unfortunately their new song, which they said “Foreshore was the first in Australia to hear live” didn’t seem to be very exciting either.

Same goes for the festival’s major headline act, The Temper Trap. The sound seemed a little off, and their showmanship also a little dull. With Foreshore being the ARIA winner’s last Australian show for 2010, we expected a little more – but perhaps that’s all they can achieve. Nevertheless the crowd was pumped for the bands big hits – Love Lost and Fader had the huge crowd moving and singing as one in one of those lovely anthemic festival moments. Closing with another hug hit, Sweet Disposition, was a nice way to end the show but the crowd was left wanting more.

Down at the Hi-top stage, Italian superstar DJ Benny Benassi closed out the night.

Foreshore ‘10, out of the four, has to be the best yet. What will 2011 bring to what is now a renown Canberra festival? Bigger again? The same venue? e love the mix of dance and rock and the beautiful thing about Foreshore is no matter what is happening the feel of the day is always good times all around.

CHECK OUT ALL THE FASHION, FUN AND ACTION FROM THE DAY!