Future Music Festival @Doomben Racecourse, Brisbane(05/03/2011)

Fri 11th Mar, 2011 in Gig Reviews

Future Music Festival is becoming a major player in the ever growing festival market with a knack for finding the right mix of big name dance acts and current popular artists that appeal to a wider audience. The 2011 edition is no different, with The Chemical Brothers and Leftfield sharing the stage with the likes of MGMT and Ke$ha and attracting a crowd of thousands whose anticipation and excitement far outweighed the ankle deep mud and threat of further bad weather.

With local lads The Stafford Brothers scheduled second up on the main stage it was inevitable that there would be large crowds from the get go. Walking over the temporary bridge that was in place to keep the race track in decent condition, it soon became obvious that something was amiss as a line was forming at the stage entrance and there was no movement or people within the main arena.

It seems as though the organisers were not prepared for the weather, with the stage blocked off until layers of ground covering and bark were wheelbarrowed in by the workers to keep the ground safe and intact. Whilst it is difficult to criticise anyone for putting the safety of thousands before anything else, with days of weather warnings and after last year’s rain induced problems one would think they would be better prepared and have a more efficient wet weather plan on standby.

With no indication of when the Future Music Stage would open its gates it was over to the Flamingo stage with the promise of seeing both rising stars and triple j fan favourites. Arriving to see the second half of Zowie’s set was a pleasant start to the day, with the New Zealander catching the eye of the crowd with her strong vocals and strong stage presence. As the stage area began to fill fast and buzz with movement the infectious beats no doubt won some new fans and could well become a festival fixture of the future.

Gypsy & The Cat are a star on the rise with a popular album, hit singles and international tours on the horizon yet on the surface they seemed to be out of place on the dance orientated lineup. Despite this, their indie-pop was well received and singles Pipers Song and Time To Wander were early highlights of the festival.

This was followed by a quick dash over to unexpected drawcard Ke$ha. The trashy pop star caused a stir when the lineup was announced all those months ago but organisers were on to a winner with the crowd growing by the second and lapping up her performance. Personally, there was too much glitter and poorly attempted extravagance for my liking but I was clearly in the minority as the long walk through the mud was set to cheers and squeals as Ke$ha broke into one of her hits.

Like Gypsy & The Cat, Tame Impala were an odd choice for Future but their psychedelic rock was played to a crowd of fans who didn’t purchase a ticket to show off the result canned tan and too many chip-ups. Their setlist is becoming more familiar but no less impressive each and every time they take to the stage. They killed it as always and have proven yet again that they deserve the praise they have received and there is no doubt more success to follow.

Flight Facilities were a pleasant changeover DJ between sets with their indie pop remixes keeping the crowd moving and providing a sing a long with their Crave You remix.

Moving away from reinterpreting pop songs with 2011’s Record Collection, Mark Ronson was the surprise highlight of the festival. Supported by his Business International, Ronson stood elevated at the rear of the stage where jammed on keys and electronic drums while members of Spank Rock and MNDR performed vocals and stole the limelight. Bang Bang Bang and Somebody To Love Me sent the crowd into a rapture but it was his keyboardist who won the hearts of the crowd (particularly the group of guys standing directly in front of her) with her sex appeal and vocals during the cover of The Kaiser Cheifs Oh My God. A perfect set and one that we hopefully see replicated later in the year with a full tour.

MGMT are unfairly criticised for their live show but they are more victims of their own success rather than poor performers. The crowd expect every song to be a euphoric sing along, which three in particular were, but tracks off latest release Congratulations were poorly received. This is the third time I have seen MGMT live and by far the most confident they have seemed on stage. Brian Eno, Time To Pretend and Song For Dan Treacy opened the set on a high and it continued to excite with The Handshake and Congratulations letting the crowd relax before their biggest hit Kids to finish with a bang. Some may criticise MGMT but as a big fan of all their work I though their set was great and would love to see them play to a crowd who feel the same way.

British DJ Zane Lowe got the crowd pumped up with drum and bass remixes and yelling at the crowd to get excited. It was nothing special musically but did a perfect job in warming up the audience for one of Future’s major drawcards. Pendulum played almost the same set as their November tour which went down a treat with the shirtless face chewers and long time fans alike.

The Chemical Brothers are legends of dance music and as headliners were sure to give the crowd something special. Opening with the Galvanize quickly followed by Do It Again was a bold move but one that paid off with the crowd reacting to every beat, light and laser with cheers and raised arms. The set was almost a greatest hits, trawling through their back catalogue of hits to round off Future Music Festival 2011.

With last minute withdrawals, horrendous weather and a clash filled timetable, Future could have quite easily been a massive failure but the quality of the performers made it a great success. If they can continue to bring such strong and diverse lineups to our shores, and continue with innovations such as the filthy but fun Foama-Rama stage Future Music Festival will soon establish itself as one of the heavyweights and a long term player of our music festival culture.