Summer Rhythm Festival,Goolabri Golf Club (9 -11/12/11)

Tue 13th Dec, 2011 in Gig Reviews

Since 2009, the Summer Rhythm Festival has been hiding in the shadows and this year certainly seemed like the turning point. The non-for-profit event aimed to raise mental health awareness and money for BeyondBlue, and was bigger than ever this time around. Last held in February this year, the crowd showed that not all festivals are slipping through the cracks, with Summer Rhythm going from strength to strength.

Over the weekend, the Strange Hours stage acted as the focal point, and the fairly basic stage and patch of grass proved to be the perfect location to dance or chill out. The Terrace was set inside Goolabri’s café and it’s stage seemed almost majestic, with striped curtains and ceiling decorations. Both of these stages seemed to struggle with larger performances, more than three elements seemed to throw the sound out of whack. Some bands repeated tracks, as they were unhappy with the quality, while others struggled along leaving them with a mediocre set.
Both the Dome stage and Club Deuce played host to over two days’ worth of DJ sets. Both sporting killer surroundings, light shows and large dance floors – any dance / electro lover’s dream location for a music filled weekend.

The headliners for the event mostly filled out the genres of Dub and Drum & Bass. The crowd were thrilled by the jungle -esque tunes from New Zealand’s Salmonella Dub, as well as bands from around the country including The Bird, Svelt, Dub Marine and Ganga Giri. These acts created a perfect balance to bring together the audience for the final performances over all three nights.

Aussie Hip-Hop was found in the form of Brisbane artist and former member of Butterfingers, Evil Eddie, and the popular boys from the Blue Mountains, Luke Dubber and Angus Stuart as Hermitude.

Canberra bands to make a splash included the usual culprits; indie-pop trio and all round ball of laughs, Fun Machine, roots ensemble Beth n Ben, comical folk band Rafe and the Well Dressed, the funk inspired The Brass Knuckle Band, happy -go-lucky Cherie Kotek and although missing her jazz band, Natalie Magee. Usually one to steal the show, The Ellis Collective struggled to make an impact due to sound issues.

Three artists definitely stood out over the weekend as being unlike any other. Canberra rock band, Hence the Testbed was the only band of its genre and an impressive representation they were. While lone man Tjupurru from Brisbane sported just a didgeridoo and effects, duo eMDee combined drums with a mix of didgeridoos. They both created dance sounds with organic roots, keeping the small dance space packed with lovers of a different beat.

All in all, this definitely felt like the biggest Summer Rhythm Festival yet. The new location was better than ever, the organisation was miles beyond last year and the vibe was off the charts.