BEXX @ The Bird
w/ Hyclass
Saturday, October 17, 2020
Local electronic producer BEXX unveiled two new singles – Hold Tight and Burn It Down – in a special performance with a live band on Saturday night at The Bird. It was energetic, fun and for the first time, after a fairly subdued winter in Perth’s live music scene, even a bit sweaty.
DJ King 506, YNGRACH and DJ Livvy got everyone into the mood with bouncy beats as the crowds poured in early on, clearly enjoying what was a pleasantly mild spring evening.
Hip hop heroine Hyclass hit the stage next and kicked things up a notch, tearing through a set of energetic rhymes that got the crowd going. Hyclass aka Susan Tuialii exchanged lines and joined in the choruses with her bandmates; fellow MC and vocalist, Natalie Mae, sporting a striking blue dress, and white sneakers, as they would half swing, half dance to the music like they were in a TikTok video.
Deep and groovy bass pumped through the DJ behind the decks as he chimed in on backing vocals here and there too whilst always grooving with the beats he was stewarding. Under a ceiling decorated with flags, and in the spirit of a true party, Hyclass had all the high notes and low blows she needed in her toolkit, leaving the now dense crowd screeching in appreciation, which Hyclass embraced, letting them know “you are really loud out there!”
BEXX and her band strutted onto the stage in matching orange jumpsuits (reminiscent of Orange is the New Black) and face masks (reminiscent of 2020) which certainly got everyone’s attention. By now the crowd was closely pressed in and taking in every moment, and it felt like a guilty pleasure when the music kicked off with Benny Benassi’s Satisfaction. From there BEXX cruised through a consistently fun sample of her tunes to date, including of course the two singles that came out on the day.
It was a bit dancy, sometimes with an analogue flavour like Kraftwerk, at times bouncy and tongue-in-cheek like LCD Soundsystem, gritty like Soulwax and downright silly like Confidence Man. It was all peppered with BEXX’s hip hop level of bravado, particularly in the precocious lines, espousing to be the “baddest bitch in all the world and the best you’ve ever seen.” Everyone in the band was singing and dancing along in time and you could tell they were having heaps of fun onstage.
As the party started to wind up, BEXX thanked her bandmates including Maya on the synth, Ethan on drums, and Ruby and Sinead on vocals. Along with the crowd, they all hit peak party-mode as they closed things out with Corporate Bitch. And that BEXX was, sporting all the qualities of someone ready to stick it the man with sass, style and sweat.
BRAYDEN EDWARDS and ANTHONY JACKSON
