Hot Dub Wine Machine @ Houghton Winery
w/ Hot Dub Time Machine, PNAU, Miami Horror, Crooked Colours,Young Franco, Tina Says, Pilerat DJs
Saturday, April 8, 2017
The worst thing about a really, really, really great event is the PFD, more commonly known as post festival depression. You’re in the car on the way home and that unsettling feeling is starting to seep in, and you can’t quite put your finger on what it is. Hunger? Exhaustion? That mild ringing in your ears? Maybe you’ll go to an after party to salvage what is left of the night, but it’s just not the SAME. Quite often this feeling will drag on into the working week making you question what really is the point of your dull and boring existence. But! Before you have time to consider the more morbid alternatives, it is usually the weekend again and there will be a gig on somewhere than can satisfy the craving. That, my friends, is what Hot Dub Wine Machine did for me.
Beginning with the only drawback doesn’t seem fair after how the day had begun to be painted, but that blasted walk from the highway to the actual festival was just a bit much. With pre-beers gurgling away and glitter dripping down faces, the clearing to the enchanted forest finally emerged. “Patience you must have, my young Padawan,” whispered the voice of Yoda in my head as the Norfolk pines graciously shaded our entry. Perhaps there was actually a greater lesson in this treacherous journey. The layout was organic and natural as the slopes flowed to the main stage andthe Pilerat DJs welcomed punters in.
Arriving to watch Crooked Colours saw a fairly progressive vibe opening their set until they moved into their more vocal tracks. Sporting a pair of tortoiseshell Prada sunglasses, the lead singer’s calming tonality was picking the day up with exactly the right Flow as we tumbled through moody indie electronic. Their guest rapper Ivan Ooze also gave them a great upswing in their set as they got some good energy. They brought in Come Down and finished to a decent crowd.
Following on was Miami Horror with their Wombats-esque electro pop. They still had that aftertaste of disco and got down and funky as they showcased their latest single Leila off The Shapes EP they released last month before following up with tracks from 2015’s release All Possible Futures.
If there was something done 10/10 well it was the order of the acts. Each band and producer complimented one another so terribly well, whilst also building a strong momentum into the cool night.
Reappearing for another interval set, Tina Says gave off some decent dub, rap and tech house vibes, which was strung together with constant heavy subs. It brought a fair amount of attention to the front as she weaved forward through world music sentiments and arrived at her own track premiere of Sweat which itself was a very solid driving force.
I think the artist on the top of everyone’s list for the day was PNAU. It’d been a minute or so since their last appearance (Southbound 2012 anyone?) but they pretty much had song of 2017 in the bag with Chameleon. Blasting us with Wild Strawberries as an opener, lead singer Nick Littlemore, had the whole crowd on red alert. Littlemore (also from Empire of the Sun) may be a bit more seasoned now but he is a damn legend. Dancing like a kid with ants in his pants you could see he was a man of the art. Not just a singer, producer or performer but every fibre of his body was the music in that moment. The visuals were straight up killer, like a sharp edged neon kaleidoscope and there was this energy and pulse that had me wondering why I hadn’t been listening to their stuff a lot more than I had been. Only twenty minutes into their set they surprisingly brought out the crowd pleaser Chameleon and introduced the wonderfully exotic and captivating Kira Devine. Featuring her in a few other new tracks, this next album release cannot come any sooner.
To cool down a little, the cute spectacle wearing Young Franco spun us some sexy little numbers from the likes of Childish Gambino, Disclosure and turned the electronic funkiness up with his Miss You.
With the countdown ticking down to the final moment, Hot Dub Time Machine sprung to the stage and strapped us in for the final ride. With confetti and fire, giant balls and streamers, his set was all about having a good time. He drilled on about Aussie roots and brought out the Cold Chisel and Midnight Oil classics while paying homage to the queen of the 2000’s, Beyoncé. He played 1969 Woodstock legends and Cindy Lauper’s Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. A sax man played the solo in INXS’ Never Tear Us Apart and shred wizard Dan Mac, guitarist from Art Vs Science, helped out on his track Parlez Vous Francais. It was forever entertaining and for someone who hasn’t created a track himself, he has created something damn amazing that’s for sure.
Fantastic surroundings, amazing audience, beautiful line- up. Hot Dub Wine Machine, it’s a yes from me.
MIA CAMPBELL-FOULKES
Pics by Patrick Stevenson
