Perth Festival expands contemporary music program in Rechabite takeover
Perth Festival’s Contemporary Music program has just got a whole lot bigger, with an array of new artists announced to perform in the festival’s full takeover of Northbridge venue The Rechabite.
International, national and local DJs and bands, along with the major Edinburgh Fringe hit show Happy Meal, make up a program that features everything from edgy underground artists to 90s punk rock legends, queer club nights and the latest global beats for a whole month, from Thursday, February 9.
Following a fantastic audience response, extra tickets are now on sale for Mdou Moctar (Niger) and Future Islands (US) on top of extra shows recently announced for Peaches (Canada) and Bikini Kill (USA).
Other international highlights include the sounds of Mykki Blanco (US), indie-pop favourite Soccer Mommy (US) and the tender power of Nakhane (South Africa), whose fans and collaborators range from Elton John and Black Coffee to Nile Rogers and Perfume Genius.
New additions include 10-year-old Noongar hip-hop sensation Inkabee, making his live debut in his dad Flewnt’s Boorloo Block Party celebration of deadly music and culture. Inkabee joins local DJs and First Nations hip-hop stars BARKAA, Kobie Dee and MissGenius, backed by a band including horns and vocals, produced by Tani Walker under the Musical Direction of Optamus (Downsyde).
“I’m very proud to be able to debut my son Inkabee on a platform built by myself and my team with the support of Perth Festival,” said Joshua ‘Flewnt’ Eggington. Inkabee’s debut is exactly what the concept of Flewnt’s Block Party is all about – showcasing and supporting Boorloo’s emerging Bla(c)k artists.”
Friday nights bring the dramatic dance floor revelations of In The Basement to The Rechabite’s Goodwill Club, featuring surprise drops from some of Good Company Records’ favourite DJs from around the world. All weekend long, The Rechabite’s Hello Rooftop DJ Series will host local DJs laying down chilled beats and party tunes.
Electronic dance music fans can look forward to some special Saturday night treats when international DJs and producers set alight all three levels of The Rechabite at Interzone and MikeQ. Qween Beat label founder, MikeQ (US) makes a special Festival appearance, presented by GARBAGE, in a night showcasing the Ballroom scene, alongside local collectives NestFM and ALT.
Interzone unlocks a specially synchronised curation by Move, Outer Body, Good Company Records, The Monarchy and Personal Space at The Rechabite. This highly-anticipated ‘enzoning’ offers a boundless evening across three levels with three distinct dancefloors featuring Peach (UK), András (Naarm), In2stellar (Naarm), Ernest & Young, Spi-C, Yosi and Montana – plus two special mystery DJs as part of Good Company’s In The Basement series.
The final weekend is rounded out with the unique classical and hip-hop-influenced beats of producer Leon Vynehall (UK).
Perth Festival’s Rechabite takeover opens with the joyful non-binary rom-com Happy Meal, direct from the Edinburgh Fringe, and Australia’s queen of soul Emma Donovan with The Putbacks.
Experimental electronic music fans can look forward to the Australian premiere of Anthony Pateras’ A Dread of Voids, creating sonic illusions through orchestration and tape manipulations with his quintet of the same name (voice, clarinet, contrabass, bass flute, piano and electronics). Additionally, Perth five-piece instrumentalists Grievous Bodily Calm (pictured above) will perform with support from Melbourne outfit 30/70 for a high-energy night of electro-jazz, house and break beat.
Perth Festival have expanded their contemporary music program, taking over The Rechabite from Thursday, February 9, 2023. Tickets are on sale now from www.perthfestival.com.au