Reviewed onSaturday June 18 (photo by Ashley Mar)
On Saturday night, the Museum of Contemporary Art terrace was home to some of Australia’s brightest electronic musicians. The artists on the lineup – Rainbow Chan, GL, Habits, Buoy, Mira Boru and Banoffee – were held together by two distinct threads: they all happen to be ladies, and are all technically amazing singers and producer/DJs.
As was to be expected from a free event held at the MCA, there was a long, snaking queue of punters outside waiting to enter. Once inside – provided you were organised or patient enough – the vibe was intimate and comfy. Small clumps of people were dotted around the room and terrace, most of whom were sporting calico bags and adventurous haircuts. For the duration of the show, everyone was either dancing in tight-knit groups or settling in for lively conversations between acts.
Being a showcase, there were also a lot of parents (well, they seemed like parents) kicking around. The whole thing had a wonderful sense of community; perhaps the most relaxed of all the Vivid events on the calendar this year.
Indeed, the terrace was a great location for creating a feeling of intimacy with commanding views of the Harbour Bridge and Vivid lights. And the performances were superb. Mira Boru’s New York new wave disco DJ set was highly danceable. The respective singing styles of Rainbow Chan, Buoy, Habits and Banoffee were equal parts fragile and assertive, laced with of-the-moment electronic compositions – it’s a balancing act that they’ve all mastered. GL delivered a fun ’80s-synth-infused set – if you haven’t heard of them, they’re signed to Sydney label Plastic World, so they’re of the ilk of acts like Retiree.
There really are some really amazing female electronic acts out there, and in Sydney particularly. Hopefully one day soon their gender won’t even need to be part of the conversation, and the ratio of successful male to female acts will strike a balance.
