Ten Gigs Not to Miss at 2018's Vivid Sydney
From 90s rap to a 'Romeo + Juliet'-themed rock masquerade.
Ten Gigs Not to Miss at 2018's Vivid Sydney
From 90s rap to a 'Romeo + Juliet'-themed rock masquerade.
Vivid Sydney is gearing up for its tenth anniversary and it has one epic lineup. From Ice Cube's 90s rap to Mazzy Star's psychedelic folk and a 'Romeo + Juliet'-themed rock concert, the light- and music-filled festival is once again jam-packed with diverse tunes from some big names. And a lot of the gigs are exclusive to Vivid Sydney, so don't hang around waiting for side-shows. Actually, don't hang around waiting full stop — tickets are selling like hot cakes and some gigs (sadly, including Solange) have already sold out.
To help you get your schedule organised stat., we've rounded up our top ten (not-yet sold out) gigs to head to this Vivid Sydney.
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St. Vincent (aka Annie Clark) has been rocking the music game for over a decade now, with breakout hits from 2007’s ‘The Apocalypse Song’ to 2017’s ‘Los Ageless’. The indie-pop luminary is oft referred to as the “female Bowie”. For those who aren’t already huge fans, we suggest putting her fifth album, Masseduction, on repeat now. The meta-pop album, which is both strange and moving, was released to critical acclaim in 2017, cracking the top 10 on the Billboard 200.
Image: Nedda Afsari
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9
One of the undisputed icons of West Coast hip hop, Ice Cube is on his way to Sydney. The rap pioneer will take the stage at the Opera House, performing four exclusive shows as part of Vivid Live 2018. The epic set will see Ice Cube roll out his greatest hits, from his days with the ground-breaking group N.W.A. to his blistering solo career. So expect to hear everything from ‘Straight Outta Compton’ to ‘It Was A Good Day’. With no other Australian dates in pipelines, this shapes up as something hip hop fans can’t afford to miss — it’s the first time a rapper has performed in the Concert Hall as part of Vivid Live. Mark it in your calendar, May 25–28, and snag yourself some tickets — they’re selling fast.
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8
Sydney-based trio Middle Kids has already toured with the likes of Paul Kelly and The War on Drugs, and even inspired the praise of Elton John. And yet, the band only one album into its career. Launched on May 4, Lost Friends is an exploration of vulnerabilities, disintegrating relationships and fear, led by singer-songwriter Hannah Joy’s warm, emotive voice, which shifts from fragility to strength and back again. She’s backed by her multi-instrumentalist husband Tim Fitz and drummer Harry Day, who studied jazz at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. This is a prime time to catch the band before it hits the big-time — after this Vivid Sydney show at the Opera House, Middle Kids will be setting off on an international tour.
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7
Dream pop, psychedelic folk, alternative rock … however you describe the music of Mazzy Star, there’s no doubt that the duo has soundtracked the lives, loves and visions of the Californian underground for almost 30 years. Now, the pair is coming our way for the first time — and they’re bringing a brand new, four-song EP with them called Still. It’s Mazzy Star’s fifth release. Of the duo’s four studio albums, the best known is So Tonight That I See (1989), which features singles ‘Fade Into You’, ‘Blue Light’ and ‘Into The Dust’. The understated vocals of singer Hope Sandoval and the echoey guitar playing of David Roback remain at the core of Mazzy Star’s sound. But, the duo’s path hasn’t been linear: the pair broke up in 1997 and reformed in 2000, only to split up again, before reuniting in 2010. Two years later, Mazzy Star’s acclaimed live comeback at Coachella got fans excited all over again. Mazzy Star’s three Opera House shows will be the duo’s only Australian appearances.
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6
You probably recognise Lea DeLaria from her role on Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black. But while she’s best known for playing inmate Big Boo, the truth is she’s been around a hell of a lot longer than that. The first openly gay comic to appear on American television, DeLaria has been appearing on stage and screen for more than three decades, and will on Saturday, June 9 appear at the City Recital Hall for an evening of stand-up and song. Part of this year’s Vivid festival, Lea DeLaria Live In Concert will see the singer, actor and comedian – who has five jazz records to her name, by the way – perform songs from her latest album, House of David. If the name didn’t give it away, it lovingly reimagines the music of the late great David Bowie, so you’ll be getting two icons for the price of one.
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5
It’s been more than two decades since Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet changed the game when it came to screen adaptations of Shakespeare — and delivered a stunning soundtrack along with it. There are many things that make the 1996 movie great, from its stellar casting to the filmmaker’s inimitable style. But tracks by everyone from The Cardigans to Radiohead to Everclear to Garbage rank right up there with its biggests strengths. It’s no wonder, then, that Vivid Sydney is throwing quite the soiree to celebrate one of the best-ever collections of movie tunes. At Young Hearts Run Free, the Enmore will become a rock masquerade, with patrons dressing up, dancing the night away, and listening to live performances of the entire soundtrack. The lineup will be announced soon — we’ll update this post when it is.
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4
After 28 years in the game, The Brian Jonestown Massacre is showing no signs of slowing down — or quietening down, for that matter. When the band hits the Metro for two shows in June, it’ll be armed with its 17th studio album, Something Else. As any recording artist knows, churning out an album every 18 months is no mean feat. Yet frontman and songwriter Anton Newcombe is no less scathing in his social commentary and no less artistically uncompromising than he was when he started out back in the 80s. Something Else continues the Massacre’s signature mesmerising rhythms, hypnotic drones and raw guitar sounds. And, from all accounts, the live shows are as relentlessly energetic as ever. The Brian Jonestown Massacre’s gigs at Metro Theatre are exclusive appearances for Vivid Live as part of Vivid 2018. The first show sold out quicksmart, but there’s still a few tickets up for the Friday, June 8 show.
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3
It’s two decades since Cat Power (Chan Marshall) caught a plane from the US to Melbourne, where she spent 11 days in a recording studio with sound engineer Matt Voigt, guitarist Mick Turner and drummer Jim White of trio Dirty Three. The result was Moon Pix, the full-length album that became Marshall’s breakthrough. She wrote most of the songs in one session, while staying alone in a farmhouse and waking up to terrifying hallucinations of dark spirits trying to break through the walls. “They were clear, black as night, trying to get into my soul. That’s when I grabbed my acoustic guitar. I thought that if people found my body, I needed to leave a tape,” Marshall told The Telegraph (UK). To mark Moon Pix‘s 20th anniversary and as part of Vivid Live, Cat Power is performing the entire album live in the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall. She’ll be joined by Turner, White and a string section. This will be Marshall’s only Australian show and the first time she has performed the album in full with its original collaborators.
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2
Aussie duo Chloe Kaul and Simon Lam of Kllo are stopping by Sydney for a one-off show for this year’s Vivid. The two will perform a catalogue of songs from their lauded debut album Backwater as well as, we’re told, a few sneaky new songs. The meat of this coming-of-age album, which dropped in October 2017, was written on the road, in hotel rooms, while the band experimented with their style and grappled with their constantly changing inner and outer landscapes during their extensive 2016 tour. The result is a raw, yet polished production that blends elements of UK garage, 90s R&B and electro-pop and is laced with the smoky, soulful serenading that Kllo is known for. After emerging on the scene with their 2014 EP, Cusp, Kllo’s music has continued to gain recognition, momentum and maturity, with Backwater delivering deeper, more emotive lyrics from Kaul and synth-heavy, experimental beats from Lam.
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As if the furore generated by the Vivid Sydney lineup announcement wasn’t enough to stir your loins, Fuzzy Events has announced a banging lineup for its 2018 instalment of Curve Ball. Taking over Carriageworks on Saturday, June 16, the live electronic music event will a tight little lineup with a hefty side of visual arts. The lineup is fronted by Sydney’s own Alison Wonderland and Vera Blue, whose own Vivid show has already sold out. They’ll be joined by Crooked Colours, Haiku Hands, Poloshirt, FlexMami and more. It’s basically a who’s who of Sydney up-and-coming electronic artists. Carriageworks is bringing the fire with an immersive audio and visual experience to accompany the tunes as well as large scale art installations. Image: Carriageworks.
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