Who would have thought the revered and historic live-music venue, The Tivoli Theatre, would become a filthy trap den in the hands of (literally) a 24-year-old producer by the name of RL Grime?
Before entering this den on Friday night (8 May) I already experienced some glimpses of the insanity ahead: a minor carpark crash, a line of wide-eyed kids that extended all the way to the street corner, and some energy drink-reaking vomit from an unfortunate partier who peaked way to early.
Click here for photos from the show.
Spot on his 10pm set time, the night’s ‘trap lord’ or ‘trap king’ (as heard from the very chatty crowd) hit the stage and the entire venue morphed into a dancefloor. And I don't just mean the Tivoli floor, which already had early birds pushed up against the gates and people up on shoulders, nor the spilling balcony’s above. The entire venue morphed into a dancefloor.
Image © Jann Angara
As soon as that beat dropped, everybody inside the Tivoli, including at the bar, in the toilets and on the couches, convulsed. You could not move anywhere within the venue without moving along to everyone’s beat (or off-beat) and sharing someone’s sweat.
This energy was maintained throughout RL Grime's entire set as the air grew thinner and the well-timed stage lighting continued to hypnotise. He played everyone’s favourite mixes, with the occasional “how we going Brisbane?!” on the mic while his entourage sprayed much needed water on the crowd.
Image © Jann Angara
Though the night’s sound system was far from your EDM festival set-up, the sold-out crowd absorbed every frequency as they stomped the night away, furiously chewing on their gum and giving out the occasional “oooohhh” at each song’s drop.
