There’s something casual about walking into a festival with a vibe similar to that of walking into your mate’s street party.
Looking at the well curated line-up of Shakafest on the Gold Coast (19 August), I was keen to see some up and coming new kids on the block and just as eager for comeback king headliners Grinspoon.
Taking a lap around the venue, picture a few shaded bar-tables scattered around with a view to the skate ramp and main stage. The DJ was spinning an eclectic mix of tunes to warm up the crowd; Shakafest was just getting started.
Sussing out the upstairs set-up, there was some live graffiti art coming to life and fun skate equipment to play with courtesy of FiiK Electric Skateboards rounding out the street appeal of the festival. Another stage set inside this area, accessible from a side ramp and onto the roof, held tiered grandstand style seating that allowed for a bird’s eye view of the happenings below.
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The Gold Coast music scene is so diverse and the local Shakafest line-up brought in a fair crowd early to get into locals Radolescent and Trapdoor. Radolescent, fronted with some staunch vocals, brought a bit of a slow burn on tracks like ‘Cold Blood’ and ‘Stupid Teenager’, before the pace escalated with a tight, grimey, garage-punk sound.
Radolescent - image © Zoe Russell
Trapdoor… wow! Rad, bluesy riffs with bold, grungey undertones. These guys make some racket especially on new track ‘Show Me Your Love’. Keep your eye out for shows coming up and get along should you require a dose of heart-starting classic rock.
Trapdoor - image © Zoe Russell
Brissie lads Hemingway fed our souls with their funky, psychedelic-reggae tunes, making it so easy to slip into a haze of afternoon delight. The thing I liked most about these lads is their sui generis, multi-layered sounds and humble-as-heck swag that exudes throughout their performance.
Hemingway - image © Zoe Russell
Holding my place in the ever-growing congregation to catch some WAAX love proved a challenge. They attracted more than a few fans for an early-arvo performance, Maz snapping us all out of our Hemingway groove-love haze. Busting out fan favourites ‘Wild & Weak’ and ‘This is Everything’, it was a collectively mind-blowing set.
WAAX - image © Zoe Russell
Running upstairs to grab a taste of the first act to grace the Sharky stage, Kazual Tea kicked off proceedings quite nicely with their dreamy, indie croon. Back outside, Ivan Ooze’s rap game is strong rising quickly in popularity with recent tours opening for Aussie faves like Illy, Seth Sentry and Thundamentals; he got us fully hyped. His smooth-as flow and strong, confident performance was impressive; check out his new tune ‘Clouds (Ft. The Eggman)’.
Ivan Ooze - image © Zoe Russell
Next on the Sharky stage, a little taste of girl-punk darlings VOIID. Brisbane babes Anji and Kate have pulled together a sassy little group and belt out some face-melting numbers. If you’re a fan of L7 or The Runaways you need to give ‘em a listen.
Things were starting to get hectic when I ventured back into the main arena; Tired Lion came on stage to bust-out familiar hits like ‘I Don't Think You Like Me’ and new hits packed with heavy riffage: ‘Agoraphobia’ and ‘Cinderella Dracula’ from debut album ‘Dumb Days’. As one of my highlights of Shakafest and currently on tour, I strongly recommend you don’t be the clown that misses out on a totally worthy gig.
Tired Lion - image © Zoe Russell
Electric Zebra were up next on my dance card and did not disappoint with a dynamic set filled with '90s grunge feels. Pandamic packed the Sharky bar out and had all singing along to ‘Sandy’; it was one of those special festival moments. I caught a sliver of Horrorshow performing new single ‘Big Night Out’, then punters singing-along with the classics as Solo handed out some crispy snax… slightly odd but very well received!
Between sets the DJ kept the classics coming and everyone was fully into the John Farnham and Men At Work revival. By now the sell-out festival was in full swing, beach balls bumping around, beer pong championships back stage and more than happy attendees frothing on the street party-like atmosphere.
DZ Deathrays - image © Zoe Russell
Of the final three acts to grace the stage, Butterfingers and DZ Deathrays kept the party alive, but it was 20th anniversary rockers Grinspoon that fully topped off the night.
Grinspoon - image © Zoe Russell
To be honest, I was floored by their on-point, energetic buzz and it was such a pleasure to hear all the exemplary hits of their youth. Grinners, you totally nailed it, welcome back!
Shakafest, all in all, the day was a success… there is a little room for improvement, but once again you captured the essence of a street party and brought it to life.
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