Summadayze - 9.1.2005

In the words of De La Soul at Summadayze Perth, "If you hear hip hop you don't need to know the name of the song you just need to feel it in your heart." It would have been great if this wonderful declaration rang true because although Summadayze 2005 was advertised as hosting the world's best DJs and acts, it lacked the musicality necessary for a great festival vibe.

Summadayze started at 12pm in Perth's Supreme Court Gardens, a fabulous venue with city views on one side and the Swan River on the other. Future Entertainment had set up three stages, which were probably a bit too close to each other as you could sometimes hear the music clashing between the outdoor stage and the closest tent. By 3pm there were tons of people (although not as many as expected after the extensive television advertising) and weather wise, it was thankfully a pleasant day!

At 3:30pm Miguel Migs hit the Housedayze stage, bringing his funky soulful house which had a light-hearted San Francisco feel - perfect for the early timeslot. Miguel Migs is a real professional - his mixing was excellent and every mix created good energy with a nice gradual build up. Lisa Shaw joined him halfway through his set and for the closing tracks. Her deep smooth vocals were wonderful live, and they finished the set off with Miguel Migs' own track released in 1999 called 'Breakin' It Down'.

De La Soul was next on stage, almost emptying the other tents as everyone rushed outside to see the legendary hip hop act that's been around since 1989. You certainly knew they had arrived on stage because the whole vibe changed. We went from the smooth sounds of Miguel Migs, straight into being called motherfuckers and ordered to put our hands in the air. Unfortunately, there was just too much hype and not enough music happening even though they did play most of their popular tunes, including 'Buddy' and 'Me, Myself & I'. I couldn't help but compare it to another event when Cypress Hill played in between two DJs and it worked really well. Maybe De La Soul just did what they always do and there wasn't much consideration regarding the existing vibe.

With the flow of the event all over the place, you can imagine 2 Many DJs did nothing to rectify the problem! Yes, these two brothers from Belgium are known for their mashing up of styles, but this was just way too commercial. When you see an international, you expect to hear new tunes not the same one's you've heard a million times before. The standard track list these days seems to include the 'Seven Nation Army' bootleg by White Stripes, 'Satisfaction' by Benny Benassi and an ACDC track, this time 'round it was 'You Shook Me All Night Long'. Also thrown in was 'Song 2' by Blur, 'Blue Monday' by New Order and 'Pump Up the Jam' by Technotronic, plus numerous other popular tracks. It just lacked flow and innovative song choice. The highlight of this set was the amazing sunset behind the stage at about 7pm.

The final DJ on the Housedayze Stage was ex-Underworld member Darren Emerson, who was the most disappointing of all. I was gobsmacked at his choice of cheesy, commercial tracks that were mixed so poorly that at times I was left wondering if he was going to play 12 inch singles in their entirety. He seemed more concerned with playing air guitar than impressing the crowd with any decent mixing or quality tracks.

With three stages, many people chose the outdoor Housedayze Stage over the Futuredayze and Bass n Breaksdayze stages, which were both inside tents and extremely hot with sweat dripping off the roof. Most reports from the Futuredayze tent was if you like your hard house and trance, then Lisa Lashes and Armin Van Buuren were superb. Reports received from the Bass n Breaksdayze tent have been generally disappointing.

To end on a more positive note, it was actually a great day out. The event was well run, the crowd was good and it was a fabulous venue. These events are meant to be focused on Tags