Famous Presents Princess Superstar - 16.9.2006
Author: Amanda Storey
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Saturday 16th September
Queensbridge
I have always told myself, that once I start comparing my real life with reality TV, it was time to reconsider my TV consumption levels. However, walking into Famous on Saturday night was just like stepping into the set of The Swan. Like the contestants of 'The Swan' - who are nominated by their family members for being so horrendously ugly that cosmetic surgery is their only hope of beauty - the former QBH was considered by many to be ugly duckling of Melbourne nightclubs. Thankfully, through a total image overhaul, the new Queensbridge nightclub has been transformed into a superb venue fit for the most beautiful punters. Think the ground floor of Space nightclub in Ibiza and you begin to get the picture (while it may be hard to imagine suich a dramatic change, greater miracles have happened - just think of The Swan nominees!)
The only minor criticism of this brand spanking new venue is that there were no set times placed around the club, nor were any of the security or bar staff briefed about the order of the DJs for the night. So, although both the upstairs and downstairs dancefloors were packed with funksters dancing to electro-house hits like The Similou's All This Love, it was impossible to know who was mixing the beats!
Princess Superstar graced the decks a little after 1am and her exuberant presence was immediately noticed. Heralded by Richard Strauss's gallant symphony piece Also Sprach Zarathustra (a.k.a. '2001 Space Odyssey' theme) , Princess Superstar kick-started her set with a playful wink and her tongue firmly placed in cheek. She then led into a remix of her current single Perfect, before launching into Tiga's remix of Tomas Anderson's Washing Up. Although the majority of her track selections appeared somewhat outdated or overplayed - Kelis' Milkshake, Franz Ferdinand's Do You Wanna, Technotronic's Pump Up The Jam - each were intermingled with enough unknown songs to prevent dancefloor dejà vu extremus.
Princess Superstar also kept the sound fresh by throwing the occasional forgotten gem, like Prodigy's Smack My Bitch Up. However, in contrast to her 2003 'DJs Are Not Rockstars' tour, her set shied away from hip-hop beats and inventive mash-ups. Perhaps this reflects her own personal style as this time she was touring solo, as opposed to playing with Alexander Technique in 2003. Or perhaps she decided to play what the crowd were undoubtedly there for - electro. Whatever her motives, what was lost in diversity was certainly made up by her unrelenting crowd interaction as she continually would jump on the mic to ensure that everyone was enjoying themselves as much as she was. Princess Superstar put on an exuberant show stamped with her signature formula for success: panache, flair, and sassy mischief. Tags