Review – Parklife 2005

In the run up to the summer festival series, upon seeing the lineup for Parklife, it was a joy to behold so many quality acts on the one lineup. Looking for all intents and purposes as a mini rendition of the seminal Breaksfest, Parklife had all the frills of the Belvoir event plus the added bonus of catering for those of a more house orientated persuasion. The fresh lineup coupled with a fresh new venue in the form of The ‘Deen and the associated block curtailed of traffic offered something unique to the Northbridge area, and it was as much the uniqueness of the venue and associated lineup as it was the big names attending that drew the crowds in their hundreds.

Arriving at the event, I was immediately overwhelmed by the somewhat dubious looking line at the front of the venue – stretching as far as the eye could see, it did, however, move quite fluidly, and there were few complaints at the amount of time it took to get in to the venue, and overall the entry organisation is to be applauded.

Settling in on the curbside, a quaint Northbridge house in the background, Daddy G, Massive Attacks main man on the decks, pleased an arriving crowd of eager listeners. Floating out a good course of liquid vibe, Daddy G eased them into the day with his smooth flowing selection of lifted tracks. Mixing a trip-hop attitude with the resultant funked out trip-hopes-que beats, Daddy G began the fill of the half full block section of Aberdeen St with eager toe tapping punters, and his repertoire of grimy, dubby beats set the mood for an evening of revelry.

Blessed with a fortuitously bright and clear day, the sun set as the Crazy Penis crew made their way out on to the stage. The band, with Jim Baron and Chris Todd producing, fronted up on the day with a complete ensemble to launch their version of house-stilleto bars upon the waiting Northbridge masses. Singer Danielle Moore took the frontline, and vaunted out some early classics – throwing a lascivious skirt around like a whirlwind. The set was initially marred by several technical difficulties, but these were soon overcome, enabling the band to funk the streets with befitting class in the dying light of the day. Of spectacular note also, were the backing vocalists, who without which the music may have felt a little forced. As a live house act, Crazy Penis managed to take what is nominally a studio production, and thrust it into a unique arena with versatile percussion, bass and vocals riding over a mélange of beats and quirky funk riffs pushed out in the way that only antique synthesisers can. With more warmth than any of the rare gater-girls sighted during the set could possibly possess, Crazy Penis is an act that could never come anywhere near to being described as somnambulant, and was a perfect transition into Parklifes night-hours.

Rennie Pilgrim goes best with a big crowd, and that is what he was granted. With a full plethora of sick-cut tunes for his session The Renmeister banged them home harder and harder – throwing in his trandmark scattering of tunes as only the Godfather of TCR can. His deck side antics however, were at this time, complimented massively by the onstage tornado that was MC Chickaboo. It is to be said, that Sir Pilgrim made The Right Choice by teaming up with the verifiable Blimy Tornado, as she arced up in perfect harmony with the presented tracks. Never overwhelming, never too loud, and never over bearing, the performance and synergy between the two is one very rarely witnessed in the breakbeat world – in a field where all too often MCs clash with DJ’s, it was an utter pleasure to witness what we can only hope is a long and fruitful partnership. Between the blistering beats and Chickaboo’s air guitar and flocking antics as she ran the length of the stage in her No.7 O’Neil shirt, there was hardly time to grab breath. With the adrenaline still throwing through her after her performance, she humbly remarked “I was feeling really tired before the gig, and now I’m totally awake – it must have been fuckin good!” Given the performance between the two, she stands vindicated – for it was, without a doubt, a highlight of the entire event against which none can argue.

After leaving the stage, several of the crowd meandered outside to the Freestylers – much to many punters chagrin as they found they were not able to get back inside after their set finished. Which was a shame for many, as they found themselves missing an amazing set by our very own DJ Micah. Playing harder than this reviewer has heard him play for some time, there was nothing of a wind-down in his set. With a still full and pumping crowd slammed into the Boomtick arena, from his very first track, Uberzones “Bounce” to the very end of his set, Micah showed the internationals what real Perth pirate is made of – and capped off expertly what had become a truly memorable evening.

With a bit of daring, promoters are still more than capable of pulling off a unique, full throttle and exciting event – and regardless of the minor complaints of less than enough dance space inside the ‘Deen, we can only hope that this is Parklife’s audition, and not its swan song, and that we again find ourselves stomping the streets and front gardens of Aberdeen St next year.