Oakbank Racecourse. 25 Apr 2014
As the likes of the Big Day Out, that great old lady of Australian music festivals, look to bow out of the non-eastern states due to poor ticket sales, it’s heartening to see new blood moving in to take over. In contrast to Big Day Out’s profit woes, Groovin the Moo (GTM) comfortably sold out its inaugural Adelaide showing and it’s not hard to see why.
Rather than trying to justify huge tickets prices by shipping in a bloated list of increasingly underwhelming and aging international acts, the nimble GTM largely focusses on current and popular Aussie acts, with a few international bands thrown in to sweeten the deal.
Kicking off the festival’s run, and starting an hour later than other states in recognition of Anzac Day, the Adelaide show saw crowds of excited young things stream into the Oakbank Racecourse to check out the new festival and its patriotic line-up. The enticing set list provided a great mix of styles to cater for every taste.
Young Aussie rapper Allday had an early but well attended set, throwing in some new tracks as well as those currently receiving lots of airplay. Looking decidedly reminiscent of Jay (of Jay and Silent Bob fame), Allday kept the audience happy with a mix of pumping and chilled out tunes. The vocal early birds were keen to get started, and he took full advantage of the crowd energy.
Illy was a highly anticipated act of the afternoon, and he didn’t disappoint. Up there with Hilltop Hoods and 360 as one of Australia’s most successful and best loved hip hop artists, the appreciative audience swelled over the front of both main stages and lapped up the jam-packed 40 minute set.
With hit after hit to choose from, Illy included ‘Cigarettes’, ‘Happiness’ and his cover of Silverchair’s ‘Tomorrow’, originally divined for Triple Js ‘Live at the Wireless’. So often, sample-heavy artists struggle to translate their music to a live stage successfully due to the difficulty of matching levels between live and recorded vocals. Inevitably, the result is a disappointing comparison to album quality, but not this guy. Illy killed it, and it seemed that all were there to see it.
Melbourne singer-songwriter Vance Joy’s gentle folk pop was a gorgeous take five for those not keen for a Parkway Drive onslaught. His cruisey tunes slowed the pace and included a cover of The Master's Apprentice’s ‘Because I Love You’. He saved the best for last, and the audience positively came alive with the opening strains of the triple platinum 'Riptide'. Everyone was singing along.
Brisbane boys Violent Soho rocked the Moolin Rouge stage with their 90s-esque guitar rock. Though drawing from the likes of Nirvana and the Pixies as inspiration, they have a sound of their own. The vocals of frontman and guitarist James Tidswell are as unique and unexpected live as on record, and the boys work non-stop on stage. Their solid performance earned them high praise from Karnivool later in the day.
Architecture in Helsinki opened their set with hit ‘That Beep’ to rapturous applause. The eclectic five-piece from New South Wales are known for putting on a great show, and tonight was no exception. They kept the crowd bouncing with brilliant indie pop tunes, colourful outfits and crazy synchronised and solo dance moves.
The latter two were a good thing, because unfortunately the mix left those up the back struggling to hear the vocals of Cameron Bird and Kellie Sutherland.
Despite this, they were still a highlight of the festival.
Under the cover of darkness, heavy rockers Karnivool were in fine form, drawing the crowd in with their heavy and emotional prog rock. Their riffs reverberated over the race course and the most impressive light and video show of the day helped generate the frenetic and charged atmosphere.
Dizzy Rascal was one of only a handful of international acts on the bill, and kicked out his dirty bass beats in trademark style. Unaffected by the spitting rain, the crowd were happy to stay out in the open to dance along to Rascal as well as Aussie electronic duo The Presets, who wrapped up the festival.
The good news is that if ticket sales are anything to go by, Groovin the Moo will be back to Adelaide next year. Though it only sold out in the week before the show, word of mouth will very likely result in quicker sales next time round.
Boasting loads of toilet facilities, a generous range of food trucks, tight organisation, convenient layout and a great line up of Aussie & international artists, it has a lot to offer.
The orientation of the two main stages at the bottom of a gentle slope meant there was great all round visibility, with clear sight lines even from the fringes. Perhaps the only improvement would be the addition of elevated video screens to enable everyone to get a close up view of the onstage antics.
The location is genius. As much as a music festival within the city limits sounds great, being regional ensures lots of space for stages, people and parking, limited impact on the general public, and a much more pleasant experience all round.
A small criticism would be the sound quality on the main ‘V’ and ‘Triple J’ stages. The mixes dipped in quality and volume consistency between acts, however this was probably only noticeable for those watching from a distance rather than front of stage in the crowd.
If you missed out this year, don’t dillydally next year – snap up your chance to get your groove on in the moo!
Nicole Russo
When: Closed
Where: Oakbank Racecourse, Oakbank
Bookings: Closed in SA. Still touring the ACT, NSW, VIC, QLD and WA
Photography by Stephen Trutwin - STRUT Photography
