My Hot 10 of 2013

Arctic Monkeys- Do I Wanna Know

My Number One track from last year. I just love this tune... "it gets me going!" Cant wait for when they tour Oz mid year.




Arcade Fire- Reflector

They were unbelievable at the BDO. The moment that Bowie arrives in this track is amazing.




Vance Joy - Riptide

Been on this song for a while, its made it to commercial radio and even TV ads but I still love it. Best Aussie song of the year.





 Lorde- Royals

Now this song has been punished on radio, television and almost everywhere you go! Lorde has been the best new artist in the world this year. with quality other song Tennis Court and Team, I still have a soft spot for songs that make an artist get the attention of people. Royal definitely got our attention.



Violent Soho- Covered in Chrome

My rock song of the year. These Brissie boys are killing it. With a national tour plus Falls and BDO festivals, they are riding the wave of success and it looks like international success is on the way.




Jay Z- F*ckwithmeyouknowigotit

My favourite hip hop song of the year.(ASAP Rocky is unlucky) Lyrically not breaking boundaries here and if you get offend by bad language best not listen. But this song just "gets me going!". With the help of Rick Ross this is a killer track.





Foals- My Number

A song from very early last year I put this one in the memory bank. My favourite gig from last year, The Foals cemented themselves as one of my most loved bands. Such a fun tune and a regular when I DJ.



Rüfüs-Desert Night

Rüfüs produced one of my top 5 albums last year and Desert Night was the first track from it. The boys are killing it on the festival circuit drawing huge crowds. Keep your eyes and ears on these guys. The future is bright.







The Preatures- This is how I feel?

What a fun tune. The Preatures are a band I'd love to tour with. Isabella Manfredi is an amazing front woman, the whole band just oozes cool.






 Kite String Tangle- Given a Chance

Another local talent from Brisbane. Just an amazing and uplifting tune. On songs to debut with this is one of very high quality. Cant wait for more stuff from Kite String Tangle.





Happy Listening on Australia Day to Triple J's Hottest 100. Be interesting to see where my votes come in, if at all!

The Falls.

The Falls Festival ventured up to Byron Bay for the first time this year. After starting in Lorne,Victoria in 1993 it was a huge success & Marion Bay, Tasmania was added as a venue 10 years later.

At the same North Byron Parklands as Splendour in the Grass, they changed the site format going for two natural amphitheatre stages. It was a super chilled festival with 15,000 punters enjoying the New Year celebrations.

After missing out on Splendour the last couple of years I was super stoked to get along to a Secret Sounds festival.

The Roots brought in the New Year with a massive show on Tuesday night but it was Wednesday & Thursday when most of the bands were arriving after performing at the Lorne & Marion bay shows.

Bands I watched:

Chet Faker
Violent Soho
White Denim
Big Scary
Bonobo
The Rubens
Rüfüs
Grizzly Bear
Vampire Weekend
London Grammar
The Wombats
Crystal Fighters

Highlights:

Chet Faker - 'The Dude' has got so much talent. He dropped a new tune '1998' & it's another cracking beat. He's in fine form at the moment and I can't wait for his new stuff. He's got the midis touch! I guess that happens when you associate yourself with Flume.

White Denim - After recently dropping their new album 'Corsicana Lemonade' the boys from Texas melted through their set in 40 degree heat. It was made worse by the boys wearing double denim, unfortunately the heat kept the crowd away but it wasn't quantity but quality in the crowd, where I saw Bernard Fanning looking impressed.

Rüfüs - Saw the boys at The Zoo last month but a festival is where they belong. A crowd favourite. If you haven't heard their album 'Atlas' it's one of my favourites of the year.

Grizzly Bear - I absolutely love these guys and they didn't disappoint. A  harmonious unit, I was taken away with their dreamy melodies and was surprised that three of them sang - I love that, a real team effort. Maybe that one is of the reasons I love bands - it's a real team effort.

Vampire Weekend & The Wombats - Put these two bands together. Two quality headliners who have done their fair share of festivals. Almost veterans of a live gig, they both delivered an awesome set. No one would go home disappointed after seeing them, although there was chat of The Wombats lip synching but I think we will leave that to Britney Spears. I did notice the boys had a backing track on some of their songs but they are not alone there.

London Grammar - As the sun went down on the last night of Falls Fest the beautiful vocals of Hannah  Reid blew the huge crowd away. An amazing band, they almost seemed overwhelmed by the size of the crowd, Hannah took photos for her instagram.

Crystal Fighters - I took a huge gamble and went to watch Crystal Fighters instead of watching MGMT. I was not disappointed. Although MGMT are an amazing band I only really like 5-6 songs off their first album. Crystal Fighters excited me with their singles Wave,  Love is all I got, You & I.
A must see live act it is very hard to explain their style but joyous & uplifting come to mind. A mixed back of musicians they seem to come together like a bag of Allens All Sorts.




The Bands I Missed: 

The Preatures - After being cooked in 40 degree heat watching Chet Faker, The Preatures followed him on the main stage. My pale skin could not could not handle another lather of Vitamin D.

Questlove DJ set - The drummer from The Roots with the huge fro. He is also a Sonos ambassador and rocked the Jack Daniels Barrel Shed till the early hours. It would have been one cool dance party to get down to.



Flight Facilities - Playing the same time as Vampire Weekend they still drew a huge crowd. The Aussie duo have become one of Australia's best DJ's.With hits for days, a perfect summer festival band.

Solange - I was unaware this chick was Beyonce's sister until everyone was raving about her after Main stage gig. One of the highlights of the festival everyone keeps telling me. This is one artist I now know who I didn't before.

Hermitude - They Drop beats to get any crowd going. Their most famous song Hyper Paradise (helped by Flumes remix) is an absolute classic. On my music bucket list. Being Australian I should be catching them at a festival soon.

All in all The Falls Festival was a huge success. All the punters left satisfied except some of the happy campers weren't so wrapped  after a two hour traffic jam trying to get out.
Well done to the organisers "Secret Sounds" I look forward to their next festival "St Jeromes Laneway Festival" in early February.