Globechadder

To quote Wikipedia: “Stereosonic is an annual music festival held in Australia in early December. From its humble beginnings, Stereosonic has become a relatively big music festival in Australia. Stereosonic is held in Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Sydney, Melbourne. Stereosonic is a collaboration of two major Australia promoters Hardware and Onelove corporations. Stereosonic is a mix of electronic and dance culture music. Stereosonic is considered to be Australia’s fastest growing music festival.”

After learning that this festival was approaching and being a huge fan of electronic music, Trance in particular, of course I had to go! In coming back to Oz last week, the only footwear that I was armed with included a pair of dress shoes and Vibram five-fingers, neither of which would prove appropriate for the type of dancing that I was planning. Consequently, last Friday, I actually left the office before 22:00 (it was the first time all week) and took a detour to PayLess while en route home. I needed some cheap kicks and while these were not the best quality, for thirty dollars I was not going to complain.

Next, I gathered the Stereosonic line up and started to pick the sets that I wanted to see:

• Aly and Fila
• Benny Benassi
• Carl Cox
• Giuseppe Ottaviani
• Infected Mushroom
• Sied van Riel
• Tiesto

Saturday finally comes and I head for Flinders Station to jump on the Platform 9 train for the showgrounds in the North Melbourne. It is VERY quick that I notice I am the ONLY one that is not wearing a tank and shorts. Since I am used to events indoors, or under the night sky, I was not planning to the excruciating hot day. I sported jeans and a black button-down; I learned my lesson and I will never do that again. I get to the showgrounds and look for the start of my list: Aly and Fila, hosts of “Future Sounds of Egypt.” I was particular excited for this set since I did not get to see them in Toronto for ASOT 450 and I had to cancel my earlier scheduled holiday to Cairo.

As a trance addict, I made the Cream tent my base ground. Initially, I was excited that we had an actual tent versus the scorching sun. Unfortunately, it ended up turning into a humidifier that held in a lot of body heat and moisture from dancers, namely myself. I quickly got over the heat and just started to add on water to every beer purchase. While this seemed to do the trick, it also proved very expensive. Having a great time, I stay in the Cream tent for Aly and Fila and Sied van Riel, both of whom had excellent sets, before I take a walk around the rest of the grounds.

As I was meandering, and drying off a bit in the breeze, I made my biggest goal to get myself an over-priced tank top to replace my very hot button-down. I was let down to find nothing about, so I just pulled my sleeves up and dealt with my attire as it was. Taking a walk around the grounds, I was amazed at how many people turned out. The setup shown for Carl Cox was not even the main feature and it was completely packed. After a bit more walking about, I return to the Cream tent to listen to some Melbourne locals before a personal favourite, Giuseppe Ottaviani hit the decks. After another amazing set, I was able to have a short conversation with Giuseppe, where I pass on my congratulations for a great show. Someone even took our picture, but clearly he did not know how to hold a camera and I look less than desirable; I have decided not to share that one.

Finally, I head over to the main event. Some new electro-associates and I get to the main lawn to see Tiesto as the sun is setting over the stage. I like Tiesto, but I am undoubtedly and Armin groupie. After ten hours, I was exhausted and my feet completely hated me, so I had decided to make my exit; however my new friends convinced me to stay for Tiesto’s whole set, which was only another forty-five minutes. Tiesto’s set was a lot of fun and had some nice pyrotechnics as accompaniment, but what gave me my last wind was “Adagio for Strings,” a personal favourite.

Filling the trains tighter than a chicken bus, the night ended with a mass of people heading back for the city. The audiences were still very energetic and the trains were actually so tight that I could only hope that no one did anything too stupid. I grew more nervous when many of the passengers began to beat on the car’s roof at full force; I could only imagine the news article: “Melbourne Partygoers Derailed North of City.” Luckily and despite my nervousness, all was well and we made it back to Southern Cross Station where I followed my new friends home to their door. With partial intent to meet back up with them for an after party, I returned to my hotel to find the idea of sitting much too appealing; even now, two days later, I can hardly walk.

The festival was a lot of fun and I am certainly glad that I decided to attend. Next stop: Mirage, Etihad Stadium for NYE!