Spin Off @ Adelaide Showground, Wayville SA 19/7/2024
G Flip proudly made a point of noting the ‘Queer Lineup’ during their powerful set last night, a draw card that had already brought me out into the arctic winds and sideways rain endured by Adelaide festival goers, and while the weather may have been grim, the outfits, the atmosphere and the celebration of LGBTQ and inclusivity was vibrant and euphoric.
The standout acts featured in this years’ festival was for me personally a perfect trifecta that had me wondering how likely it was that I would end up pashing a girl on the dance floor, with South Australia’s most adored queer princess of pop Peach PRC bringing all the glitter and Norwegian indie pop wonder child Girl in Red closing out the night.
There was a nice little mix of Aussie artists featured, the stage opened by local outfit Puree, with an eclectic mix of soft pop and indie groove, providing a chill little soundtrack for the early punters, followed by fierce Yorta Yorta, Yirendali and Kalkadoon woman Miss Kaninna firing out some deadly tracks such as Blak Britney and Pinnacle Bitch. The stage was then handed to the lads, with performances by Newcastle surf rock group Rum Jungle and WA duo Old Mervs before US Country folk singer songwriter Michael Marcagi provided the afternoon lull and people took the down time in anticipation for a high energy evening.
Eccentric indie girl band The Last Dinner Party had brought a bit of a following with them, with young fans dressed in outlandish vintage outfits to match the vibe of their art pop sound.By the time Baby Gravy hit the stage the audience had multiplied and the festival was in full swing. I was actually surprised to recognise a couple tracks from what was ultimately a very entertaining set, notably Gravy Train and edamame, while the cool kids were all over it, singing to every track. I can’t be sure but I think the SnapChat server may have gone into meltdown during the performance.
Heading over to what us oldies call the boiler room, Fukhed was on the decks for the last ten minutes of their set throwing out some serious 90s rave nostalgic EDM for a quick boogie. After a great deal of anticipation, Peach PRC got the entire Pavilion ecstatically singing and dancing to her poignant bubblegum burlesque performance and catchy tunes that will just never leave your head. For something new and spicy, Peach took to the pole in a strategic display of female empowerment juxtaposed with a clever play on the male gaze before firing out Like a Girl Does commenting after that it had been a while since she has pole danced in Adelaide.
Back to the Boiler room and Club Angel were firing out the Happy Hardcore- which is exactly what it sounds like. Everyone was very bloody happy at this point, and noticeably this is where the festival bros were at for most of the day in all their ludicrous festival fit glory. The Daft Punk mix started an absolute frenzy before I needed to get some air. Then of course there was the highly anticipated performance from Conan Grey, who had brought adoring fans from all over the country to the harrowing chill of Adelaide due to selling out shows everywhere else. There is no doubt the man has a hauntingly beautiful voice with some exalted tracks in his arsenal, the big hitters Lonely Dancers and Maniac went off with fans grooving to his emotive and whimsical pop sound.
G Flip was by all accounts the standout act, being no stranger to the festival stage. It became apparent that every single young woman I met that night was there to not only see G Flip but to hopefully propose to them. Sadly for those young ladies, G proclaimed they were on their Hux Night while putting on their ‘Groom to be’ sash after recently getting married overseas and bringing the festivities home. Nonetheless, girls’ club was in session with some incredibly passionate singing from ladies behind me having quite the emotional time. G’s vocals have never sounded stronger and their stage energy is relentless, a testament to their continuous evolution from broken hearted baby queer recording some insanely heart wrenching tracks from their parent’s home to an international powerhouse. Rough and Good Enough was delivered with so much emotion, girls in the audience were feeling it all and it probably would have provided enough sad girl energy to power the state. Blazing track Drink Too Much fired everyone up and had G running off stage and along the barrier to high five every single comrade they could. Finishing with heart wrenching track The Worst Person Alive the audience were elated and we all felt seen.
After one last hop over to the boiler room for a hot minute to see Jamesjamesjames getting everyone well and truly tranced and munted. Girl In Red came out to sing her little heart out to a massive crowd of mostly over excited girls having great big feelings about everything at this point. Girl in Red exclaimed enthusiastically that she was here to fulfil her purpose “to be a lesbian lets fucking gooooo” and it well and truly cemented the overarching Pride theme for the night. Her unique blend of heartwarming and pointed songwriting mixed with the nostalgic sounds of melodic guitar and retro synth reminiscent of The Cure, was an exceptional closing performance. Delivering crowd favorites You Stupid Bitch and Serotonin, Girl in Red immortalised Spin Off as the quintessential winter Pride parade by closing with I wanna be your girlfriend a track that had been dedicated to an audience member in Sydney just a few nights prior in celebration of them coming out. Inclusivity, celebration and self expression have always been the major appeal for regular festival goers, the fun outfits and uninhibited energy embellishing a space that encourages expression and acceptance.
For this year’s round of Spin Off, the outstanding bill of diverse artists pulled it all together in a powerful and passionate package where music lovers from all walks of life were able to come together and be themselves joyfully and authentically.
Live Review By Bec Scheucher