2013 was welcomed by Sydney together with some of her closest friends at the annual Field Day; an incredible array of artists moving 14,000 pairs of dancing shoes under the summer sun and a cloudless sky in the city's beautiful Domain.
Jesse Rose was the first international up on the main stage - the early timeslot was mandated due to him also featuring at Melbourne's Summadayze several hours later. It wasn't only him jaunting between states and festivals on New Years' Day; incredibly 14 other artists flew between Sydney and Melbourne on the day to play before revellers. Playing with the crowd, Rose quickly swept past any hangups on being the opening act and made sure there was plenty of bounce for those who arrived early.
Behind the main stage after Rose was Maya Jane Coles, who showcased a fantastic tech house-based set. Showing plenty of enthusiasm for the afternoon, Coles surprised many by infusing less dub than expected with the style clearly directed by the crowd's mood. Crossing over to the Island Stage where Walter and Arno of Booka Shade played an amazing live set to what must have been the biggest crowd before the sun left for the day. The crowd let out a rousing cheer for the first few bars of 'Mandarine Girl' and even the Melbourne-bound Jesse Rose would have heard the noise when Booka Shade closed with 'In White Rooms.'
Unfortunately, Hot Chip were unable to play their scheduled live set owing to their production equipment being lost in transit. In true showbiz fashion, Alexis and Joe of the band continued with an impromptu DJ-set, arguably releasing them from the constraints of their own back catalogue to play an eclectic and energetic array; Joe's live rendition of 'Bear Hug' by his alter-ego The 2 Bears somehow managed to bring extra funk to their timeslot. A surprise announcement then followed Fake Blood's set - Hot Chip's rider was located and Fuzzy hastily negotiated with the location to extend the night by half an hour to allow Hot Chip to close Field Day with a short live set after Mark Ronson.
As the sun set Scuba took to the decks for his much anticipated set. Having been through the same jet-setting rigmarole as the other acts, the Hotflush boss looked weary and a little aloof (it soon became apparent that’s simply his demeanour behind the decks), though his music conveyed the complete opposite. Dropping big bassline filled tech and house, Scuba’s set was immense, making every drop count and his style at times feeling reminiscent of a one DJ T. As the crowd cheered in agreeance throughout his set, Scuba let out a few wry smiles here and there – he was clearly enjoying himself, and enough to cheekily drop Madonna’s ‘Vogue’ as his last track. No shit…and it completely worked.
After the crowd lapped up Disclosure’s hour live set of their retro-leaning house, SBTRKT made his much welcome return to a Sydney stage since his set at the musica festival back in 2011. This time, however, he was doing it live complete with a drum kit. And what a performance it was - bashing through his catalogue he reminded just how good dance music played live can be. During a particularly rousing rendition of ‘Wildfire,’ everyone went suitably nuts.
The last minute change to Hot Chip playing last was worth the delay and although the group powered through just four songs, no one could say they were disappointed upon leaving The Domain. Organisers Fuzzy managed to display to all in attendance how to run a festival; drink and bathroom queues were brief and there were minimal disruptions throughout the day. Monitors were present to ensure that the neighbours weren't too disturbed by the party, and the aqua-mist canopy allowed relief to those wishing to escape the summer heat. One can only imagine the eleventh hour discussions that took place between Fuzzy, The Sydney Royal Botanic Gardens' Trust, the New South Wales' Environmental Protection Agency and Hot Chip for the closing live set, but somehow, they managed to pull it off.
Hats off to Fuzzy for Field Day, a wonderful start to 2013.