Live Review: HyperFest

For a small all ages festival, HyperFest manages to do a lot that its larger brethren don't. Large shaded areas within view of the stage, masses of chairs, food outlets, stalls and entertainment — it may be a small oval in Midland, but they've done it right.

As the afternoon approached there had already been an eclectic mass of acts taking up one of four stages around the lot.

Surroundings swamped the main stage in melodic hardcore with Weakness/Progression, their set drawing a sizeable crowd. The guitar duo of Leigh and Drew Kendall provided a thick and beastly breakdown and hit Liars, Crows with a groove-infused rhythm.

Playing to a packed out Chill Out Tent, Oakland were in their element as frontman Alex Cooke swivelled on his microphone stand for Into The Sea, while over at the The Music Feedback stage, Marksman Lloyd instigated a colour fight throughout the crowd as he dropped Dreamers and livened up the grassy floor in an instant.

The main stage was heaving when Horror My Friend arrived and — playing largely from their latest record Stay In, Do Nothing —  unleashed a relentless barrage of distortion. Unfortunately ripping choruses from key tracks like Stay In and Same Minds suffered from mixing issues that dogged the band throughout the set.

Wulfe played a slightly lacklustre set back in the Chill Out Tent, oddly accompanied by James Cameron's Aliens projected to the side of stage. The Music Feedback stage hosted one of the gems of the day in The Hunting Birds. The five-piece pop roots outfit were bursting with harmony and seemed to continually draw more and more people to their stage. With rich, narrative-laden lyrics and a strong pop sensibility, they impressed all who watched and delivered a glimmering rendition of From The Ashes to boot.

Local favourites The Love Junkies hit the main stage to large applause. Their grunge-filled garage rock struck a chord with the crowd — frontman Mitch McDonald demolishing vocals and drummer Lewis Walsh laying some impressive fills — and they stepped their energy up to a whole different level.

On the Echo Stage, three-piece Metronova laid down some pop-punk attitude with some ripping lead guitar work from a special guest, proving themselves a band that we'll be hearing more from in the future.

Tassie punks Luca Brasi began their assault on the main stage through Borders And Statelines, although they may have been suffering slightly in the 30-degree sun as Patrick Marshall explained, "We're all the way from Tassie and, no shit, this week it was fucking snowing." It did nothing to slow down Theme Song From HQ.

The Music Feedback stage was overflowing with a funk, hip hop dance blend as The Brow tore the crowd apart. With giant inflatable beach balls bouncing through the air and a stage that barely contained the band, they set feet on fire with their brass fills and infectious rhythms.

Some blissful post-rock and dream pop filtered out of the Chill Out Tent, Lanark playing an idyllic set to a mesmerised audience, as the main stage thrashed to Trophy Eyes. Vocalist John Floreani, dissatisfied until he got the crowd response he wanted, launched into the hard-hitting vocal line of Bandaid, smashing himself in the head with the microphone while he was at it. It worked for him, Trophy Eyes ending up being a highlight of the day for many.

Living up to their reputation, DZ Deathrays produced a wall of sound that no one else can touch. A fierce performance that menaced with No Sleep, Gina Works At Hearts, and Reflective Skull, they owned the stage and rumbled the speaker stacks with the sludgiest half-time jam of the day.

Pop singer E^ST would have hoped for a better run with her set, which was plagued with tech issues including an awkward stop to fix a keyboard. It should have been a wreck, though it ended up being far from it. Her honest and humble stage presence, mixed with a wonderful approach to songwriting and performance, meant that the heartbreak of Somebody Else and Your Ghost stood far beyond stage faults.

A hooded Marcus Bridge led the crowd into an all-out scream fest of Obelisk as Northlane began their set. The band were incredibly sharp — with a finely tuned set coming off their Node record — feeding off the crowd's enthusiasm, who sang every word while jumping and pushing through Quantum Flux and Impulse.

Closing out the night, Ball Park Music were clearly no strangers to finishing up a festival, jamming their set with hits such as Literally Baby, Fence Sitter and Everything Is Shit Except My Friendship With You. They showered the audience in harmonies and good time vibes, frontman Sam Cromack getting a few giggles as the audience battles the return of the beach balls. Their inclusion in the festival was a no brainer — the crowd morphing into an exuberant swarm of bodies leaning into the contagious pop — and a perfect way to end the night.