Due to severe weather conditions in Brisbane, the Dirtybird himself Claude Vonstroke was unable to make an appearance in the Perth leg of the official 2013 Dirtybird Showcase. This was taken as a huge blow for the fans, but it failed to spoil a wonderful Ambar atmosphere, with local boy Deadmuv doing a superb job as last minute replacement. Mono Lisa started off the night early in style with some bass friendly vibes played out to a smallish but eager crowd, before Deadmuv heated things up a bit more, setting things up nicely for the two remaining Dirtybirds. Sweet faced house mastermind J Phlip churned out a tasteful selection of bass numbers, with a performance that seemed to go down more of a dark and sinister sort of vibe as her set progressed.
Dark Sky and Breach's The Lick rode masterfully into Boddika's remix of his own Soul What, with a set that kept the crowd guessing as much as dancing. Dirtybird veteran Justin Martin saw to the decks in typical fashion, as Phlip handed out free Heinekens and Becks to the front row, coming out to dance and take pictures with an excitable crowd to Kill Frenzy's Booty Clap. An assortment of tech house gems coupled with gleaming vocals was typical of Justin, whirling the audience into a frenzy with more Ghettos & Gardens remixes that you could poke a stick at. It's almost impossible to single out the best tracks in Martin's set, but the Eats Everything 'reruff' of Martin's Ruff Stuff and Dusky's remix of his Don't Go were definite highlights for the night.
A sudden change of pace with Justin suddenly dropping some drum & bass on the crowd towards the end of an electrifying set served perfectly to change things up, and muster up another level of energy within the audience in the earlier hours of the morning. Frequently, Martin would turn down the music momentarily to scream out things that revved the crowd up regardless of their inaudibility, before unleashing enormous house bangers, including an edit of 2006 house anthem, Claude Vonstroke's Who's Afraid of Detroit. Here's hoping that the promised refund for Claude's absence is free entry to a secret sideshow from the man himself, or at the very least some nifty Dirtybird merchandise.
