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Live Review: Violent Soho, DMAs, Golden Features, SAFIA, Coda Conduct - UTS Winterfest

9 August 2014 | 4:46 pm | Hannah Story

The “SOHO SOHO SOHO” chant that kicked in just before midnight.

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Although UTS Winterfest was running half an hour behind before the first band had even played, with technical difficulties at fault, it shaped up to be a memorable night at the refurbished Glasshouse, now The Underground.

Few people were in the crowd for openers Bootleg Rascal, whose energy didn’t seem to match the upbeatness of their brand of ska- and reggae-tinged rock. Meanwhile up in The Loft courtyard indie young guns Castio made a show of it and were quite polished despite their youth. 

Coda Conduct took to the stage next and quickly had the crowd in thrall, shouting back the chorus lines and “getting low”. This is rap duo made up of Sally Coleman and Erica Mallett are one to watch. The Underground filled up for Lorde supports SAFIA, who played a textured set. Single Listen To Soul, Listen To Blues had the crowd amped up, while their cover of James Vincent McMorrow’s Cavalier was moody and contemplative, just as it’s supposed to be.

DMA’s opened with Feels Like 37; it and unreleased songs felt fleshed out thanks to additional instrumentation – there were three guitars all up – although Tommy O’s vocals were less strong than on record. Delete, a piece of breezy Britpop revival, meant a crowd singalong. Golden Features hit the decks and got the crowd dancing in the interim, although some of the crowd were getting a bit restless.

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The mosh kicked in ten seconds into opener Dope Calypso and did not stop. 

And although the hodgepodge of genres meant that all festival-goers were catered to, it was garage-rockers Violent Soho who were the apple of the crowd’s eye. You could tell just by looking at the revelers who they were here to see (beanies, Violent Soho shirts, mosh-appropriate shoes) and the “SOHO SOHO SOHO” chant that kicked in just before midnight put it into words – the mosh kicked in ten seconds into opener Dope Calypso and did not stop. Fights broke out and people were forcibly removed from the venue, which led Violent Soho to stop the show a few songs in, staging a sit-in until Jeremy, who was “just having a dance”, was let back in. Later on in the set guitarist James Tidswell drew the crowd’s attention to another “fucked-up” circumstance – a security guard had busted another mosher’s kneecap. Despite the drama the high energy set did go on, Saramona Said, Love Is A Heavy Word, and of course, Covered In Chrome, getting roars from the hot and sweaty crowd. Hell fuck yeah.