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Top Five Picks For Subsonic Music Festival 2013

4 December 2013 | 4:00 pm | Tony Kingston

Considering it is only a matter of days away, we decided it would be the ideal time to recommend some artists who are playing at Subsonic over the weekend.

SUBSONIC is an annual three day music festival which takes place three hours out of Sydney at the stunning location of Barrington Tops. Its line up focuses on all sides of the electronic spectrum and the event has slowly transformed into one of Australia's most laid back festivals.

Considering it is only a matter of days away, we decided it would be the ideal time to recommend some artists who are playing over the weekend.

KELPE (5pm Friday @ Paradiso Stage)

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The UK’s KELPE is making his first trip down under and will be playing a live set at Subsonic. This year he released ‘Fourth: The Golden Eagle’, which provides the listener with a beats driven LP, effectively combining a mixture of hip hop, jazz and house. He’ll be performing on the Paradiso Stage at 5pm on Friday, so if you’re a fan of Warp Records you’d be best off arriving at the festival not too long after the proceedings kick off.

If you dig his set, you can also hear a similar sort of sound from Australian producer KLUE (of TRUE VIBENATION), who will be hitting the Main Stage at 10pm and 11:45pm on Saturday.

PSYCHEMAGIK (6pm Friday @ Paradiso Stage)

Following KELPE’s show at Paradiso, PSYCHEMAGIK will be stepping up to the decks to play a massive 2 hour 45 minute set, primarily made up of psychedelic disco. Over the past year or so, the duo has been gaining a lot of attention for their fantastic edits and mixes.

Their recent ‘Canyon Haze’ mix is a very unique listening experience, which really helps set them apart from other DJs. If you want to be introduced to the festival in the best way possible then do not miss their set!

CHIC ft. NILE RODGERS (9:30pm Friday @ Main Stage)

I don't think too much needs to be mentioned about this act. I remember seeing CHIC last year on a Monday night, after an enormous weekend of Playground Weekender substitute gigs.

I was alone and extremely exhausted and still enjoyed it thoroughly. Replace a city venue with the lush surroundings of Barrington Tops on the first night of the festival and it should triple in awesomeness. Expect funky bass lines, vintage costumes and loads of audience sing-a-longs from this old school disco band.

ALBA (12noon Sunday @ Paradiso Stage)

To put it simply, ALBA are one of the country's best live electronic acts at the moment. Their sets are filled with raw and rapid tech house, performed on synthesisers rather than laptops. If you jet along to check them out after a severe hangover from the night before, they'll probably even wake you up.

DJ EZ (6:30pm Sunday @ Paradiso Stage)

I'm not going to try and make out that I've been a fan of DJ EZ for years, because I haven't. Basically, my buddy told me I had to check out his Boiler Room set as I knew nothing about him. I can't say I'm a huge fan of garage music but after watching this video, I was blown away by DJ EZ's technical ability as a scratch DJ and the energy he gave to the crowd with his unbelievable skills. This man is not just a DJ, he's an entertainer.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS:

With almost three full days of music and by far the best Subsonic line up to date, it’s impossible to nail it down to just five picks. Other quality acts we will have the privilege of seeing this weekend include AFRICA HITECH (Saturday 2:45am @ Main Stage), techno favourite JON CONVEX (Saturday 1am @ River Stage), Dirtybird Records house associates CHRISTIAN MARTIN (Saturday 12am @ Main Stage), KILL FRENZY (Sunday 2am @ Main Stage) and of course, the highly anticipated set from EELKE KLEIJN (Sunday 8pm @ River Stage), who judging by all reports, absolutely smashed it at The Burdekin in Sydney last weekend.

On the locals front, there is also plenty to see too. La Famiglia resident LeOCh will be throwing down a special 'Analog Bird Machine Set' (Sunday 10:30am @ River Stage) which will involve the use of bird and nature samples. Personally I can't think of a better way to ease yourself into a day at a festival!

Add to that, house music veterans SIMON CALDWELL, ROBBIE LOWE, KALI and STEREOGAMOUS (made up of Paul Mac and Jonny Seymour), who'll ensure that no matter which stage we end up at, the music will certainly be danceable.

On behalf of Purple Sneakers, I will be covering all the action from the Astral People curated Paradiso Stage on Sunday, which will feature sets from ZED BIAS, DJ ONEMAN, DJ EZ, LE1F, COSMO’S MIDNIGHT, ALBA, CASSIUS SELECT, BEN FESTER and many more.

To get you in the mood, ADRIAN E, who will be DJing on that particular stage at 9:30am on Sunday, has kindly decided to put together a mix for us to feast our ears on, while we wait patiently for the festivities to begin.

See you at the tops for a weekend to remember!

Words by Tony Kingston