To the ladies of Perth who like other ladies,
Where were you this weekend? One Movement Festival rocked the socks off this fair city with a glut of stellar acts. Lilith Fair founder, Sarah McLachlan opened the One Movement Festival on the Friday evening. By all accounts, Saturday showcased some enormous talent, nationally and internationally. But Sunday was undoubtedly the unofficial Ladies Night for the festival.
The Jezabels’ lead singer Hayley Mary claimed the stage; her sultry lyrics had the audience swooning left, right and centre. Despite their early set, this Sydney quartet whetted appetites with their soft lyrical eroticism. They are like an indie-pop cocktail swaying between delicate ditties to some emotionally raw lyrics.
The Sydney girls from KYU offered a percussion extravaganza for West Australians with their pop/synth/experimental potluck set. KYU has worked with Yeasayer and Patrick Wolf, sharing the same sense of musical experimentation. Watching the duo’s live performance was as compelling as their music; each girl equipped with her own set of drums, a xylophone and an assortment of other instruments.
Following KYU, the next femme fatale for the day was California’s Jonneine Zapata. This indie-siren sauntered in front of the microphone, coaxing everything with a pulse to the Snowball Stage in spite of the troublesome rain.
UK-born Liz Green was another truly jaw-dropping woman at One Movement. At 26, this genteel-looking English girl blasted away audiences with her 1930s deep South diva voice, her tunes accompanied by the West Australian Youth Jazz Orchestra. Unmistakable from an old vinyl record, Green stole audiences from the 21st century for a snap-shot of a past era where brass triumphed.
For the indie/rock fiends, An Horse (sic) thrashed out some cussin’ good tracks which initiated a wide-spread head nodding and toe-tapping from the crowds of the Breakthrough Big Top stage. Just one part of the Sydney duo, Kate Cooper could be seen either serrenading or whipping the Perth crowds into a frenzy with their melodies.
However, it was ZE! who had to be the ultimate gay performance for the day. Her entire show, visually and musically, is a brash tribute to the likes of Madonna and M.I.A. Donning local fashion label Lonely 8-bit Heroes, the Malaysian-born ZE! imbued a distinct taste for outrageous fashion, sound and lyrics which set the cold evening alight. Other female-led acts included Sally Seltmann and Queensland quintet, Operator Please.
As for the boys, there were so many remarkable acts such as Cloud Control, Bedouin Soundclash, Carl Fox, Boy and Bear and Xavier Rudd; just to name a few.
All in all though, it seemed girl power dominated the final day of One Movement. While it’s doubtful there was a conscious effort for such a strong female presence, the result made for an awesome tribute to what a complete set of X chromosomes can do.
Benn Dorrington
