The final day of Splendour in the Grass was distinctly more relaxed than the previous two, with many worn out patrons residing within their tents or cruising the global village for their best hangover cure. Clearly, this year has been the most favorable when it comes to the weather front where Gumboots were a distant memory of the last swampy slush pit of the previous year. Lack of sleep was in the insomnia realm, and not even the sunglasses could disguise the punters zombie-like composure. Day three’s lineup was without a doubt the biggest so sleep or lack of it could wait till morning as this was going to be a corker.
First up we have The Internet, who packed out the Mix Up Stage for some of their trademark slinky grooves. In a refreshing change for the Mix Up, there were no drops and no euphoric choruses for The Internet. Instead, they stayed at a steady pace wowing the heavy headed crowd with delectable, futuristic soul music. Their latest album Ego Death made up most of the set, closing their set with The Kaytranada-produced ‘Girl’ which showed a steady but rich highlight.
Following with Wafia, one of the new heroes of Splendour In The Grass, the young Brisbanite pulled in a huge crowd to the Tiny Dance Stage. Dressed as a superhero in a cape and a white hat, she wafted through tracks from her EP XXIX, captivating with those honey-soaked tones. Meet Me In The Middle from her forthcoming EP with Ta-Ku melted hearts, but it was her hallmark track Heartburn which proved her worth. The crowd sang the entire chorus back at her which is something even veterans of the game could dream of. Rounding her set with a cover of Mario’s 2004 classic ‘Let Me Love You’ pairing R&B with gentle synths and soulful vocals.
Golden Features dropped all the favs from his 24 karat nugget of gold. There was pandemonium when he walked the thrash line with a frenzied version of Justice’s D.A.N.C.E, Gurned out locals hung from the MiX Up tent as he sweated out through darkened classics. The crowd turned a solid shade of gold with patrons spilling beyond the tent’s perimeter to closing track ‘Telescope’ smashing the barriers of light and sound.
Back over at The Tiny Dancer Stage, GANZ got his trap arms flexing with the crossover banger ‘Higher Ground’ by TNGHT, continuing upward motion through heavyweight singles hitting god mode with Flosstradamus’ ‘Mosh Pit’. Waving it all back to his earlier dubstep days with Flux Pavilion’s ‘I Can’t Stop’, while ScHoolBoy Q’s ‘Collared Greens’ were served as a side dish, Ganz moved across a range of bass-heavy genres, getting it all done for one of the day’s best night sets.
After some well-earned taco’s and a few frothy’s, I found myself at the Amphitheatre for James Blake, which was a beautiful thing. People were sitting on the ground and tucked away in the surrounding hills as he opened up with complete captivation. There was no limit to the Londoners love as he performed a soulful journey via classical bass, mesmerizing the audience with atmospheric rhythm. Overcoming some technical issues to filling the amphitheater to the brim with his rich, soulful voice presence, bare-boned and intimate in all, it’s appeal. James Closed his set with an emotional rendition of ‘Fallen’ a track written by his father and faded out to black with the bass shaking the hills.
Next on the agenda was your boi Flume, who has risen through the ranks to become a worldwide superstar, pulling in the biggest crowd of the weekend without a doubt with an impressive light show and a melting pot of new tunes amongst some old flamers.
As we all need a little help from our friends, Harley called upon Vera Blue, Ngaiire, Remi, Baro, Kučka and Jess Kent to help destroy the main stage. Vera Blue crystalised ‘Never Be Like You’ with her lofty voice and Ngaiire added sweet soul to ‘Take A Chance.’
Jess Kent took a swing at Tove Lo’s vocal spot on ‘Say It’ and absolutely slayed it proving she is definitely one to watch. Flume closed out this Splendour showcase with his Disclosure remix of ‘You & Me’ addressing the crowd one last time with some choice words aimed at a not so popular Aussie (Racist) politician.
At the final beat of his epic set, Harley Shouted “Fuck Pauline Hanson”… Dropping the mic – providing the end to yet another next-level Splendour In The Grass. See you all next year!
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