Live Review: Carl Cox & Eric Powell's Mobile Disco With De La Soul

Carl Cox and Eric Powell's Mobile Disco with De La Soul paired two of music's most iconic DJs with one of hip hop's most sought-after groups. Together they kept the party going for eight hours. With wine flowing by the bottle and the bass turned up loud, this was a 2016 party to remember for South Australia.

As roughly 2,000 fans from all over Adelaide and further afield made their way into the venue, Eric Powell laid down the foundation, playing a bunch of hip hop-infused beats to kick things off as people settled in. Carl Cox played the first of two sets, building anticipation slowly and masterfully: funk-driven tunes with a feel-good tone and hard-hitting bass lines. Cox drew a laugh from the crowd when he stated, "If you're 19 to 25 then you don't know what you're doing, but you're probably having fun," also eliciting the biggest cheer when identifying the 30- to 40-year-olds.

After a few hours of tropical party vibes, Maseo took to the decks prior to De La Soul's set, delivering a tribute to the late Phife Dawg by mashing up a medley of A Tribe Called Quest tracks. The set that followed was tight and to the point, with Posdnuos lyrically on top of his game, while Dave (aka David Jude Jolicoeur) showed a real connection to the audience, who bounced their hands up and down like there was no tomorrow. A rendition of Stakes Is High proved to be the set highlight, with the crowd yelling "Vibration!" back at the New York trio. But, of course, a De La Soul set wouldn't be complete without them playing their hit tune Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey), which sent them out in style.

Carl Cox's second set moved from funk and disco into classic house, where groovy hooks were running on tap and sending the audience into a trance-like state of good times. The addition of live trumpet and percussion was classy and gave Cox's DJ set a full band feel. The crowd didn't waver throughout proceedings and you could tell Cox and De La Soul were very happy to be there. Powell took over for the last half hour and played some heavier modern music, even going back-to-back with Cox. With the near-full moon shining, the dream-like day ended in style.