Live Review: St Jerome's Laneway Festival

Dubbed by Fremantle’s own Coachella-headlining poster boy Kevin Parker as “Australia’s best festival”, St Jerome's Laneway Festival always brings with it an air of excitement. And for good reason, with this year’s diverse line-up delving into every corner of the musical landscape on a perfect summer’s day. 

Fresh from her Falls Festival performance last month, local talent Carla Geneve gifted the crowd a strong vocal performance to start the day. Nineteen-year-old Yellow Days also impressed early with his unique psych-indie-soul musical flair. 

Carla Geneve. Pic by Tashi Hall

After a brief walk through the secluded pine area at the rear of the main stage which housed the Girls Rock stage and various boutique stands, a three-hour onslaught of soul was on offer over at the LNWY.CO Stage, serving up some of the smoothest R&B, hip hop and jazz coming out of the US right now.

Dressed in an eye-catching The Great Wave Off Kanagawa-styled ensemble, Ravyn Lenae entranced the crowd with flawless vocals and quirky dancing, coasting through tracks like Sticky and The Night Song. Smino’s eccentricity and experimental hip hop production then had the crowd moving with added energy. While the set enjoyed numerous finger-snapping highpoints (Anita, LMF), live renditions of minimalist, melody-driven favourites such as Wild Irish Roses failed to hit the mark. 

Jamaican-born jazz artist Masego then jumped into a festival-stealing set with his charismatic track Tadow immediately invigorating the crowd. Having seen Masego open with his best-known track by far, fans could have been forgiven for wondering how the set could maintain this level of hype. The show-stopping saxophone solos and infectious onstage charisma of Masego meant the set never wavered. Inspired performances of Queen Tings, Old Age and a surprisingly enjoyable cover of Snoop Dogg’s Sexual Eruption primed the audience for a grand finale in his anthemic hit Navajo. Masego's set was the best of the day. 

Back over on the main stage, Aussie hip hop rising star Baker Boy rattled his way through an upbeat set. While his energetic songs impressed, extended choreographed dance intermissions failed to win over the crowd. 

Baker Boy. Pic by Tashi Hall

WA rockers Methyl Ethel continued the party on the main stage, where a sizeable crowd had now flocked under an unrelenting sun. After a slightly underwhelming beginning, the five-piece brought the set home strong with fan favourites Scream Whole and Ubu. 

Following on at the adjacent Ferris Wheel Stage, English singer and multi-instrumentalist Rex Orange County graced the stage to an adoring crowd. After only a few tracks it was clear just how large a following the 20-year-old has assumed since 2016 as the huge crowd sang along to each song. The singalong continued as Alexander O'Connor ditched the backing band and punched out a slow tempo acoustic cover of the classic Alicia Keys track No One, a highlight of the set and the festival as a whole. After he performed an emotive and acoustic Waiting Room, the band returned for the set’s end, which saw the feelgood vibes return for Best Friend, Sunflower, and Loving Is Easy.

Rex Orange Country. Pic by Tashi Hall

Around the corner on the pine tree-surrounded LNWY.CO Stage, Sydney duo Cosmo's Midnight brought their bouncy electronic production to the table. Their groove-laden tracks transformed the crowd into a collective bopping unit, with Talk To Me, Lowkey and History rounding out a strong set as nightfall fell on Fremantle Esplanade.

Fellow Sydney producer What So Not kept the tempo up back on the main stage, launching into a characteristically high-octane show with all the trimmings. Staged behind an elevated triangular mixing desk, Chris Emerson delivered a set littered with jolting drops, live electric guitar backing and a diverse range of EDM influences. The set bounced between newer releases such as Warlord and We Can Be Friends, and beloved oldies such as Jaguar and Tell Me, showing why he continues to be hailed as one of Australia’s hottest EDM exports.

As the end of the night rolled around, it was time for headliners Gang Of Youths to wrap things up. After enjoying a stellar 2018 capturing the hearts and minds of crowds across the country, the rock outfit have earned their place at the top of Australian music. The band treated the Freo crowd to an hour of soul-bearing build-ups and climactic releases. Lead vocalist David Le'aupepe served up much of the set’s emotion, delivering heartfelt messages between songs, including a dedication to his late father before The Heart Is A Muscle. Closing with the group’s most powerful offering, Say Yes To Life, Gang Of Youths ended Laneway 2019 on a sombre but impassioned note. 

Gang Of Youths. Pic by Tashi Hall