BIGSOUND WRAP-UP [by Chris Salce]

Following on from its 3 year gap since its last instalment in 2019, BIGSOUND finally hit our shores again last week in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane, and heading up there finally felt like the Australian music scene was all truly back to normal with the hustle and bustle of the conference providing a sense of normality to our lives. Throughout the three days and multitude of showcases on offer, here are some of the standouts for myself that are definitely artists you’ll need to keep your eyes on in the short and long term:

SAN JOSEPH
I had been following San Joseph since the release of his debut single ‘Blink Twice’, and seeing his name attached to the live lineup this year was massive so I had to make myself available to check out his showcase at The Sound Garden. Set up as a live trio, the Melbourne-based artist had the whole room magnetised with his commanding stage presence and brilliant musicianship on offer. Drawing echoes of Sam Fender and Paolo Nutini, San Joseph showcased his incredibly catchy melodies and uplifting indie/pop stylings that had fans begging for more, in particular the mammoth performance of ‘Blink Twice’ which had the crowd going mental!

JEROME FARAH
Again, similar to San Joseph, I have been a huge fan of Jerome Farah since he burst onto the scene in 2020 and boy oh boy he did not disappoint. Playing to a packed out Stranded Bar, Farah had the whole room vibing off his powerful and booming set list which was arguably the highlight of my whole time at Bigsound. Singles such as ‘Vibrate’ and ‘Concrete Jungle Fever’ had the floor shaking with the bass banging and the crowd getting all hyped up off Farah’s stage presence and sublime vocals.

BLUSHER
Having been aware of the individual artists and their back catalogues, Blusher was one act that I had pencilled in immediately to go see at BIGSOUND and they proved for their first live shows that they are going to be household names before you know it. With pristine choreography, powerful vocals and crystal clear harmonies, Blusher showcased why they were one of the most talked about artists at this years conference with an enforcing array of pop gems that are sure to be blasted over your speakers and radios sooner rather than later.

BOY SODA
Boy Soda has been an artist on a mammoth rise through 2022, so I was very intrigued to see his live set at Ivory Tusk and he definitely lived up to the hype and some. With a three piece set up, Boy Soda commanded the packed rooms attention from the word go with a captivating vocal performance and sublime instrumentation blaring through the speakers that had the whole room hypnotised. Surprising myself with an impressive yet powerful cover of Destiny’s Child ‘Say My Name’, you could tell that Boy Soda poured his heart and soul into every single second of the set with pure emotion being displayed in his output both with his stage presence and vocals.