W/ THE VISITORS, ROBOBUGGIN',SHREDLOCK, KRISTIAN
DATE : JULY 27 2001
VENUE: THE ZOO (BRISBANE)
WRITER: REVIEWED BY KITTY HARRIS FOR WEB ENTERTAINMENT
4 STARS

Being a live band venue and having sound restrictions, The Zoo is an early starter and finisher, in comparison to the dance clubs. There have been a few dance events in the space over the years, but mainly live electronica acts use the venue to open their sounds up to a band-oriented audience and broaden their market appeal.

Last Friday at The Zoo was a special event for local trio Soma Rasa, who were launching their first ever vinyl release.

Turning up at 11:30pm, I was most disappointed to discover I had missed the local support act, The Visitors. Reports were that they pumped out old favourites and some newies for the crowd. There were still groovers on the floor when I arrived, probably remnants of the dance floor The Visitors built, they're funky live drum and bass sound has proven to get crowds moving. They've also had another line-up change, with Tony Potter, the bass player being replaced by another local while he takes a break from the group. No real surprise considering the evolutionary nature the band set out to achieve from the beginning, but curiously only one of the three founding members remain part of the group now.

DJ Shredlock warmed the crowd in the interim mixing up drum and bass and party breaks, a couple of great tracks with infectious bass lines, but the sound was too loud and I felt one of my scilla stand on end and fall over, a frequency sadly never to be heard of again.

A recent addition to the SOMA RASA line-up, DJ Kristian took over not long before Soma hit the stage, the beats changing from dnb breaks to more hip hop laced booty sounds. Until recently, Kristian was Brisbane's DMC Champ (The Master dethroned him at the DMCs on Saturday), he took over the DJing slot with Soma Rasa over a year ago. Kristain obviously has the skills and his work with Soma Rasa has given him the opportunity to bring his turntablism to another dimension.

Soma Rasa hit the stage at midnight. They have been around for maybe 5 years, the core combination of the group being the Hazard Brothers, Bill and Dan. Bill looks after the samples and synth keys, while Dan drums the beats out on the pads and cymbals. These guys have certainly changed their sound since the beginning. First it was hip hop laced down-beat grooves, then it moved to Luke Slater style four four doof, and now their newer material errs more on a live house sound. With all these sounds and styles combined, Soma's live set was energetic and exciting. They started with singles like Future of the Funk, and made the audience wait in anticipation for the new sounds, tools for keeping an audience interested for sure! Whilst, they usually have moving visuals for the backdrop, the lighting show that accompanied that band this time was beautiful too. Reds, oranges and white strobes to start with the more drum & bass numbers, then greens and blues for house and techno.

The newer material contained some Barry White samples which they announced for the "Lovers in the crowd", namely a hell funky bass line. The squelchy acidic sounds were yummy too! If this is what Soma Rasa's now have to offer then go buy it, or check em' out. They're proved to master different styles and sounds and their musical growth is certainly something to be proud of.

Kitty Harris