Inca Roads is probably the only three-day festival in Australia located on a small farm owned by an elderly Italian couple with intimate crowd of 300 and a lineup boasting some of Australia’s most innovative up-and-coming acts. With this year being only its second birthday, Inca Roads is technically still an infant, but it seems to have already found its feet.
The festival itself was beautiful: homemade decorations and art installations were scattered across the farm waiting to be stumbled upon and Instagram’d; the food area dubbed “Taste Town” was comprised only of a taco van and sausage sizzle; and the main stage looked like a bigger version of the cubby house I made when I was 11. Everything looked like the product of an arts and craft class – it was utterly charming.
Nigerian-rapper-internet-meme Bangs was the first act I caught in full. Rivalling the likes of Kendrick and Kanye, Bangs stunned the crowd with mesmerising choruses like: “Christmas coming real soon, then we gonna have good afternoon”. (“Your boy”) Bangs actually put on a entertaining set. He induced a sing-along amongst the crowd, and soon enough even I couldn’t resist echoing his poetic choruses. I think I even twerked a little bit. I don’t know what happened.
This year Willow Beats hypnotised a cult following with their eclectic blend of experimental electronic pop, perhaps culminating in a spot on the Parklife bill through winning the triple j Unearthed competition. Willow Beats is made up of producer Narayana Johnson and his niece Kalyani Ellis who provides the ethereal vocals on each track. On the Friday night Willow Beats hit the stage as a one-man show, with Narayana cutting, mixing and splicing Kalyani’s recorded vocals between smooth electronic beats. Narayana operated effortlessly without his parter-in-crime, possessing the crowd with tracks like the anthemic From The Underground and the fast-faced Grom The Betrayer.
It’s been a big year for Animaux, racking up frequent air play on triple j and playing a series of sold out residencies throughout Melbourne, so the Inca farm was rightfully buzzing ahead of their Saturday night set. From the first bar until the last line, Animaux exuded the energy of a young band who love their art, and their sheer excitement seemed to symbiotically rub off onto the crowd. The set climaxed with their cover of Passion Pit’s festival favourite, Little Secrets, where Passion Pit’s signature synth lines were exchanged with soaring brass instruments – somehow making the song even more danceable than the original. It was a cathartic moment that had everyone at the farm jumping with pop-funk running through their veins.
Canyons make the kind of music you’d expect to soundtrack a bunch of face painted people dancing on a farm, so it’s no wonder they were the headliners for Inca Roads. Canyons’ sugary synth was fittingly backdropped by a glowing milky way in the night sky, offering a visual that almost matched the magic of their sound. When the chorus dropped during the summery crowd favourite When I See You Again, I dropped my taco, which I never saw again.
Electric Sea Spider (Jim Sellars) was my most anticipated act for the weekend and he didn’t disappoint. Showcasing tracks from his recently released full-length album Supercash (released through //THIS THING//), Sellars’ production was reminiscent of Clams Casino with layered tracks typified by disjointed, sporadic pops of electronic hip-hop beats. My neck still hurts from the head-nodding.
Inca Roads delivered an experience I’d expect to get from Falls or Meredith, not a festival in only its second year. As we all packed up our tents with last night’s face paint still in tact, and enough tan lines to look like human pedestrian crossings, I posed the question, “Who wants to come next year?” Let’s just say I didn’t have to bribe anyone into saying yes.
BY DYLAN McCARTHY
Photo credit: Garry Westmore
LOVED: Narayana from Willow Beats impromptu magic show at our campsite.
HATED: The tan lines.
DRANK: Cheeky Rascal cider kegs. So cheeky.
