Live Review: Ryan Hemsworth, Kaytranada, Paces

If the name Ryan Hemsworth doesn't mean anything to you, look him up right now. And before you ask, he is not related to Australian brothers Thor and Miley Cyrus' lover Katniss Everdeen's lover, but rather is a producer hailing from Canada who puts out killer chill-wave beats, along with some bangin' remixes. His take on Frank Ocean's Thinkin Bout You is ridiculously good and arguably better than the original (sorry Frank). Oh, and he also has one of the greatest Instagram accounts out there (heemsworth – check it out for fun time).

Most show up early to catch Brisbane act Paces perform a solid set, packed with tunes that get this crowd nice and sweaty. Speaking of the audience, it's basically comprised of young, elite hipsters and trendsetters all wanting to be seen at this gig that has been labelled 'cool'. And as Ryan Hemsworth walks on stage near the end of Paces' set, it's hard to argue with that definition: he emits rad vibes before even touching the decks. Hemsworth starts by playing other artists' songs, and it's a good 30 minutes before we hear his own work coming through. That's not a bad thing though, as this producer's DJ skills are pretty badass. Only last week, Hemsworth's live set at the Ray Ban x Pitchfork Festival Afterparty was posted to Boiler Room, which gave a taste of said DJ's talent. Admittedly, it is great to hear Hemsworth's own tracks and Charlie Wingate, Overthinking and Grimes' Genesis remix generate the biggest responses. But mostly this crowd enjoy the set as a whole, with the dancing getting out of control in the best possible way.

As it nears the end of Hemsworth's hour-long set, fellow Canadian Kaytranada (Kevin Celestin) appears and for a few tracks is side-by-side Hemsworth (side note: this much swag shouldn't be allowed on the same stage). The crowd obviously laps it up and the changeover between the two of them is seamless. It's refreshing not to have to wait between acts as you do with bands and it certainly helps to maintain the raucous and guttural atmosphere that Hemsworth and Paces work hard to create. Kaytranada is one smooth operator: part-beat producer, part-DJ, part-MC with a bit of part time modelling just to heighten our envy. Oh, and he turned 21 today actually, which he mentions much to the crowd's delight. His set is full of fantastic R&B and hip hop, Kaytranada's own tunes and even some Australian stuff thrown in (courtesy of Ta-ku and Flume). Kaytranada makes bangin' beats and knows how to get people twerkin' (read: this crowd).