Live Review: Superconscious Record Label Showcase

The afternoon sun reclines lazily over Abbotsford Convent as wandering groups of market-goers and lawn-sitters are coaxed inside by an eddying crescendo of tubular bells and warbling keys. Shadow Electric plays host to an impressive showcase of DJs and producers from Superconscious Records tonight.

Label co-founder Francis Inferno Orchestra has been hopping all over the East Coast and is back for his final Australian show ahead of a slew of international dates to promote his EP, Where Will You Be Spending Eternity. Spanning the hazy realms of house and dub by way of raw machine beats and freshly dusted disco samples, he and fellow label founder Fantastic Man set the tone for the evening. Fantastic Man is all about dark, '90s-style dance music; industrial synths and dissonant samples confined by parallel staccato rhythms while also exploring a more ambient and relaxed mood than his 2015 release El Tropo showcased.

The real drawcard of this event is producer Andras Fox, who serves up a smooth and groovin' set gleaned from '80s funk then distilled in a coconut shell on some lost beach. He's less addled than the last time we saw him, but just as disarming and endearing. In keeping with the mode of his most recent Vibrate On Silent EP, his rhythms are typically minimalistic, punctuated by high, breathy woodwind and brass tones, brought back from those ethereal heights by thick, concentric bass lines. This is someone who can effortlessly traverse sensual nu-disco, echoing 8-bit synths and laid-back reggae in quick succession, while creating some of the cleanest, shiniest tunes to boogie to.