Video Wars at La De Da

Belconnen’s lakeside loft bar, La De Da held their first ever Video Wars audio-visual battle on Friday. La De Da prides itself on promoting local artists, musicians and a diverse social atmosphere, and often hosts live creative arts ‘battles’ that not only entertain revelers but also help to connect and further inspire homegrown creatives.

The ‘Video Wars’ battle hosted by MC Roshambo, comprised a DJ and a VJ team battling against another team. Each team took turns mixing music and video in a three-minute, off the cuff sequence that best expressed the theme of the round. As there were seven rounds, the teams were challenged to respond to the theme one of the ‘seven deadly sins’ in each round.

The Red Team had Jemist on the decks and John Carolan on visuals and they started with lust. Daft Punk’s Something About Us played while Japanese anime cut with iconic scenes from coming of age films played out onscreen. The Blue Team, which had Fauxreal spinning the tunes and Josh Owen as VJ, responded with their interpretation of lust featuring music by Marvin Gaye and Destiny’s Child synced with the unforgettable pool scene out of Fast Times At Ridgemont High.

In the other six rounds, the audience continued to be captivated by the special effects, fast edits between moments in history, iconic figures and films in pop culture. When the music and visuals combined, they evoked powerful feelings that bombarded your senses, seeing old and new clashing gave those in the audience a twisted and personal nostalgic experience.

While the Red Team knew how to play to the crowd especially in their choice of songs, the Blue team had the superior technical skills in mixing and effects and in the end came out victorious.

Speaking to the barman just before the event, La De Da’s Video Wars idea was an experimental one that could either “Turn out pretty awesome or fall to shit.”

Judging by the audience reaction, I’d say they were impressed.

By Tim Lowe