Harbour Party - High And Dry

Local News, By Christian Taylor, 3rd March, 2009

Despite gloomy weather forecasts Mardi Gras’ Harbour ‘09 had plenty of sunshine, over 2,500 partygoers and a great entertainment line up, which included Grammy-nominated singer Sam Sparro, Hed Kandi singer Peyton and birthday boy, Matthew Mitcham.

DJs Stephen Allkins, Kate Monroe, Alex Taylor and Shigeki transformed Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens into a harbourside boogie wonderland. Despite initial technical problems as Sam Sparro made his entrance he wowed the crowd with his hits Black and Gold, Pocket and 21st Century Life.

Later Shauna Jensen led the crowd in singing happy birthday to Matthew Mitcham, who has just turned 21.

The fun continued afterwards at the after party at Trademark, as well as the opening night of Same Same’s Mardi Bar, which kicked on into the wee hours of the morning.

Check out Same Same’s video coverage from the party, which includes an impromptu chat with Carson Kressley:

Check out our photos from Harbour 09 and Mardi Bar here.

Take a look at Same Same’s Mardi Gras section.

Your Thoughts

robbie

said ages ago

Sam rocked it.. met him there, such a DTE guy...

dreadcircus

said ages ago

Had a great day... Sam rocked!!

brodes13

said ages ago

I like Sam, but I didnt really dig the vibe of the party once he performed. I thought it was a good day - but perhaps not great. I think the police presence made every one peak very early! and I thought the day was at its best just as the sun was setting.

AnthemJunkie

said ages ago

Peyton was brilliant!!!!.......music on the whole was very average......why is it every time I go to one of these parties i'm seeing the same dj's???? Surely there are other talented dj's in Sydney or other parts of oz that would love the opportunity to do a set in what could be an amazing party. 100 odd bucks to see the same ol' djs....Im glad my ticket was free! :cool:

matoutdoors

said ages ago

Harbour party was great!!! But Alex Taylors set was besieged by technical difficulties. Which was a shame. Awesome weather and a cool crowd though

andyboy

said ages ago

Overall I thought it was good! Lots of happy energy in Kate Monroe's set but felt it was a up and down after that. Respecting that everyone's mind and body may be in different places at different times so it must be a challenge to hit the mark for 2500 people. Also the people I party with dont seem to care for live vocalists at parties like this despite who and how good they may be... different strokes for different folks. The bar and bathroom facilities were very disappointing considering the money you pay to be there!

AnthemJunkie

said ages ago

Overall I thought it was good! Lots of happy energy in Kate Monroe's set but felt it was a up and down after that. Respecting that everyone's mind and body may be in different places at different times so it must be a challenge to hit the mark for 2500 people. Also the people I party with dont seem to care for live vocalists at parties like this despite who and how good they may be... different strokes for different folks. The bar and bathroom facilities were very disappointing considering the money you pay to be there! Sparro and Peyton were vocal for bout 40 mins total. Thats about 5-10% of the whole party. Thats fine that the people you party with dont care for live vocalists but others do enjoy a bit of variety. Take your ipod to the party next time if a vocalist is performing

robbie

said ages ago

Remember this is an international party too.. I'm not sure of the split, but I reckon a good 15 - 20% would of been from O/S... I'm sure they haven't seen the Alex and Kate play before..

andyboy

said ages ago

thanks for the ipod suggestion.. but i dont think that would be necessary.. just expressing an opinion .. .happy to hear many people like variety and they enjoyed the performances...

Marie-Pierre

said ages ago

Well, having now done Harbour party, Mardi gras party,and Toybox over the last eight days, I can honestly say the one I enjoyed the most this year was Harbour party. Despite the intimidating police presence at the entrance (but we've come to expect that), it was the best for my money for fun, music, inclusiveness, great mix of ages and people, friendliness, the shows, and of course, that magical setting. Well done NMG and let's hope we all meet again next year under the stars with the bats!

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