It’s common knowledge that I have a soft (or, hem hem, hard) spot for Calvin Harris; I’ve often said he’s husband material. Musically and aesthetically, I simply adore him. Whilst he’s not everybody’s cup of tea (and I do understand why this is the case,) the more I listen to his debut album “I Created Disco,” the more I find to love about it. Watching him live with his incredibly talented band over the weekend has now only heightened my appreciation of his work. Luckily for me, I got to see Harris do his thing twice over two magical days.

First up, Calvin’s Good Vibrations Festival side-show at Melbourne’s HiFi bar on the Friday. Supporting the fly-eye guru were Aussie funsters Gameboy/Gamegirl who - quite alarmingly - my friend Catherine and I were later mistaken for by some random drunken whores who had been standing next to us while Gameboy/Gamegirl were actually performing…

So Calvin and his band were scheduled to come on at 10pm and - surprisingly - they were on time; on the dot in fact. That hasn’t happened to me at a pop concert for quite some time! Opening with the mesmerizing instrumental “Certified” (my third favourite moment from “I Created Disco,) Calvin played about on his geniusly set up Amiga computer, which several people have pointed out to me looked a LOT like an Etch-A-Sketch. Thrashing himself around, jumping up and down as he began “Disco Heat” (my second favourite moment from the album,) Calvin - who I should point out was smack bang in front of me during the whole show on that stage - with his long hair flying about, spread an incredible amount of his own sweat onto all of those in the front row, in particular myself. And due to the height of the stage at the HiFi bar, Calvin’s crotch was at level with my face for the entire show. It was all a little bit exciting really, and I’ll leave the sexual hysterics at that.

“Colours” and “Acceptable In The 80’s” followed, to much fanfare, followed by “Merrymaking At My Place,” “Neon Rocks” and “The Industry” followed, all sounding incredibly beefy accompanied by a proper live band. Calvin took time between almost each song to chat with the crowd and thanked us for coming countless amounts of times, and - at one point - he laughed when I asked him to “tell me another one of your festive funnies!” Calvin’s rather charming guitar player also thanked the crowd a few times in his own way; quite the show pony he was, parading about stage with that instrument like he was an undisputed rock-god… it totally worked too and he pulled it off impeccably… I almost began paying him a little more attention than I was Calvin.

“The Girls” and “Vegas” followed, with Harris announcing he refused to partake in encores because he felt they took away from the magic of a live show (I agree, and applaud him for not succumbing to the tiresome encore procedure.) I was a bit annoyed that my favourite track from his album, “Electro Man,” was left off the set list, but the finale certainly didn’t disappoint. Finishing up with “I Created Disco” was a fine choice, particularly seeing as the live version has an additional 4 minutes to the version on the album. You know how, right at the end of the album version, it sounds like the track is going to pick up even further and go somewhere else? Then, shockingly, it just ends? Well the live version does what the album version should have and gives it a BONZA ending; totally reinvents the track and turns it into a seriously special musical moment. Can we have a studio version of this please? Or at the very least a good quality live recording of it? I am dying to hear those hearty extra few minutes again.

At the end of the show Calvin came out to say hello to the couple of punters who’d been waiting to get things signed and what-not. He and I chatted for a bit about Popjustice and how great the show was, he signed my copy of his album and posed for a photo, and we bid adieu.

The next day I saw Calvin play AGAIN at the Good Vibrations Music Festival, which was held at Melbourne’s Sidney Myer Music Bowl. Right up the front for an almost identical set to the HiFar bar show, it was still super special, especially hearing the extended “I Created Disco” all over again. He jumped about enthusiastically and - on several occasions - jumped off the stage and ran through the front row. Fun, fun, fun.

Unfortunately for me, I missed seeing Kanye West’s closing set at the festival; I had a slight altercation with a hill and a cement step which saw me twisting my ankle and had me leaving for bandages and ice at home in place of live Daft Punk collaborations. Oh well, at least I got to see hubby play before it all went pear shaped.

Took a stack of photos, I’ve included thumbnails of the best few, but you can view the galleries in full over on facebook if you’re interested: HiFi Bar gallery here (best set of the two,) and Good Vibes gallery here.