» Earl Sweatshirt & MIKE in Sydney for Vivid LIVE – review and photos Something You Said

Earl Sweatshirt & MIKE in Sydney for Vivid LIVE – review and photos

May 28, 2026

I had a pretty sick day at the Sydney Opera House. Starting out with Ki 氣 dance festival and then copping a ticket to see the Mentor/Mentee duo Earl Sweatshirt x MIKE w/ SURFGANG. Dashing through a downpour, spectacular Vivid lights and a clock that was showing me I had 2 minutes to get my butt into Concert Hall.

Playing mostly tunes from the recent 33 track album POMPEII/UTILITY, I was greeted by the first bassline drop (and, boy, that sound system got worked with the low frequencies). There was an infectious level of liveliness. Great, loose community vibes. Chaotic good energy. Only about 25 seconds after my arrival, everyone stood up. End tune 1. Screaming.

For the crew onstage, it was dream level stuff. MIKE said the group weren’t used to playing to a seated crowd – especially at such an iconic venue. There was something comical and deep about looking around and seeing some people wanting to sit, but having the groupies in the front stalls standing. The layout of SOH Concert Hall means if the front row fans are hyping we all gotta hype. The man next to me in hipster attire didn’t appear to know what to make of it. But that’s the kind of praise Hip-Hop legends Earl, MIKE & SURFGANG need. From way back in Earl’s Tumblr days when Tyler, The Creator spotted him, he has continued experimentation and been a leader in avant-garde rap. MIKE’s been swiftly coming up since 2017 and the pure joy from both of them was contagious.

MIKE’s energy was like a warm hug from a brotherly mate complemented by Earl giving a playful black cat allure. Pretty early on in the show, idk if MIKE was being very clever on the fly or it was a witty fluke, but for a nation obsessed with rugby, MIKE raised the energy by using hand gestures to get us to holler, saying: “You’re gonna scream like you’ve never… scrum before.”

Transitions kept the energy up with onstage banter and comically chaotic (but good) mixes. It really gave an in the stu vibes with the crew. Like those moments you sit at a garage afters and the team get up and show off tracks, or mix beats. Only… this was at SOH. To be honest, I’d come in a bit skeptical. I don’t love tracks that are under 3 minutes because they don’t allow room for ideas to develop (sorry Gen Z).

But the playfulness with the beats, and the riffing non-committal 1’47” track duration has started to work its charm on me. I can be a music snob, but the challenge I faced was “why be so up your own ass when you can just have fun from their fun?” It was a party the whole 80 mins (followed by sick IYKYK afters at AP Pizza).

Review by Amber Liberte. Photography by Peter Dovgan.