Interplanetary Criminal Brings UKG Heat to Melbourne

Photo credit: Elliot Morgan (2025)

Manchester DJ and producer Zach Bruce, better known as Interplanetary Criminal, has returned to Australia for a run of shows along the East Coast. It’s only been 10 months since his last visit but he’s back with even more energy.

Interplanetary Criminal has been refining his craft for over a decade, but his popularity skyrocketed after releasing the track that defined the summer of 2022. His collaboration with Eliza Rose, ‘B.O.T.A (Baddest Of Them All), has racked up over 420 million streams. Since then he’s played sold-out shows across the globe and appeared at iconic festivals including Coachella, Glastonbury and our own Pitch Music & Arts. He’s also caught the attention of heavy-hitters like Sammy Virji, KETTAMA and Conducta, all artists he’s now released music with.

This tour marks his biggest headline tour to date across Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney, along with his debut at Strawberry Fields in Tocumwal. Port Melbourne’s Timber Yard hosted his latest performance, with support from the talented Messie (NZ), Prizefight (AUS) and 2NDHNDREF (AUS). The venue’s $3 million renovation was immediately noticeable. There was better climate control, sharper sound, new LED screens and moving lights, which made the space feel bigger and more alive while still staying comfortable.

Interplanetary Criminal’s two-hour set was super engaging, with plenty of UK Garage (UKG) flavour for punters to move to. The distinctive basslines, chopped vocals, warping sounds and bouncy flow of the genre hit perfectly in the space. He has a knack of weaving 2000s and early 2010s classics into his sets with an elevated twist that got lots of young people very excited. From Missy Elliot to The Black Eyed Peas, he’s giving everyone something to get excited about. Remixes of songs by Kaytranada, Malugi, Corona, Remy Ma and Britney Spears also made the cut.

Naturally, the crowd was stoked to hear his other popular tracks including ‘Yosemite’ and ‘Damager’. One of his recent releases with Original Koffee, ‘Slow Burner’, was a personal highlight. But when I’m Not Alone (MPH Remix) by Calvin Harris came on and transitioned into Silva Bumpa’s ‘I Got It From My Mama’ edit, the crowd erupted. It’s my favourite Calvin Harris track of all time so I was in seventh heaven!

The last 15 minutes of his set took a slightly unexpected turn. It was a strong finish, with edits of Club Angel’s ‘Bulletproof’, Philip George’s ‘Wish You Were Mine’, and Calvin Harris and Clementine Douglas’ ‘Blessing’. But it was a remix of Reel 2 Reel’s ‘I Like 2 Move It’ (yes the one from the Madagascar soundtrack) that truly caught me off guard. The same goes for ‘Broccoli’ by DRAM and Lil Yachty, which closed out the night. You can be an adult at a rave, but your inner school disco child always resurfaces. I’m so here for it.

In an era of electronic music domination, Interplanetary Criminal is firmly at the forefront of a thriving UKG scene. This tour marks a significant chapter in his career – proof of how far he’s come, yet still nowhere near his ceiling.