Aussies ambush Paris, turn up volume on Olympic Games by raiding iconic establishment

Aussies have ambushed Paris and turned up the volume on the Olympic Games by raiding an iconic establishment, James Weir writes.

James Weir

@hellojamesweir

less than 2 min read

July 29, 2024 - 9:54AM

Bag Raiders, the Sydney electronic music duo, got loud on Saturday night. Pictures: James Weir

Aussies have ambushed Paris and turned up the volume on the Olympic Games by raiding an iconic establishment that they described, in true blue style, as a “f**kin’ castle”.

Bag Raiders, the Sydney electronic music duo, got loud on Saturday night at The Stalingrad Rotunda, a pre-Revolutionary monument that was initially built in 1784 to collect tolls for goods entering the French capital but, in 2024, has transformed into “a bit of a doof space”.

Bag Raiders, the Sydney electronic music duo, got loud on Saturday night. Picture: James Weir

They transformed the iconic venue into “a bit of a doof space”. Picture: James Weir

Those were the words of 23-year-old Liam Schmit, an Aussie in the crowd.

“It’s, like, a f**kin’ castle, eh?” he said, staring around at the high dome ceiling and centuries-old limestone walls.

“I think it’s, like, a town hall kinda vibe.”

It says a lot about Australia that the nicest buildings we have are town halls. They double as wedding venues and election voting spots. Trés chic.

Spot the Aussie. Picture: James Weir

There was ‘more Aussie bogan flavour at the Bali show’. Picture: James Weir

The posh venue wasn’t lost on the band. They recently played a gig in Bali.

“There was probably more Aussie bogan flavour at the Bali show,” said Chris Stracey, one half of the DJ act.

“More bare skin,” added his bandmate Jack Glass.

The boys are scheduled to play shows at venues that are just as sophisticated as The Stalingrad Rotunda in Surfers Paradise and Warrnambool.

The boys arrived in town by train at 7pm on this Saturday night after playing gigs in London and Spain. They were getting ready to hit the stage at 2am. After the gig wrapped at 4am, they’d head to the hotel to get two hours of sleep before flying back to Australia at 8am, where they’re scheduled to play shows at venues that are just as sophisticated as The Stalingrad Rotunda in Surfers Paradise and Warrnambool.