Cathy Guthrie (yes of those Guthries) and Amy Nelson (daughter of that Nelson) are irreverent folk duo Folk Uke. Playing together for the last decade or so Guthrie and Nelson have carved out a nice little folky niche for themselves that definitely sets them apart from their famous fathers.
No strangers to our shores, Folk Uke have been announced as part of this year’s Woodford Folk Festival. But if you’re holding out for a tour off the back of the Woodford appearance you may have to get yourself to Sydney – Folk Uke only have two sideshows planned and they’re both in the harbour city.
The full list of dates are below with tickets on sale now:
28th December 2012 to 1st January 2013 – Woodford Folk Festival, QLD
Thursday 3rd January – The Brass Monkey, Cronulla, NSW
Friday 4th January – The Basement, Sydney, NSW
The wonderful Sharon Shannon, probably one of the world’s most accomplished and respected traditional and contemporary accordion players, is visiting our shores again for this year’s Woodford Folk Festival and has decided to tack on some solo tour dates throughout January. Sharon Shannon was in the country earlier this year for the Port Fairy Folk Festival so we’re pretty excited to have the chance to see her for the second time in less than 12 months.
The full list of dates for Shannon’s tour are below:
Sunday 30th Dec to Tuesday 1st January – Woodford Folk Festival, QLD
Wednesday 2nd January – The Rails, Byron Bay, NSW
Thursday 3rd January – The Rails, Byron Bay, NSW
Friday 4th January – The Irish Club, Brisbane, QLD
Saturday 5th January – Lizotte’s Sydney, Dee Why, NSW
Sunday 6th January – Lizotte’s, Newcastle, NSW
Tuesday 8th January – The Clarendon Hotel, Katoomba, NSW
Wednesday 9th January – The Basement, Sydney, NSW
Thursday 10th January – Caravan Music Club, Oakleigh, VIC
Friday 11th January – The Spotted Mallard, Melbourne, VIC
Saturday 12th January – The Spotted Mallard, Melbourne, VIC
- The Civil Wars have announced they will release a seven track EP of their VH1 Unplugged session featuring covers of Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” and Portishead’s “Sour Times”. Details here
- Another new track from Sufjan Stevens’ upcoming Christmas release Silver & Gold: Songs for Christmas, Volumes 6-10, titled “Ding-a-ling-a-ring-a-ling” has found its way online. Details here
- Andrew Morris kicked off his East Coast tour supported by Zac Gunthorpe at this week’s Folk Club in Sydney. He has dates all the way through November. Details here
- Sydney duo Achoo! Bless You have released their new video “Before We Say Goodbye” after it debuted at Folk Club last week. Achoo! Bless You will be promoting the single with a handful of gigs in Sydney before supporting Henry Wagons on his NSW and ACT shows. Details here
- The new video from The April Maze is for a cover of The Hooters’ track “And We Danced” which will appear on their next album Two. Details here
- English singer-songwriter Martha Tilston released the second video from her new album Machines of Love and Grace, the beautiful “Survival Guide”. Details here
- 13 months after it was first recorded Arbori will finally be launching their single “In The Places You Fold” in Sydney next Friday. Joining them will be Yetis, Little Big Horn and Ryan Collings. Details here
- The brand new video from Julia Stone features “Blind Side” actor Quinton Aaron and is really really sweet. Details here
- Liz Frencham is looking for double bass players to send her videos of how difficult it is playing such a large instrument for the clip to her next song. Details here
- A week out from releasing their self-titled EP Texture Like Sun have revealed their brand new video “One Great Prize”. Details here
Interviews
“I find it a little frustrating sometimes that the first time people hear music is often just on the Internet these days. It’s a bit of an anticlimax when I can stream the entire album before it comes out. Maybe I’m just old fashioned, I don’t know” – Sarah Blasko chats to Gareth Hugh Evans. Interview here
“We’ve been going for nearly 19 years now, and I was just talking with someone today – Gabi, she’s our backing vocalist – and I said that after 19 years, we should be doing the reunion tour now, rather than still going!” – Bill Quinn chats to Jim Paterson from The BordererS. Interview here
Reviews
Track by Track
“We are big fans of C.S.Lewis. His stories were a big part of our childhood and the idea of brothers and sisters running through another world resonated strongly with us as a band, being all related. Making music that creates another world to go to is pretty important to us” – Tigertown take us through Before The Morning. Track By Track here
Gigs
“Gone was the chair, music stand and placid setting of the night before to make way for a standing height mic and two large amps on stage. When Billy Bragg took the stage, seemingly enlivened and energised by the fact it was Saturday night, one riff across the strings of his Dyson guitar for the opening of “St Swithin’s Day” was enough to announce that Woody Guthrie had left the building” – Bill Quinn reviews Billy Bragg in Melbourne. Review here
“Festival goers awoke the next day feeling different. Crawling out of vans, squirming from under collapsed tents, we were now on Dungog time, moving slowly and still tingling with contentment from the previous days events” – Lillian Mercanti reviews the Gentlemen of the Road Dungog Stopover. Review here
Catherine Traicos with Anna Smyrk & The Appetites, Tracy McNeil Sunday 28th October (Matinée) – The Workers Club, Melbourne VIC
Jack Carty with Jackson McLaren, Pinky Beecroft Sunday 28th October (Evening) – The Workers Club, Melbourne VIC
Don’t Think Twice feat. Iluka, We Are The Birdcage, Ross Henry Sunday 28th October – Annandale Hotel, Sydney, NSW
Gigs Next Week
Achoo! Bless You Thursday 1st November – FBi Social, Kings Cross, NSW
Ainslie Wills Friday 26th October – The Grand Poobah, Hobart, TAS
Sunday 28th October – Black Bear Lodge, Brisbane, QLD
Andrew Morris with Zac Gunthorpe Saturday 27th October – Grace Darling Hotel, Melbourne, VIC
Angus Stone Thursday 1st November – Enmore Theatre, Sydney
Friday 2nd November – Level One Newcastle Leagues, Newcastle
Arbori with Yetis, Little Big Horn, Ryan Collings Friday 2nd November – Hibernian House, Sydney, NSW
Billy Bragg Saturday 27th October – Enmore Theatre, Sydney, NSW
Tuesday 30th October – Prince Bandroom, Melbourne, VIC
Wednesday 31st October – Town Hall, Adelaide, SA
Friday 2nd November – Astor Theatre, Perth, WA
Charles Jenkins Friday 26th October – The Velvet Lounge, Mt Lawley, WA
Crooked Saint and Ashleigh Mannix Friday 26th October – The Beresford Hotel, Surry Hills, NSW
Saturday 27th October – Sydney Blues & Roots Festival, Windsor, NSW
Thursday 1st November – Railway Friendly Bar, Byron Bay, NSW
Friday 2nd November – Pacific Hotel, Yamba, NSW
Dorrigo Folk and Bluegrass Festival feat. The New Worlds, Mustered Courage, Jimmy The Fish, The Company, Fred Smith and Liz Frencham, The String Contingent, Chaika, The Mid North, Breaking Hart Benton, Nick and Liesl 26th to 28th October – Dorrigo, NSW
Elliot The Bull Friday 26th October – The Lass, Newcastle, NSW
Saturday 27th October – The Patch, Wollongong, NSW
Sunday 28th October – Old Manly Boat Shed, Manly, NSW
Fleurieu Folk Festival feat. Eric Bogle, The Go Set, The Stetson Family, Barry Skipsey, The Timbers 26th to 28th October – Willunga, SA
Hat Fitz and Cara Friday 26th October – Kidgeeridge Festival, Lake Conjola, NSW
Saturday 27th October – Illawarra Builder’s Club, Wollongong, NSW
Sunday 28th October – Lizotte’s, Kincumber NSW
Jen Cloher with Courtney Barnett Thursday 1st November – Front Gallery, Canberra, ACT
Friday 2nd November – The Vanguard, Sydney, NSW
Joe Robinson Saturday 27th October – The Vanguard, Sydney, NSW
John Williamson Friday 26th October – Crown Casino, Melbourne, VIC
Saturday 27th October – Crown Casino, Melbourne, VIC
Josh Pyke with Jack Carty Friday 26th October -Bended Elbow, Geelong, VIC
Saturday 27th October – Meeniyan Town Hall, Meeniyan, VIC
Thursday 1st November – Hoey Moey, Coffs Harbour, NSW
Friday 2nd Novemrber – Byron Bay Brewery, Byron Bay, NSW
Katie Noonan and Karin Schaupp Friday 26th October – Illawarra P.A.C., Wollongong, NSW
Saturday 27th October – City Recital Hall, Sydney, NSW
Kasey Chambers and Shane Nicholson Friday 26th October – Ballarat Regent Multiplex, North Ballarat, VIC
Saturday 27th October – Regent Theatre, Melbourne, VIC
Tuesday 30th October – Civic Theatre, Newcastle, NSW
Wednesday 31st October – Canberra Theatre, Canberra, ACT
Thursday 1st November – Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre, Nowra, NSW
Friday 2nd November – York Theatre Seymour Centre, Sydney, NSW
Laneway Saturday 27th October – Drill Hall, Mullumbimby NSW
Lisa Mitchell with Alpine and Danco Friday 26th October – The Astor, Perth, WA
Saturday 27th October – Prince of Wales, Bunbury, WA
Sunday 28th October – HQ, Adelaide, SA
Wednesday 31st October – Anthenaeum Theatre, Melbourne, VIC
Friday 2nd November – The Tivoli, Brisbane, QLD
Mama Kin Friday 26th October – The Railway Club, Darwin, NT
Sunday 28th October – Island Vibes Festival, North Stradbroke Island, QLD
Tuesday 30th October – Camelot, Sydney, NSW
Wednesday 31st October – Clarendon Guesthouse Katoomba, NSW
Thursday 1st November – Northcote Social Club, Melbourne, VIC
Mark Wilkinson Friday 26th October – The Ellington, Perth, WA
Wednesday 31st October – The Rails, Byron Bay, NSW
Thursday 1st November – Cafe Le Monde, Noosa, QLD
Friday 2nd November – The Loft, Gold Coast, QLD
Mike Compton Friday 26th October – Brisbane, QLD
Sunday 28th October – State Theatre of Western Australia, Perth, WA
Friday 2nd November – Albany Town Hall, Albany, WA
Mumford and Sons and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros Friday 26th October – Royal Theatre, Canberra, ACT
Sunday 28th October – Kurunda Ampitheatre, Cairns, QLD
Monday 29th October – Convention Centre, Townsville, QLD
Wednesday 31st October – Convention Centre, Gold Coast, QLD
Nexus World Music Series
feat. Alex Tsiboulski and Akoustic Odyssey Friday 26th October – Nexus Multicultural Arts Centre, Adelaide, SA feat. Sufi Soul and Luminaria Friday 2nd November – Nexus Multicultural Arts Centre, Adelaide, SA
Sarah Humphreys Friday 26th October – The Wesley Anne, Melbourne, VIC
Saturday 27th October – Pure Pop Records, St Kilda, VIC
Saturday 27th October – Elwood Lounge, Elwood, VIC
Surry Hills Festival Saturday 27th October – Prince Alfred Park, Sydney, NSW
Sydney Blues & Roots Festival (Lanie Lane, Mia Dyson, Captain Matchbox Whoopee Band, Chase The Sun, Microwave Jenny, Ashleigh Mannix, Hat Fitz and Cara) 25th to 28th October – Sydney, NSW
Tablelands Folk Festival 26th to 28th October – Yungaburra, QLD
The Borderers Sunday 28th October – Sunday by the Lake, Tuggeranong, ACT
Sunday 28th October – King O’Malley’s, Canberra City, ACT
The Paper Kites (with Art of Sleeping, Battleships) Friday 26th October – The SoundLounge, Gold Coast, QLD
Saturday 27th October – The Zoo, Brisbane, QLD
Friday 2nd November – Corner Hotel, Melbourne, VIC
The String Contingent Friday 26th October – Dorrigo Folk and Bluegrass Festival, Dorrigo, NSW
Saturday 27th October – Restrung Chamber Festival, Brisbane, QLD
Sunday 28th October – Dorrigo Folk and Bluegrass Festival, Dorrigo, NSW
The Tiger and Me Saturday 27th October – Revolt, Melbourne, VIC
Thursday 1st November – Karova Lounge, Ballarat, VIC
Tigertown Friday 26th October – Barsoma, Brisbane, QLD
Saturday 27th October – Bon Amici Café, Toowoomba, QLD
Tin Sparrow Friday 26th October – The Standard, Sydney, NSW
Saturday 27th October – The Workers Club, Melbourne, VIC
TinPan Orange Friday 26th October – Fly By Night, Fremantle, WA
Friday Folk Flashback
“Danse Macabre” – Béla Fleck feat. Ben Sollee
After Ben Sollee announced his Australian tour this week I was reminded of this track he recorded with Béla Fleck to accompany the Neil Gaiman book The Graveyard Book. You can buy this as a single or its also available as part of the audio book.
To try and define the music that cellist Ben Sollee creates is near impossible. Combing elements of bluegrass, jazz, folk, indie, world and rock Sollee is truly creating music that is completely unique.
Ben Sollee is returning to Australia at the end of this year for the Woodford Folk Festival and has just announced a tour though January with hyper-versatile percussionist Jordon Ellis. The full list of dates is below:
30th December to 1st January – Woodford Folk Festival, QLD
Thursday 3rd January – Community Theatre, Byron Bay, NSW
Friday 4th January – Memorial Hall, Bellingen, NSW
Saturday 5th January – Lizotte’s, Kincumber, NSW
Sunday 6th January – The Clarendon, Katoomba, NSW
Wednesday 9th January – Notes, Sydney, NSW
Thursday 10th January – Northcote Social Club, Melbourne, VIC
Friday 11th January – Meeniyan Town Hall, South Gippsland, VIC
Saturday 12th January – Theatre Royal, Castlemaine, VIC
Wednesday 16th January – Sessions, Space Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre, Adelaide, SA
With such a busy night of music to be had all around the country this Saturday just gone you’d be forgiven for having missed the lineup announcement for the 2012/13 Woodford Folk Festival. Arguably Australia’s best known folk festival Woodford has this year well over 400 acts.
Pre-festival early-bird tickets are still available from now until the 24th December.
The full lineup is too big to print here (you’ll have to head to the official site for that) but we though we’d treat you our extensive highlights from the program:
Andrew Clermont
Angus Stone
Archie Roach
Ben Sollee
Emma Louise
Eric Bogle
Evan & Mischa
Flap!
Folk Uke
George Kamikawa & Noriko Tadano
Hat Fitz and Cara
John Butler Trio
Julia Stone
Kate Miller-Heidke
Luke Escombe
Mal Webb
Mama Kin
Martin Pearson
Mic Conway with Robbie Long
Microwave Jenny
Mikelangelo and the Tin Star
Mr Fibby
Mustered Courage
Ngaiire
Nicky Bomba’s BUSTAMENTO
Penelope Swales
Ray Beadle
Rhiannon and Monique
Rory McLeod
Shane Howard
Sharon Shannon
Stiff Gins
The Company
The Good Ship
The Perch Creek Family Jugband
Thelma Plum
Tim Hart
Wagons
Women in Docs
After last year’s taste of The Gum Ball, we are very keen to be heading back to Belford for what is sure to be a folkin’ great weekend away. We’re making plans to catch as much of the weekend as possible by packing the car on ANZAC day so we can get the jump on the traffic on Friday afternoon. We’ve got our gumboots at the ready, just in case of rain, and we’ve been going over the playing times and are hanging out to see the newly reformed The Bakery, TnS fave Kim Churchill, the country swagger of Wagons, raw roots power of Ash Grunwald with Vika and Linda and can’t wait to see where Jinja Safari are taking their tunes too. And they’re only the ones we’re familiar with, with the Perch Creek Family Jug Band opening Saturday’s bill and a raft of our faves from other genres, this is going to be an exciting festival in the perfect setting!
With less than a week to go, and with a spate of struggling festivals cancelling across media headlines for months, it’s dishearteneing to see a news story this past week about the struggle the event is experiencing with lower than anticipated ticket sales and the bureaucratic red tape faced every year. The most inspirational part to come out of the struggles is that the festival still manages to support Beyond Blue, The National Depression Initiative.
In an effort to make the Bedford location more accessible for all, The Gum Ball have announced on their facebook page that they will run a shuttle service from Newcastle on Friday with a return service at 10am Sunday, all accessible by train from Sydney. Bookings for all are essential for all services info@thegumball.com.au.
That’s all well and good if you live near-by, but this festival is really the perfect escape for any Sydney-sider but it’s like Sydney just haven’t grasped that yet. Perhaps The Gum Ball needs to be compared to something a little more familiar. Stu and I have been looking forward to the Gum Ball for a year, and I’ve been contemplating why. The Gum Ball has the crowd participation and pleasure of The Falls Festival (Falls is like the Op Shop Bop on steroids), the atmosphere and idyllic setting of Peats Ridge Festival and the community spirit and village vibe of Woodford Folk Festival, it just doesn’t have the sense of occassion of New Years Eve.
Perhaps the problem is the comfort zone – the big, established festivals are a given and punters will make the trek. It’s boutique festivals like The Gum Ball, tucked away in the most divine bush setting, that are an unkown quantity, but music lovers should bite the bullet and make the effort because what awaits you is a spectacular and unique experience. Still not convinced? Check out their blog for details of the Op Shop Bop, Sid’s Circus Playground, Yoga, Tai Chi and Hula Hoop workshops, the Silent Disco for all those night owls that want to rage in to the early hours of the morning. If you’re worried about camping and food – the festival food on site is guaranteed to be great once again – we’re not planning to pack anything to eat! However, it is a BYO festival (no glass!), so no queues at the bar and no disappointment at having to choose from drinks you don’t like.
In reality – this is the kind of festival punters have been crying out for for years after over-regulation of the large scale events have placed more rules and regulations on the festival experience. This is the chance to get back to great music and a brilliant music festival experience. With tickets still available for only $120 for Saturday or $165 for the whole weekend, plus a tank of petrol split between some friends – this is the perfect way to spend a cheeky weekend away with mates.
Not coming this year means you might not get another chance if numbers don’t rise. So come and support Australian music and a family run festival. They’re welcoming you on to their property, we guarantee you’ll welcome them in to your hearts.
American songwriter Jesca Hoop has one hell of a bio. Not only has she toured with the likes of Peter Gabriel, Elbow, The Eels, Polyphonic Spree and The Flaming Lips she also has the fairly unique privilege of once serving as nanny to Tom Waits’ children.
Hoop is currently in Australia for the Woodford Folk Festival and she is hanging around for a couple of weeks after for a series of intimate solo shows in Sydney, Jervis Bay and Eumundi. The full list of dates are below:
Wed 28th December – Sun 1st January – Woodford Folk Festival
Tues 3rd January – The Newsagency, Sydney w/ Get Folked, Lyall Moloney
Fri 6th January – Tomerong Hall, Jervis Bay w/ Lyall Moloney, Southerly Change
Sat 7th January – Joe’s Waterhole, Eumundi
Everyone’s excited about Christmas, but here at Timber and Steel we’re gearing up for a huge Summer Festival season, especially for the New Years period. There have been 4 main festivals lining up loads of Timber and Steel friendly acts to get excited about, namely Woodford Folk Festival in QLD (you may remember my 35 Hour Woodford experience from last year), Peats Ridge Festival in NSW and two VIC festivals on either side of Port Phillip Bay, Pyramid Rock Festival and The Falls Festival (also on in Marion Bay, TAS). We’ve managed to rustle up a couple of reviewers to give you the wrap up of some of these festivals in the New Year. But in preparation, let’s take a look at how to make the most of the New Years festival experience.
Our four festivals are all multi-day festivals set in lush settings away from the hustle and bustle of the city, leaving festival goers two accommodation options. 1. pay for a hotel away from the site and drive to and from the event every day (access to some festivals are limited on 31 Dec) and limit your experience ,which is no fun, or, 2. camp. Having camped through a number of different scenarios, here’s a short list of tips which will make your camping festival experience that much better. Peats Ridge offers some sustainable camping tips to check out before the festival too.
Tent Options
Woodford offers Tent City which is a great option for those who need to travel light – a tent, bed, light and basics are supplied for an additional fee, you just need to buy tickets with camping and bring your own bedding (pillow, blankets etc). Peats Ridge has begun offering Tepee camping in recycled Tepees with both 2 person and up to 4-6 person camping options and you even get to take your Teepee sleeping bags home with you. Both are a stress free, easy way to experience a camping festival, with none of the effort of camping.
For all the other camping events, either take a tent you can stand up right in, or be prepared to spend very little time in your tent, most of which will be in a half sitting/ laying position.
Dealing with Mud and Rain Given the very unseasonal start to Summer, it would be wise to steel yourself for the likelihood of rain and eventual mud. Lots of mud. Best things to do are to take gumboots, extra socks (thick socks deal with chaffing better) and why not think about a gel or wool inner sole for your gumboots while you’re at it – I can say from days dancing in boots at Peats Ridge 2009, your feet will be worn out before the end of the festival.
Take a poncho or rain coat – not umbrellas. Alternately take a couple of heavier hoodies, they’re also quite good at keeping the rain off, but they do soak through. If you’re at Woodford, I did pick up a beautiful waterproof parasol from a vendor who I believe goes regularly and it’s gotten me through a number of both sunny and rainy days since.
Take extra changes of clothes and some gear that you don’t care if it’s ruined by mud. If you are going to go sliding in the mud, whether in clothes or not (yes, another fun Peats Ridge image yet to be removed from my memory), make plans to get through the shower or dip in a creek before your favourite act hits the stage, otherwise you’ll be sweaty, tired and still muddy.
Best tip: Take a bucket, an old towel and/ or a bathmat – leave them outside your tent and use them as a door mat and to rinse off your feet before climbing in to your tent to avoid the mud spread through all your belongings. And make sure to take your gumboots off outside before entering, leave them outside or just inside the door.
Hygiene
There are a couple of elements to the whole multi-day camping festival and keeping yourself clean. Showers are often hugely sought after at the usual peak times, mornings and early evenings. Mind you at both Peats Ridge and Woodford, I walked past the shower blocks very late at night (as late as 2am) and they were well in use. Plan your showering/ bathing times ahead, have a look at the timetable and see if you can pop back from a quick shower before the next act.
Alternately, if you’re tough, you could forgo the showers altogether – in some locations there’s rivers to have a nice dip in and keep yourself fresher, but you will need to wear something in, be decent people. Even if you take to bathing, take along some baby wipes or wet ones and give yourself a good wipe down all over at least once a day and apply deodorant liberally. You might be able to cope with no showering, but the people around you might not cope with your odour.
Toilets at most of these festivals have moved towards the sustainable compostable toilets. No flush toilets can be challenging, especially after a few days in to a festival. Firstly, learn how the toilets work – usually there’s a tub or pile of sawdust available. If you’re heading for number 1s, just go without sawdust, and you can pop some toilet paper in after you if you need. If you’re going number 2s, take a cup/ handful of sawdust to throw in after you’ve finished. If it’s a big number 2, well, take some back up sawdust. ALWAYS close the lid no matter what number you’ve been to so that insects are not attracted to the contents – no one wants to use a fly infested loo. If everyone uses them properly, these toilets can work very well. And boys, you’re always welcome to take to the bushes if that’s easier.
Supplies Most festivals are no BYO and all would be No Glass – there’s nothing worse than some broken glass to ruin your day by slicing your foot, or worse, your butt, open. Some festivals have fire bans – check the FAQs for your festival and check what you can and can’t take in. If you can afford it, budget to buy your meals, it supports the vendors which in turn supports the festival and allows it to go ahead every year. The same goes with alcohol and festival bars, bringing your own alcohol might seem like a sneaky and clever idea but it jeopardises the festivals liquor licence and can have a detrimental effect on the bar provider which may lead them to choosing not to be involved in the future. Everyone likes to save a buck, but bars and food vendors are the life blood of funding for festivals and events, so spend with them to help your favourite festival continue year to year.
Check out your festival’s website for information about the dos and don’t's at your festival and travel information. Also don’t forget to take some important items that are often forgotten including sunscreen, a hat, jumper/ warm clothes, a water bottle, toothbrush and paste. It’s a good idea to invest in some ear plugs, they cancel out much of the noise and volume but none of the music, you can even hear the lyrics plus they save your hearing. Having now attended a few festivals with ear plugs, they’re a staple in my stash.
Woodford has both an Eating at Woodford and a What to Bring section available from their home page.
Falls Festival has a What to Bring section which reminds punters to bring tickets. Believe it or not, I’ve seen it happen.
If all of that planning and packing seems like too much trouble, you could check out a new venture called Festival Kits which is an online service able to deliver a package to your at home before you depart which contains all the essentials, and they’re catering to all of our festivals and more.
Get In To It! Plan your festival, work out who you want to see, and read the bios of acts you’ve never heard of and check them out, you might find a brand new favourite you would have otherwise missed. Make a note of what non musical things you want to see like arts, workshops, talks and displays so you don’t forget to catch them. A number of the festivals have lantern and New Year parades complete with fancy dress or masquerade themes which you can get right in to the thick of helping create and perform. If you don’t want to be involved, at least make sure you have your camera handy for some amazing photo opportunities.
If you’re taking technological devices like phones and iPhones, why not download relevant information to your phone, or if you’re lucky, there will be an app for that. However, think twice about how you’re going to power and recharge your device – it’s a good idea to take a car charger with you and plan some time recharging. Also keep an eye out for recharge bars seen at many festivals which allow you to plug in to solar power and recharge your devices. However, you’ll need to stick around and wait for your device to charge as the people running it sure aren’t going to babysit your phone for you.
If you’ve got some time free, or you’re not really feeling the festival experience, try volunteering. All of these festivals rely on volunteers to make the magic happen and being involved in helping the festival run can be really rewarding. All of the volunteering programs have closed except for Woodford, however no matter which festival you’re at, if you’re bored, find the volunteer tent/ center and ask about volunteering. If you do enough hours, you might even get your ticket price refunded – but you will definitely have a unique experience of the festival.
Tickets are still available to all of these festivals, except the Lorne edition of The Falls Festival, however if you feel like crossing the ditch to Tassie, you can still get tickets to The Falls Festival at Marion Bay. Why not treat yourself to an early Christmas present and grab yourself a ticket if you haven’t already!
Plan and prepare now, and stay tuned for our next installment of our Guide to Summer Festivals.
Hanggai are champions of traditional Mongolian culture taking the music of their heritage and making it accessible to audiences around the world. After seeing them on the WOMADelaide stage our reviewer Thom Owen Miles said “It’s probably fairly likely that you’ll have someone trying to preach to you the quality of Hanggai’s music again soon. Take my advice: believe the hype and assume they’re underselling it”. And now’s your chance to see what everyone is talking about. Check out the full list of dates below:
Tuesday 27th to Friday 30th December – Woodford Folk Festival
Saturday 31st December – Peats Ridge Festival
Tuesday 3rd January – The Basement, Sydney
Wednesday 4th January – The Basement, Sydney
Thursday 5th January – Lizottes, Kincumber
Friday 6th January – Adelaide Festival Centre
Saturday 7th January – Corner Hotel, Melbourne
Sunday 8th January – Ruby’s Lounge, Belgrave
Friday 13th January – Mona Foma, Tasmania
Timber and Steel is proud (and just a little bit excited) to be among the first to bring you the 2011/12 Lineup for the Woodford Folk Festival.
The theme for this year’s Woodford Folk Festival – held from the 27th December to the 1st January in Woodfordia, QLD – is “Pieces of the Puzzle” which focuses on the idea that we all contribute to making this world a better place. And with a lineup like this, it looks like Woodford are doing just that. So let’s get into it shall we:
Gotye
De Pedro
Cloud Control
Xavier Rudd
Tinpan Orange
Eagle and the Worm
Husky
Owl Eyes
The Herd
Jesca Hoop (USA)
Andy Bull
Daily Meds
Dubmarine
Jordie Lane
The Red Eyes
Graveyard Train
Mountain Mocha Kilimanjaro
Sticky Fingers
Band of Frequencies
Benjalu
OKA
BLAKwax (USA/AUS)
Buffy Sainte-Marie
Busby Marou
Hanggai
The Bakery
The Ninth Chapter
Charlie Mayfair
Tuba Skinny (USA)
The Medics
Crooked Still (USA)
Daniel Champagne
Danny Widdicombe
Die Roten Punkte
Skipping Girl Vinegar
Faux Pas
Frank Yamma
Swamp Thing (NZ)
Gambirra
Watussi
Haitus Koiyote
Hugo and Treats
Jack Carty
Jamie MacDowell & Tom Thum
The Sunshine Brothers
Jess Beck
John Flanagan and The Begin Agains
Lola the Vamp, Rita Fontaine, Flavella L’Amour,
Lucy Wise and The B’Gollies
Sol Nation
Sue Ray
Dougie Maclean (SCOT)
Tim Edey & Brendan Power (IRE/NZ)
Tripod
More Fiddles Than Frocks
Andre Soler
Amelia Curran (CAN)
David Myles (CAN)
DJ Mike Ford
Elixer (feat. Katie Noonan)
Dachambo (JAP)
Monsieur Camembert
Kira Puru & The Bruise
My Friend The Chocolate Cake
Roesy
Sherman Downey & The Silver Lining
The Transylvaniacs
Brothers Grim
Charlie A’Court (CAN)
Genevieve Chadwick
Joe Robinson
Pugsley Buzzard
Invisible Friend
The Old Spice Boys
The Re-Mains
Benny Walker
Pretty impressive right? There are far too many names there that we’re excited about to list each individually but lets just say that we can’t wait for New Year!
catherineelaine
chordsandcandles
Evan Hughes
Hannah Acfield
janineestoesta
julesstenton
KTBell
laurenandmoore
lilmercanti
JDX
mackajay
Serena Skye
miladyred
Nikita Andrea
Overheard Productions
Haz
sarahtuz
Thom Owen Miles
timberandsteel
tunesinbloom
