Festivals & Venues: November 9
KORN, PROPHETS, BIZKIT FOR DOWNLOAD AUSTRALIA
Rumours about which acts were to play the inaugural Download Australia seemed to have been on the money.
This morning Korn (only Australian show), Prophets of Rage and Limp Bizkit were unveiled by Live Nation, UNIFIED & Secret Sounds to play Melbourne’s Flemington Racecourse on March 24.
Other top-enders on the bill include Mastodon, Good Charlotte, NOFX and Suicidal Tendencies.
Sweden is well represented with Amon Amarth whose latest album Magna debuted at #11on the ARIA chart, Arch Enemy and Sabaton.
Waving the US flag are Falling In Reverse, Hot Water Music, Of Mice & Men, The Story So Far, Nails and Bad Cop/Bad Cop.
Representing the cream of Australia’s hard riffers are Northlane, Trophy Eyes, Ocean Grove, Psycroptic, King Parrot, Clowns, Chase Atlantic and Cursed Earth.
From other parts of the world are Gojira (France) and Neck Deep (England).
TWO NEW FESTIVALS ANNOUNCED
New festivals are being introduced n the first quarter of 2018.
Under The Southern Stars will stage in Victoria ‘s Mornington Peninsula and NSW’s Forster Tuncurry coastal areas over the weekend of January 6 and 7.
It features Jimmy Barnes. Richie Sambora & Orianthi, Diesel, Richard Clapton, Ash Grunwald and Dallas Crane.
“This is a bill I’m looking forward to being a part of!” Barnes said.
“This show will definitely rock. In the middle of summer, what would you want to do but get out with your mates and have a party? Join us. I think there will be a few surprises on the day.”
Under The Southern Stars marks the return to action of promoter Andrew McManus. He tells this column that more events are planned for summer
Meantime, the outback Queensland town of Winton is hosting the big-name country music festival Way Out Festival April 19—22.
Announced so far are Jessica Mauboy, John Williamson, The Living End, Kip Moore (USA), Lee Brice (USA), Sheppard, Busby Marou, Russell Morris, The Black Sorrows and Pierce Brothers.
The festival will also see the re-opening of the town’s famous Waltzing Matilda Centre, destroyed by fire in 2015 and rebuilt for $23 million.
The festival is supported by Tourism and Events Queensland through It’s Live! with travel and camping packages/
OPTUS GETS PERTH STADIUM NAMING RIGHTS
In a close scrap between Bankwest and Optus, it looks like the telecommunications giant has scored the naming rights to the new 60,000 seat sports and concerts Perth Stadium.
It’s a 10-year deal, with WA media contending that the money coughed up is the largest in Australia to date, with $50 million bandied around., reported The West Australian.
The figure was so big that it had an overriding effect on sniffs from the former WA Government and Tourism WA that it should have the name “Perth” in there.
The West Australian also reckons that Bankwest is eying off a partnership with Perth Arena.
NEWCASTLE MOVES CONTINUE TO DRAW
The move of Newcastle’s Live At The at the Foreshore and Take That to Wickham Park (due to the construction of the Supercars race track.) proved a successful one, even if the heavens opened and bucketed down.
Take That drew 12,000 with The Presets, Tash Sultana, The Preatures and Alison Wonderland.
Live At The at the Foreshore, which sold out last year, is also thought to have hit capacity with 18 acts as Dragon, Models and Moving Pictures.
TWO MORE MUSIC VENUES FOR SALE
Two more venues with a strong live music program are set to change hands.
Newcastle’s Hotel Delany in Darby Street was given a $6 million makeover by licensees Gary and Anthony Hird in 2008, and who this year also applied for extended trading hours.
It’s the fourth pub to get new owners in the last 12 months, after The Prince at Merewether, The Duke of Wellington at New Lambton, The Exchange at Hamilton and The Nags Head at Adamstown.
Brisbane’s live venue and nightclub Met after its owners of the past four years decided to move into another part of the hospitality industry. The Fortitude Valley premise has a 40-year lease.
SECOND AND FINAL LINEUP FOR PROGFEST
18 more acts were announced in January’s Progest’s second and final lineup. They include names as Osaka Punch, James Norbert Ivanyi, Branch Arterial, Toehider, Breaking Orbit and Glass Ocean.
First launched in Melbourne, the festival has expanded to Brisbane and Sydney – each with their own lineups.
ARIA RENAMES AWARDS MEDIA ROOM FOR IAIN SHEDDEN
The Star Sydney which is hosting this year’s ARIA Awards will be the first venue room to have the Iain Shedden ARIA Media Suite’.
ARIA has renamed all its future awards media rooms as a tribute to the late Australian music correspondent (and drummer)
The media room is where print and web journalists and radio/TV crews cover the awards (read: pick out the latest gossip) and conduct interviews with awards winners.
ULTRA COPS LAWSUIT
The Miami headquarters of Ultra Music copped a lawsuit from Juan Carlos Gil, an activist and Paralympic athlete with cerebral palsy. He says its website and live events are inaccessible to visually impaired patrons.
It is thought that it’s not an attack on the EDM festival, per say, but just a way to get a conversation going with the city’s venues. Ultra is well known for its community work.
Gil’s lawyer said the suit was “not an indictment of Ultra whatsoever,” adding, “We recognize the great work that Ultra does to bring the community together.
“ All we’re asking them to do is recognize (that) this is a very diverse population, to make all their offerings available to all people in that population.”
ICE BLAST FOR ADELAIDE CLUBS
10 patrons a month are being banned for at least six months, according to Consumer Business Services.
But Australian Hotels Association SA’s General Manager Ian Horne pointed out to the Sunday Mail that a disturbing statistic is that the number of assaults grew from four in 2015/6 to 18 in the 2016/7 year.
Much of these attacks are caused by patrons mixing booze with drugs, particularly ice, Horne said.
BOGLE TO HEADLINE ILLAWARRA FOLK
Veteran Australian folk singer-songwriter Eric Bogle, who wrote ‘The Band Played Waltzing Matilda’ in 1971 to celebrate the 50,000 Australian soldiers who died in Gallipoli is headlining Illawarra Folk at Bulli Showground January 18-2.
Full lineup at www.illawarrafolkfestival.com.au
NEW TEAM CONTINUES WANGARATTA JAZZ A SUCCESS
The new artistic team behind Wangaratta Jazz and Blues (November 3—5) have had the thumbs up from patrons and critics.
High praise fell on some of the acts like US trumpeter Christian Scott, a 90-minute set from Ian Moss, pianist Aron Ottignon’s expert use of technology, a collaboration between Spiderbait and the 50-member Wangaratta Horns of Death, and an ad hoc supergroup featuring the ‘Bait’s Kram, James Morrison and Paul Grabowsky.
Most of the venues were packed out, organisers reported.
The jazz awards this year had a brass theme, with James Macaulay the winner, Niran Dasika in second place and Thomas Avgenicos at #3.
RAFFLES TAKEN TO COURT
The Raffles in Perth has been taken to court by a resident in a neighbouring luxury apartment.
In his suit at the Supreme Court mining entrepreneur Derek Noel Ammon wanted the hotel to stop live music in its bar and beer garden, claiming it went over noise limits and affecting his health.
He also wants unspecified damages. Owner, Colonial Leisure Group is defending the allegations.
NEW LOCATION FOR BYRON SPIRIT
After five years in Mullumbimby, in 2018 Byron Spirit is moving to Byron Bay. Its events will be held in the new Cavanbah Centre and the luxurious surrounds of Elements Of Byron April 20—22.
The first of the program is announced on November 15.
SWEDISH VENUE BOMBED AGAIN
Babel nightclub in Malmö, Sweden, was the target of an explosion, a year after a similar incident. Only the front door was damaged, and no one was hurt as the venue was closed at the time/
Police are investigating leads from eyewitnesses that a moped was seen driving away afterwards.
INCREASED POLICE POWERS FOR HINDLEY STREET
Under new laws, police have greater powers to move troublemakers on or ban them, institute fines of $1250 and use dogs and metal detectors in Adelaide’s Hindley Street entertainment strip.
The Advertiser reported this was part of an overall clamp-down on issues in the public precinct in the city west, which includes parts of North Terrace, West Terrace, Currie St, King William St and Hindley St.
Until now, police only had those powers in licensed clubs.
SHEAF’S RENOVATED AREAS BACK IN ACTION
The Sheaf, Double Bay’s renovated Golden Bar & Rooms are back in action, initiating the first Sunday Of Your Summer series from November 19.
A roster of local DJs headlined by Colour Castle and Mo Funk deliver tropical house and chill sesh tunes from 3 pm.
BRISBANE GETS NEW MUSIC SPACE
Live music is part of the offering at Solotel’s new Little Big House in Brisbane’s South Bank. Opening next month, the building has a Queenslander-style look and concentrates on a great food and drinks menu.
NARARA ADDITIONS
The blues-rock Narara Music on the NSW Central Coast added Queensland’s Eliza And The Delusionals, Newcastle singer Nicholas Connors and bluesy Kiama duo El Grande.
They join Ash Grunwald, Dallas Frasca, Shaun Kirk, Arcades and Lions and Steve Edmonds Band which is serving a Jimi Hendrix tribute.
NEW MT LAWLEY BAR
New Mt. Lawley bar Peaky Bodega, run by former Dockers players Peter Bell and Byron Schammer has from tomorrow its Dyna$ty Fridays with FJs spinning flashback R&B and later Uptown Funk Sundays with more DJ action.
Its New York theme includes subway signs and a giant mural of Beyonce, Jay-Z and Tupac.