Bluesfest Touring welcomes Gomez back to Australia for their first tour in 6 years and the 20th anniversary of their breakthrough album ‘Bring It On’ that featured the hits “78 Stone Wobble” and “Get Myself Arrested”. With so much to celebrate their Perth, Sydney and Melbourne sideshows are not to be missed. The group stood apart from other bands in the Brit-Pop era in their attitude and sound. Typical of this was the comment from the panel of judges for the Mercury Music Prize who described the album as “an intriguing blend of swamp blues, bar-room rock and eerie power.”
Continue reading Gomez – Australian headline shows announced for 2018 (Bluesfest Touring)
Category Archives: Bluesfest
Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 (Wrap up – Part 1)
All photos (except Patti Smith) – Photo credit : Ant Ritz
Patti Smith – Photo credit : Nathan David Kelly
Photographer: Ant Ritz
Continue reading Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 (Wrap up – Part 1)
Photo Gallery : The Record Company + Little Georgia at Northcote Social Club, Melbourne – 20 April 2017
Photo Gallery : St. Paul and The Broken Bones at 170 Russell, Melbourne – 20 April 2017
Photographer: Peter Coates
Photo Gallery : Zac Brown Band + Pierce Brothers at Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne – 19 April 2017
Live Review + Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 – Day Five
Review by Wanda Hill
Photos by Stuart Blythe
Five consecutive days in the sunshine was a rare treat for Bluesfest regulars who have endured years of mud to listen to the incredible artists invited to perform at this world class festival. Day five felt very relaxed as the big crowds had thinned and lining up for a bite to eat or something to drink seemed almost instant in comparison to previous days. Weary stall holders still served customers with smiles and delicious concoctions but understandably they were looking forward to the event drawing to a close.
Continue reading Live Review + Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 – Day Five
Live Review + Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 – Day Four
Review by Wanda Hill
Photos by Stuart Blythe + Ant Ritz
Everybody loves Santana. I hope the other bands with a 7.30pm time slot had an audience because it felt like the entire festival population was trying to get as close as possible to Carlos Santana and the incredible line up of singers and musicians on tour with him at the moment. It is amazing what we can put up with if the music is sooo brilliant that being pushed, crushed and having a variety of drinks spilled on you is all taken with good nature and shared understanding of I just need to be as close as possible to this magnificence.
Continue reading Live Review + Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 – Day Four
Live Review : Santana + The Doobie Brothers at Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney – 13 April 2017
Review and photos by Peter Coates
Santana have made it over to Australia for Bluesfest, and have arranged an arena tour around their weekend headline show at the festival – and brought The Doobie Brothers along to open the night with a generally familiar set of songs – not all of the greatest hits, but a decent selection of them.
Continue reading Live Review : Santana + The Doobie Brothers at Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney – 13 April 2017
Live Review + Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 – Day Three
Review by Wanda Hill
Photos by Stuart Blythe + Ant Ritz
One of the great things about Bluesfest is that the musicians who travel a long way from around the globe to get here have a brilliant time and enjoy the opportunity to see acts they have never seen, and to meet and collaborate with artists that inspire them. Backstage they are treated to unique Byron/Bluesfest hospitality and have a chance to learn about Australia’s Indigenous peoples through magnificent artworks placed throughout the greenroom. Being such a friendly festival it is not unusual to see guest artists out in the crowd enjoying the atmosphere.
Continue reading Live Review + Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 – Day Three
Live Review + Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 – Day Two
Review by Wanda Hill
Photos by Stuart Blythe + Ant Ritz
The festival site was cranking with a huge crowd enjoying everything the festival has to offer. Moving from A to B involved weaving in and out of human traffic going in every direction and careful navigation through seas of chairs arranged to take advantage of screens outside the main tents. Colourfully adding to this complexity were a series of roving street acts including stilt walkers who amazingly manage to move forward with grace amidst the whirl of chaos beneath them.
Continue reading Live Review + Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 – Day Two
Photo Gallery : Santana + The Doobie Brothers at Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney – 13 April 2017
Photographer: Peter Coates
Continue reading Photo Gallery : Santana + The Doobie Brothers at Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney – 13 April 2017
Live Review + Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 – Day One
Review by Wanda Hill
Photos by Stuart Blythe
Recent major flooding of the Northern Rivers area is barely perceptible at the Bluesfest site, with only a small puddle here and there as a giveaway. Instead, the site is flooded with musicians from around the globe bringing the world of music and culture to our doorstep. As always the lineup is a mix of old and new talent, attracting a broad cross-section of society, of all ages, to the festival.
Continue reading Live Review + Photo Gallery : Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017 – Day One
Neil Finn joins the Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017
Bluesfest is excited to announce that Neil Finn and his band are joining the Bluesfest line up. Finn, along with his bands Split Enz and Crowded House are responsible for some of Australia’s most beloved songs including ‘Don’t Dream It’s Over’, ‘I Got You’, ‘Something So Strong’, ‘Better Be Home Soon’, ‘Weather With You’ and ‘Four Seasons in One Day’. It will be a magical Monday at Bluesfest indeed as Finn and his band end the festival with a set that will leave hearts full and faces smiling.
Continue reading Neil Finn joins the Bluesfest Byron Bay 2017
Vintage Trouble announce Australian Headline Shows!
Vintage Trouble blew away Bluesfest audiences with their blistering live sets at the festival in 2016, leaving new fans in their wake, eager to see them again. Bluesfest Touring has made their wish come true with the announcement they will be touring again in 2017.
Continue reading Vintage Trouble announce Australian Headline Shows!
Bluesfest 2017 Seventh Blues Artist Announcement!
Bluesfest Byron Bay is proud to welcome even more of the greatest guitar players on the planet to the 2017 festival with Eric Gales, Mud Morganfield, Devon Allman and Experience Jimi Hendrix joining the line up. Bluesfest is renowned for bringing the world’s best Blues artists to the Tyagarah Tea Tree farm, just outside Byron Bay on the east coast of Australia every Easter. This year the festival begins Thursday April 13 and finishes on Monday 17 April.
Continue reading Bluesfest 2017 Seventh Blues Artist Announcement!