After a four-year hiatus, this Halloween Return to Rio is well and truly BACK for an otherworldly affair. It’s time to dust off the cobwebs, put on your dancing shoes, and prepare for a spinetingling weekender like no other this October 27 – 29 at Del Rio Riverside Resort, Wisemans Ferry.
From the onset, one night at Gympie was not enough. We arrived early Thursday afternoon to find the forest bulging. Campers were forced into overflow areas due to record ticket sales. For the first time in history, the four-day passes were sold out before the event started, and the number of attendees was estimated to be over 45,000, which is incredible given the oversaturation of festivals in 2023. Gympie has always been on the musical fans’ bucket list with a line-up dominated by country. The vibe from the onset was one of relaxation and fun. The transition into the camping area was done with ease; a massive shout out to the volunteers who were pinnacle in making this happen.
We interrupt your regular viewing to announce that Good Things season is upon us – and if you thought 2022 was huge, that’s not all folks! Australia’s largest and favourite travelling music festival, Good Things Festival, returns this December with a bumper line-up set to descend on the east coast, bringing a horde of new and iconic faves from Australia and around the globe together for nothing but a good time.
LUKE COMBS / CODY JOHNSON / LANE PITTMAN Spark Arena, Auckland 9th August 2023
A full house at Auckland’s Spark Arena on a chilly Wednesday night saw a big slice of New Zealand’s country crew fly and drive in to catch the opening night of the AU/NZ leg of the massive Luke Combs World Tour.
featuring AURATEQUE – Max Boogie Overdrive – VUKOVI – BEYOND THE BLACK – Jet City Sports Club – MOZË – The Gaslight Anthem – Nick Carver and the Mean Street Butchers – BOYS LIKE GIRLS
Review by Natasha Rachow Photos by David Jackson – shotz by jackson
Brad Cox Live at the Dalrymple Hotel Townsville Queensland – 2 July 2023
I had an opportunistic chance to see Brad Cox’s show in Townsville on Sunday night. The venue, the Dalrymple Hotel, a pub in the centre of Townsville on a steamy night, was packed, yet another sellout on this national tour. Nearly 600 “Coxheads” packed the venue tonight to see what has quickly become the hottest act in Australian country music.
LUKE MORLEY – SONGS FROM THE BLUE ROOM Released – 23rd June 2023 Conquest Music
Luke Morley has stood at the very heart of UK rockers Thunder since 1989 as their guitarist, chief songwriter and producer.
He’s been a lynchpin in their 14 albums’ success and served a crucial role in building up these rock heroes’ loyal fanbase and enduring popularity, helping Thunder enjoy 7 UK Top 10 albums and 18 Top 40 singles: impressive metrics, but there’s more to Luke than most know or expect, and his new solo album Songs From the Blue Room brings other less well-known aspects of his talents into the limelight.
GHOST UPGRADE ALL VENUES DUE TO INCREDIBLE DEMAND ON AUSTRALIAN HEADLINE TOUR
BAND TO BRING THEIR MASSIVE INTERNATIONAL PRODUCTION FOR THE FULL GHOST EXPERIENCE
One of the world’s most exhilarating and esteemed creative forces, Grammy-winning Swedish theatrical rock band GHOST are delighted to announce due to huge demand, they will be upgrading all venues on their upcoming first Australian headline tour. The Sydney show has been upgraded to Qudos Bank Arena on Tuesday, October 3, the Melbourne show will now be at John Cain Arena on Wednesday, October 4 and the Brisbane show will be held at Brisbane Entertainment Centre on Saturday, October 7.
Mike Ross, whose album we recently reviewed, doing a low key solo show as part of the Jimmy C Blues Sessions at the Princess Alexandra in Crouch End – just him, a left-hooker with a bunch of guitars, one 12 string acoustic and two steel resonators, and showing his versatility with the rawness of the performance.