Bundaberg has an annual rock festival, which I learned earlier this week and attended for the first time on Saturday.

A number of local acts, getting into bigger names as the day went on. Culminating with The Living End and Icehouse. Starting my day at Volunteer Marine Rescue, I missed the first few acts but spent most of the rest of the day and night only a few metres from the stage. I’ve been to concerts before, but this was my first festival. While there was a considerable amount of alcohol, there was pleasingly few partaking in tobacco or marijuana.

The was a rather large area designated as standing only right up near the stage and beyond that an area of open space for those who decided to bring chairs and picnic blankets.

The lineup (with a sample song linked for each name):

1. Ineffigy
2. Evergreen Aus
3. Abby Skye. Abby is a local who has amazingly powerful vocals.
4. Mason Rack. Like their style or not, there’s no doubting their technical chops and their flair for performance. Swapping instruments mid song and tossing drum sticks to each other as they played a set of kegs and a drum between them.
5. The Screaming Jets. I just did a choir version of Better, so it was great to hear it live by the band.
6. Baby Animals. Not so baby any more. No flash, just great music.
7. The Living End. These guys are the consummate entertainers. Technically excellent combined with a passion for showmanship, (including a quick waltzing matilda) this was absolutely the highlight of the show for me.

Icehouse. The entire stand up area was jammed full and deservedly so. If you want a feel for the vibe: a snippet of Electric Blue

There was a lot of great talent on show and even when I wasn’t overly enthusiastic about the songs, the technical proficiency of most of the musicians was utterly delightful. Being my first festival, the opportunity to stand at the edge of the stage was a thrill. The volume was decent, even at that distance and the base could be felt in my chest.

There was also a few fun (and eventually just distracting) diversions, in the way of bouncy balls. For better or worse, the light breeze meant that they mostly stayed at one end of the stage.

Overall, a great day out and one I’ll certainly be looking to repeat next year.