NEW players on the festival market like FKA, Scene & Heard and Grapevine mean there’s never been more competition for the entertainment dollar of Hunter music fans.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Weekender previews the summer festival circuit for 2018-19 and how best to get your rocks off.
FKA FESTIVAL
Gone are the days of winery shows being purely the domain of baby boomers, craving nostalgia with their bottle of Hunter shiraz or semillon.
The first of the new kids on the block, FKA Festival, is aimed squarely at luring teenagers and 20-somethings to the vineyards. The line-up features some of Australia’s best young indie acts like The Jungle Giants, British India, Ali Barter, Luca Brasi, Tired Lion, Kingswood and Newcastle’s Trophy Eyes.
It will be a triumphant homecoming for Trophy Eyes after the pop-punk five-piece debuted at No.8 on the ARIA charts this week with their third album, The American Dream. FKA will also showcase some of Newcastle’s best emerging artists like Vacations and Grace Turner.
October 13 Hope Estate. Tickets from $82.
THIS THAT
The party returns to Wickham Park with arguably the biggest line-up in This That’s four-year history.
Even without Sydney rockers Sticky Fingers - who withdrew after their inclusion sparked controversy amid allegations of sexist abuse - the youth-oriented festival has secured some of the biggest names in indie music. Triple J Hottest 100 winners The Rubens and ARIA album chart-toppers Amy Shark and Illy headline the bill, alongside US electro whiz RL Grime.
It could be argued This That is more about dressing up (or not much at all) and partying rather than musical appreciation, but there’s plenty to enjoy.
November 3 Wickham Park. Tickets from $125.
SCENE & HEARD
The previously-named Live At The Foreshore has been rebranded Scene & Heard and refocused its attention away from the ’60s and ’70s and towards the ’90s and 2000s.
As a result the likes of Dragon and Ross Wilson have been replaced by The Living End, Something For Kate, Spiderbait, Killing Heidi and Sneaky Sound System.
If you spent your youth bouncing around in mosh pits at Homebake, Scene & Heard will be right up your alley.
November 4 Wickham Park. Tickets from $100.
A DAY ON THE GREEN – JOHN FARNHAM
Yes, it’s been 16 years since John Farnham declared he was retiring from the road on The Last Time Tour. Jokes aside, “Whispering Jack” keeps performing because fans keep shelling out money to hear him belt out Australian classics like The Voice, Chain Reaction and Pressure Down.
Farnham will headline A Day On The Green to perform his seminal 1986 album Whispering Jack and his greatest hits.
The line-up also includes evergreen contemporary Daryl Braithwaite, American power-balladeer Richard Marx, Russell Morris and Bachelor Girl.
December 1 Bimbadgen Estate. Tickets from $115.
GRAPEVINE GATHERING
While the parents are at Bimbadgen belting out Farnsy’s hits the chances are the kids will be down McDonalds Road dancing up a storm at Roche Estate’s Grapevine Gathering.
The festival has been extended from Victoria to the Hunter Valley for the first time and has landed UK indie-pop giants The Wombats to headline the expansion.
The Wombats have been festival favourites in Australia since their breakthrough hits Let’s Dance To Joy Division and Moving To New York a decade ago.
Unlike FKA, Grapevine has targeted a more electronic and dance-orientated line-up. The bill also includes ’80s electro-pop revivalists Client Liaison, hip-hop artist Tkay Maidza and electro-pop acts Miami Horror and Young Franco.
December 1 Roche Estate. Tickets from $97.
SHANIA TWAIN
In the world of country they don’t get much bigger than Shania Twain. The 52-year-old Canadian has sold more than 90 million records and you couldn’t walk onto a dance floor in the late ’90s without hearing Twain’s feminist anthems Man! I Feel Like a Woman! and That Don't Impress Me Much.
Arguably no other country artist has managed the crossover to a pop mainstream audience with more success.
Twain hasn’t performed in Australia since 1999, so understandably tickets for her Hunter Valley concert are in high demand.
Expect a diverse crowd, with everyone from rural folk to city slickers and kids to grandparents gracing the grassed slopes of Hope Estate.
December 8 Hope Estate. Tickets from $152.
RED HOT SUMMER
If Shania Twain was all about pop-country, Red Hot Summer is all about bringing high-voltage rock’n’roll to the vineyards.
Australia rock royalty Jimmy Barnes headlines this summer’s tour, which also features ’80s American female rock icon Joan Jett and The Blackhearts and Australian alternative mainstays The Living End.
Throw in Diesel, Chocolate Starfish and Richard Clapton and you’ve got a diverse mix of rock heroes.
February 2 Roche Estate. Tickets from $119.