The Bands

Geoff Achison is a famed blues-roots artist from Australia best known for his guitar playing and songwriting. Geoff began his apprenticeship with legendary Australian bluesman ‘Dutch’ Tilders establishing himself as a fine lead guitarist before striking out with his own. Awards and honours include:Blues Music Victoria Hall Of Fame 2020; Melbourne Blues Appreciation Society – Official Patron; Blues Foundation (USA) Albert King Award 1995

Andy Baylor was born in Melbourne in 1954 and is a respected and influential Australian musician known for his multi-instrumental skills, songwriting and versatility.

In the heady days of Melbourne’s busy music scene of the 70’s and 80’s, Andy was a key figure in the formation of several popular bands such as the swingin’ Belair Bandits ,the eclectic Blue Rockets and the much-loved jump blues band , The Honeydrippers.

From these beginnings Andy went on to play with a who’s –who of Australian music as an in-demand freelancer. He toured the whole country and undertook several pilgrimages to U.S.A. where he deepened his knowledge He supported and played with many leading American musicians.

Anna Scionti (pronounced Shon-tee) is a singer-songwriter, guitarist and bottleneck slide player who mixes it up on cigar box guitar, resonator, lap steel and six-string guitar. The music Scionti makes is her own style steeped in blues, roots and rock. While absorbing influences from her favourite inspirational artists, Scionti walks her own creative path. Driving guitars and honey-soaked, gravel-infused vocals draw you deep in to her world of emotionally charged, electrified rhythmic tunes.

Black Molls are Fred Negro on vocals, horsie and percussion and Dave Moll on guitar and vocals.

They formed around 20 years ago as a spin-off of ‘The fuck fucks’ playing original songs with a more blues country bent albeit with a punk rock roll attitude. They also throw in the odd cover version of Hank Williams, Jerry Lee Lewis, Buddy Holly, Peter Lillie and the occasional T.V. ad like ‘Call call carpet call’ or ‘Louis the fly’. Since forming they’ve never stopped performing (at least 1 or 2 gigs per week).

Their show is very relaxed and highly entertaining, employing humour, satire and audience participation. Guitarist Dave Moll is internationally renowned for his guitar prowess, with Joe Walsh from The Eagles the latest to proclaim him as one of Australia’s greatest.

Bobby Valentine has tried his luck on the Blues Roulette a coupla times and when he got the call to do the St.Kilda Blues Festival had no hesitation with putting it all on the black.

Blues Roulette is Ben Wicks, Bass and Johnny Tesoriero, Drums, add in St.kilda stalwart John McAll on piano and strap yourself in for a journey into Le Blues eclectigue.
Bobby’s best remembered for his many and varied TV appearances on Hey, hey it’s Saturday, Vizard’s Tonight Live. He’s worked for and with everybody and has recently started carving a new niche in the land of original music. Aussie Blues has always had a special place in his heart, with early influences being Chain and Carson, with a fair helping of Americana, The Band and Ry Cooder being at the fore.

Bobby says, “I’ve always been a Beatles tragic, but if they never existed, I probably would have been a Stones fan, or The Doors.”

Buddy Knox is a celebrated Indigenous Blues Artist out of Tamworth. He has carved up the Blues scene around Australia since 2007, having performed at all the big ticket Australian Festival and is now coming to the St Kilda Blues Festival in March.

Buddy is a fine story teller and his devotion to the art form is genuine. Having grown up as an Aboriginal boy in country Australia, he has travelled with his music and has story like no other.

Consisting of Aaron Gillett (harmonica and bottleneck), Julian James (vocals and acoustic guitar), Ben Gerrard (drums), and Jordan Hyde (bass), Catfish Voodoo keeps their sound deeply rooted in the early 50’s Smokey Chicago-blues scene. Playing a set consisting of their own material and original takes of classic blues songs such as; Mojo workin’, Smokestack lightnin’, and a high energy, crowd pleasing version of the John Lee Hooker classic, Boogie Chillun’.

A Melbourne songwriter/musician, producer, performer, and teacher with more than 30 years of experience in the Australian Music Industry, Charles Jenkins has released 21 albums. He is also an Ambassador for APRA/AMCOS.

Charles has toured Europe and the USA several times and has been nominated for two ARIA awards with the Icecream Hands. In 2014 he won the AGE/Music Victoria award for best folk/roots album and in August 2020 Icecream Hands released their first album in 13 years – No Weapon But Love. In Dec 2022 he released his latest solo album Radio Sketches 2 – the Death Of Stars.

With a Masters’s In Music, Charles currently teaches songwriting at Box Hill Institute as well as having private students, running small workshops, and providing songwriting mentoring for the Port Fairy Folk Festival Youth Program.

“He’s too good a writer not to be in your life.” Sydney Morning Herald.

“Charles Jenkins delivers the kind of set that astonishes in its depth, variety and good humour. (and) reinforces his position as the songwriter’s songwriter’ – Matt O’Neil (Time Off Magazine)

Acclaimed for their gritty, driving, down home-home sound, Collard Greens and Gravy play harmonica driven, early Chicago Blues in the style of greats like Little Walter, Jimmy Reed, Muddy Waters, Jimmy Rogers and Sonny Boy Williamson to name a few. Aria award-winning band Collard greens and gravy have been forerunners of the Australian blues and roots seen since their formation in 1995. Since that time the band have clocked up countless kilometres performing their gritty driving blues to thrilled audiences at major festivals across Australia as well as in the United States. “Eerie, haunting blues…it reminded me of a dark night on the Delta.” Bruce Iglauer, President Alligator Records

In 2017, six friends with a distinctive Australian music pedigree (The Chosen Few, Hunters & Collectors, I Spit On Your Gravy, Drivers Eyes, Have A Nice Day, In Vivo, Fiona & Her Holy Men, Epic Brass, UNAustralians, Tijuana Souvenirs) banded together to provide music therapy and support to each other during a close friend’s terminal illness.

Drawing on a compendium of influences from popular music and entertainment culture since the 1960’s, encompassing traditional and classical elements with noticeable influence from Steve Earle, Tom Waits and soul revue bands – Dalicados songs are seasoned with Australian and popular culture lyrical references, a comedic twist and enormous empathy.

Dalicados offer passion and professionalism and have never forgotten the original creative purpose that prompted them to pick up their instrument and carry it with them their entire life.

Stellar live performances soon saw Dalicados earn a loyal following, captivating audiences with their electrifyingly soulful storytelling through rock music and further endearment rose from the release of their subsequent recorded works.

Dalicados unveiled their debut single and accompanying music video to the track, titled ‘Make Hay While The Sun Shines’ in June 2019 – which lead to a Sydney & Melbourne tour with Painters & Dockers as well as regional Victoria dates. Following the release of their album ‘Nevermore’, Dalicados were featured on TV show; MUUZOSTREAM, which broadcast prerecorded (during lockdown) live performances on Channel 31 in 2022.

After enduring the disruptions of Covid lockdowns during 2020 & 2021, Dalicados faced another challenge as remarkable songsmith James Lomas lead vocalist and guitarist, was diagnosed with a rare auto immune condition called Goodpastures’ Syndrome which destroyed his kidney function in 10 days and meant he was on dialysis for the next two and a half years waiting for a kidney transplant.

This condition put a kybosh on live performances until another Dalicados member was screened to be an ideal kidney donor; James’ wife, Fiona Lee Maynard.

Supporting their friends through this process, Dalicados waited patiently, with collective positivity, eager to return to playing live music together again. Dalicados’ rhythm section of Cal Mc Alpine on drums and Mark Carson on double bass, backing vocalists and percussionists, Tracey Mc Alpine and Fiona Lee Maynard, and the incomparable Jack Howard on trumpet and assorted brass instruments.

Following recovery from the successful donation and transplant surgery, Dalicados are eager to return to the live response from audiences appreciative, more than ever regarding the health benefits of live music.

Combining virtuosic piano playing with a whiskey-smooth voice, Damon Smith and his band deliver dynamic sets featuring foot-stomping boogie woogie, New Orleans-flavoured blues, rock ‘n’ roll and heartfelt ballads that have garnered multiple awards, rave reviews and standing ovations at theatres, pubs, clubs, and festivals across Australia.

In 2022, Smith’s album Skeletons Skeletons Skeletons debuted at #2 on the Australian Blues and Roots charts, earning a Music Victoria award nomination, and winning the MBAS Chris Wilson award. Smith’s latest album, A Fresh Harvest From Old Seeds debuted at #6 on the Australian Blues and Roots charts in July this year and won a Music Victoria Award! Don’t miss this brilliant showcase of energy, versatility, and undeniable talent!

Doc Halibut’s blues rock and soul exhibit an authentic heart and irresistible energy. With soaring guitar and Hammond, driving beats, thoughtful lyrics and melodies, Doc Halibut is one of Australia’s most exciting and sought-after rhythm and blues acts.

Dom Turner’s new venture The Rural Blues Project is blues beyond the 12-bar. The band takes 20th Century rural blues music from artists such as Lead Belly, Fred McDowell and Robert Johnson, hybridising and rearranging, breathing new life for 21st century audiences.
Voted ‘Traditional Blues Artist of the Year 2022’ by the Sydney Blues Society, multi award winning Australian blues artist, Dom Turner is best known as guitarist, lead vocalist, and founding member of the iconic Australian blues group, Backsliders as well as other international collaborations including R.L. Boyce with Dom Turner, The Turner Brown
Band and Phil Wiggins & Dom Turner. Dom has toured the Australian festival circuit since the 1980s and regularly appears at most major, blues-related music festivals including Bluesfest, Woodford Folk Festival and Blues on Broadbeach to name but a few. He is a regular visitor to the home of the blues, the USA performing at festivals including Augusta
Blues Week in West Virginia, and the RL Boyce Picnic and the Otha Turner Goat Picnic in Mississippi.

Joining Dom is legendary drummer Rosscoe Clarke (Foreday Riders, Cyril B Bunter) and accordion and keyboard master Johnny G.

As Mr Black & Blues, Michael Pollitt beat was Rhythms Magazine Australian Artist of the Year in 2013/14. Hi new project, Heavy Medicine, is a psychedelic voodoo blues rock affair. For the St Kilda Blues Festival Michael is teamed up with a killer
rhythm section to put on a special pre-launch performance.

Jack Howard played trumpet with Hunters & Collectors and along the way he’s played with acts like The Violent Femmes, Rodriguez, You Am I, The Living End and many more. In 2017, he toured the world with Midnight Oil as their multi-instrumentalist. He’s been described as “one of the great quiet achievers of Australian music.”

He has also been releasing his own great music for the past twenty years. 2020 saw the release of his musical memoirs, Small Moments Of Glory, and the CD, Dog Songs. The album was recorded with Jack’s mighty band of Long Lost Brothers – and Sisters. The band’s sound is full of driving rhythms, chiming guitars, swooping pedal steel and Jack’s signature horn work. He writes about his world with clarity and poetry and the songs have that classic Australian lift and lilt when the chorus hits.

Riffmeister Nicky Del Rey plays lead guitar, Ed Bates creates magic on the pedal steel, Rob Walker plays beautifully-shaped bass lines without ever losing the groove, Cal McAlpine hits hard on the drums and builds the songs with subtle dynamic and power, Fiona Lee Maynard brings a tremulous passion and warmth to her backing vocals; and Amy Valent Curlis takes the songs in unexpected directions with her sure and sharp percussion work.

Jarrod Shaw possesses a passion and appreciation for blues music that becomes obvious from the moment the first note sounds. He delivers a soulful blues inspired show, performed with conviction.

Jarrod was born and raised in country Victoria, down the dirt roads of the Macedon Ranges. He taught himself to play guitar listening to the renowned blues greats, as well as the icons of the Australian and local Melbourne blues scene.

Performing countless solo gigs has aided Jarrod in developing a musical style of his own. He blends his unique guitar approach lying somewhere between piedmont fingerstyle and the blues of the delta, with a powerful voice often described as belying his years. At times he even wails away on a racked blues harp – all at once without missing a beat. If you close your eyes you might even believe there’s more than one person performing…

Julian James has been around Melbourne’s live music scene since before he was allowed to drink in bars. The sound of his band ‘Julian James and The Moonshine State’ mixes a love of moonshine-drinking finger picking country with the southern swamp wail of a back porch fiddle. Julian has released four well-received albums to date, all of which he’s road tested on frequent laps of our wide brown land.

Guitarist Kathleen Halloran’s diverse array of skills are fast making her one of the countries most exciting and in demand young musicians. As guitarist for Australian icon Kate Ceberano, Kathleen tours and performs all around the country. She’s performed with the likes of Felix Riebl, Iva Davies, William Barton, Jimi Hocking and Darren Middleton to name a few. As a session musician her guitar playing has been heard on countless recordings, in orchestra pits for many musical theatre productions, and on major festival stages all around the country.

Kim Volkman Blues Trio came about for a debut at Freddie Wimpoles St Kilda Blues Festival 2022 and has continued to play are Melbourne since.

The band got together for a little fun with great mates and the love of blues music.

Members:

Kim Volkman: Guitar & Vocals.
(Kim Volkman & the Whiskey Priests, Ian Rilen & the love Addicts & X)

Adam Kovarik: Bass & Vocals.
(Stackhouse & The Gypsy Lovers)

Carl Manuell:
(Kim Volkman & the Whiskey Priests, Clip, Clop Club, The Peptides & The Divinyls.)

Special Guest members include:

Robbie Ragg: Piano.

( who has played all over the world from Las Vegas to New York Casino)

Geoff Squires: Harmonica.

Local Belgrave legend musicain.

The KV Blues Trio play classic blues tunes from artists such as Willie Dixon, Freddie King, Rolling Stones, Muddy Waters, Led Zeppelin, JJ Cale, Howling Wolf and the list goes on….

Good time, a fun band with a Melbourne blues edge. Coming to a venue near you.

A dangerous mix of Blues and Rockabilly songwriting with a stage act that is a mixture of an Outback roadhouse and a Glasgow Pub Dance.

Enjoy!

Margie Lou Dyer is a beloved, naturally gifted, totally unique and musically iconic fixture of Melbourne’s revered Blues and Jazz scene.

Her decades-long career has been filled with numerous albums, tv segments, live gigs & extraordinary collaborations – most memorably with her late husband, the late, great Allan Browne and also musicians such as Mat Jodrell, Sam Anning, Eugene Ball, Bob Sedergreen, Paul Williamson, Cameron Robbins, Howard Cairns and Paul Kelly – just to name a few.

Margie Lou Dyer held down a residency at St Kilda’s fantastic jazz bar and seafood restaurant Claypots for a decade, making Sunday nights a regular treasure for all. Her gravelly, astonishingly expressive voice is reminiscent of the best women of early jazz, like Bessie Smith or Billie Holiday; Her blues tinged, heavy grooving, New Orleans-style piano playing is unique in Melbourne.

Her solo work at Claypots was gradually augmented to a trio in 2010, with the addition of Artist/sculptor/musician Cameron Robbins on clarinet and the multi Aria award winner Allan Browne on drums – using an exact Baby Dodds kit (with a large bass-drum and no high hat).

In 2015 the very talented composer and musician Eugene Ball, joined her on Trumpet and a quartet was formed. After Allan’s passing in June of that year and following a brief recess – Margie Lou looked for a new direction without Al on drums. In his stead she needed two extra musicians. The authentic, vibrant double bassist: Howard Cairns, was an automatic choice and her daughter Hayley Miro took on her father’s role playing washboard. Hayley took this on with extraordinary ease and understanding – having absorbed all her life the sounds and techniques of the West-African percussion so loved and practiced by Allan.

The Margie Lou Dyer Quintet was thus formed and entranced audiences from Claypots St Kilda through to the Sydney Nolan Room at MONA in Tasmania and went on to make two albums – ‘Old Digger’s Picnic’,  Margie Lou’s first without her late husband and musical mentor: Allan Vincent Browne, . It traces her Jazz lineage, reflecting the powerful influence of her late father Warwick Dyer; Whose legacy to her was his vast collection of 600+ early jazz artists and his own jazz recordings from the Frank Johnson Band and countless Jazz concerts in the 1950s.

And ‘Survival Day’, commissioned by the ABC during the pandemic period which provided the band with a great opportunity to compose all original tunes and play again after a long time in social isolation.

Whenever Margie Lou Dyer’s Quintet plays, the band is overjoyed by the crowds of fellow musicians it often draws – from Melbourne locals, to international tourists and compatriot musicians of all genres, who regularly drop in and join the band.

Melbourne singer/songwriter, Mike Rudd and bassist Bill Putt formed Spectrum in 1969 and Spectrum‘s first single release, I’ll Be Gone (Someday I’ll Have Money), was a national No. 1 hit for the band in 1971. It still gets played on radio and TV, (it’s on the soundtrack of the Netflix hit series, Boy Swallows Universe) and crowds joyfully sing along at Spectrum gigs all around the country.

Artists as diverse as John Williamson and Manfred Mann (amongst many others) have recorded versions of the song, which in 2001 was voted No. 13 on APRA’s list of top Australian songs and was recently voted No. 3 of all-time Melbourne singles on a Triple R poll.

Although Rudd’s long-time friend Bill Putt died unexpectedly in 2013, the band continues to be a must-see live attraction around Australia. In 2017, fellow guitarist and good friend Brenden Mason from Melbourne band Madder Lake joined Mike, bassist Broc O’Connor, drummer Peter ‘Robbo’ Robertson and keyboardist Daryl Roberts – and as a result Spectrum’s dynamic live performances have been enhanced even further.

The Spectrum and Madder Lake Double Bill shows over the past seven years have seen the two progressively inclined ‘70s outfits joining together for a long-overdue tour de force that has thoroughly satisfied Aussie ‘70s music followers.

Mission Brown uses this old-aged rhythmic know-how to drive their ‘Trainwreck Hillbilly Blues’ to get your feet moving and your beer arm swinging.

Gus Kelly drives the ‘train’ as he plays his stripped-back, foot-operated drum kit and rhythm guitar at the same time. James Crosland provides the low-down rumble that hits you in the chest while Max Maxey plays raucous slide guitar and offbeat riffs on his homemade guitars.

Fearsomely funky, grippingly groovy, and radiantly retro, The Soul Movers – the lovechild of powerhouse vocalist, Lizzie Mack, and OG-Red-Wiggle, Murray Cook – are all of the above, as is the groovy soul, powerful pop, and rockin’ country bump in “Dumb Luck”, their fourth album over ten years, together.

Welcome to a world where even badly broken hearts do mend, good lovers get to love again, the world is still real with decent people being friendly to each other. And if your day’s gone bad, may imaginary butterflies kiss the top of your head so we can all get happy and lucky again.

Featuring much-loved legend, Murray Cook, and led by long-Legged vocalist, Lizzie Mack, The Soul Movers musical tour-de-force across a hip and funky retro musical spectrum, recreating the best sounds from the 1960s and 70s, and making them “one of the most exciting live show and festival acts on the touring circuit today” (Glenn A Baker).

Backed by a “red-hot band oozing with musical talent” (Sean Sennett) The Soul Movers have recorded in both the US and Australia to create four critically-acclaimed albums which are regularly presented with humour and passion on many of Australia’s biggest stages and most-loved festivals. 

Head out on the highway of your mind! Inspired by the Louisiana town of the same name, Australian trio Opelousas are a double female fronted electrical attack on your senses with a unique swamp-soaked, sometimes dark psychedelic blues sound.

Their debut album Opelousified is a feast of grit and glory and was voted best blues album in 2019 at the Music Victoria awards. Their sound is a roux of Kerri Simpson’s powerful raw vocals, Alison Ferrier’s dirty lead electric guitar and sultry vocal tones, seasoned with Anthony “Shorty” Shortte’s expert swamp-soaked percussion. The rhythms of Opelousas seep right into your bloodstream.

Opelousas was formed by Kerri Simpson in 2018. Kerri and Alison Ferrier had made an album together in 2017, called Bluebirds, along with friends and Melbourne legends Barb Waters and Suzannah Espie. Kerri’s vision for a blues/rock band was born after she heard Ali’s raw electric guitar style. Long-time friend and musical partner, Anthony ‘Shorty’ Shorrte, was the third ingredient to complete their swampy foreboding sound.

Otis Namrell is a 21-year-old virtuoso blues/southern rock guitarist and singer/songwriter based in Melbourne, Australia. Originally a Northern Rivers native, Namrell spent his teenage years fine tuning his incredibly unique approach to blues guitar by incorporating elements of jazz, swamp rock, country and psychedelic rock into his playing style. Although Otis usually plays as 3-piece band backed up by longtime collaborator Sonny Altman on drums, and recent addition on the bass Jack Blandford, he is also the head of another jazz/groove band and regularly plays with multiple other bands in the Melbourne music scene.

Having made the move down to Melbourne a few years ago, Otis has been able to completely soak up the city’s incredible live music scene and jump on stages with several incredible bands and musicians who call the live music capital home, including Willie J & The Bad Books, 8 Ball Aitken, Million Johnny’s and Agnes Blue. He’s been a stand-out artist across multiple Melbourne blues nights including the weekly Hume Blues Club, Melbourne Blues Appreciation Society (MBAS), the Elwood Blues Club and many more. Reminiscent of a 60-year-old accomplished blues guitarist who has been playing all his life, Otis’ playing turns heads at every show and mesmerises crowds with the amount of feeling and energy that is poured into his singing, playing and on-stage improvisation.

Namrell is backed by a superbly tight rhythm section in Sonny Altman and Jack Blandford. On drums, Sonny grew up playing and learning jazz drums which is evident in his ability to deliver clean and groove-based chops within the normal confinements that blues music sometimes creates. No stranger to an on-stage improv jam, Sonny has no trouble letting rip with impressive blasts of high energy drumming, and coming back in as soft and tidy as the song requires. The newest member to the trio is bass player, Jack Blandford. Coming from a strong blues guitar background and having done guitar and bass session work in a multitude of bands with genres ranging from rock, reggae & roots, funk, blues, country and bluegrass; Jack is able to lay down tight basslines that complement the songs by adding power to the blues/rock riffs, especially during moments of on-stage jamming.

With the swagger, musical know-how and on-stage energy, the Otis Namrell Trio is an artist that you don’t want to miss. Destined for the world’s largest blues festivals and stages, Otis is a guitarist you want to see before everyone else does.

Paulie is well known around Australia for his work with The Detonators. A band he formed over 12 years ago, that has covered every corner of this wide brown land.

Penny Ikinger is a renowned rock ace hailing from Australia. Rarely seen without her iconic guitar, the Pennycaster, and with an impressive career spanning several decades, Penny has been a formidable force in the music industry. Penny has had a truly captivating effect amongst her fans and contemporaries alike. Joined by her band “The Marbles”

Blues, Rock Legend Phil Para is one of Melbourne’s hardest working and best-known musicians playing sold out shows every week. Kiwi expat, Phil and his powerhouse trio, perform a range of his original rock/ blues/latin fusion alongside classic guitar-oriented covers such as Hendrix, Santana, Clapton, Muddy Waters, Stevie Ray Vaughan etc.

Robbie Ragg’s Musical Gumbo Revolution together  with Billy Pommer Jnr have been tantalising local St Kilda venues with some of the best toe tapping,
booty shakin flavours from Louisiana. Robbie on Ragtime Honky Tonk piano from a bygone era and Billy on Rockin Rumba drums together inspired by the New Orleans Songbook. With special guests to really spice up the Gumbo. You
gotta check these guys out!

Rod Paine & The Fulltime Lovers cook up a stew based upon the dirty electric Blues, Roots and R&B of the early sixties, but with splashes of Country balladry, Gospel, Americana and Rock n Roll, you get the full flavour. A popular mainstay of the local scene plus a sought-after, crowd-pleasing headliner at festivals and events from their home base of Melbourne, Victoria, this act is not to be missed.

Sammy Owen – he jumps and jives like a young George Thorogood, he shreds that thing, his lyrics tease, intense, hard hitting, toes over the edge style blues.

Recently returned from the COVID tour of 2020, Shake have appeared in various guises over the years and this time round we’re out to get loud and have a bit of fun, with a mix of blues, roots and rhythm and blues. Jimmie Rolfe on lead, Kim Volkman on bass, Brett McCabe drums & Charlie Barker on vocals.

The vibe is old-school. Think blues-rock and add a dash of psychedelic. It’s groovy, it’s of the earth, it’s authentic. With a band name that’s one heavy animal away from the legendary vamp ‘Smokestack Lightning’, this trio from the Yarra Valley in Australia might have formed around their love of the blues but are actively pushing into new territory.

The Steve Colebrook Trio has been lurking around the Melbourne jazz scene for nigh on 20 years. The band consists of Steve Colebrook (clarinet and vocals), Ben Rogers (guitar), and Nikki Scarlett (double bass).

The 1990s saw a period of expansion to The Twelve Angry Men but the GFC bust them back to trio size. Their own brand of swinging silliness harks back to the days of Slim and Slam, Louis Jordan, and Fats Waller.

Soul Blues trio feat. Hammond Organ, Guitar, Lap Steel, Piano over swamp boogie Memphis soul beats!

Troy Wilson and Aaron Gillett are a Melbourne-based acoustic duo specialising in roots and blues music with resonator guitars and harmonica. From fingerpicking to harmonica boogies, they bring fun and good times to the juke joint tradition.

With nowhere to play and no one to play to, Paul Buchanan gathered together an all star line-up in a shed outside of Maffra to create Paul Buchanan’s Voodoo Preachers. Featuring members of the multi-award-winning Amnesia Blues Band (2016/2019 MBAS Band Of The Year winners; four-time MBAS Challenge finalists; Top 5 “Most Creative Song of the Year” 2019 from Ben Vee’s Roadhouse Blues,) The Blues Lizards & The Strzelecki Stringbusters, The Voodoo Preachers are Paul Buchanan, vocals; Ning Hopkins, guitar; Marc Leyshan, guitar; John Werner, bass and Stuart Anderson, drums. In 2020, between Victorian Lockdowns 1 and 2, the Voodoo Preachers refined their swampy yet slick sound and recorded their debut album, Testimony, which went straight to #3 on the Australian Blues and Roots Airplay Chart. In those heady days after Vic Lockdown 3, the Voodoo Preachers started gigging around Gippsland and Melbourne, but in June 2021 Victoria went in to Lockdown 4.0 just after they played a set at the Moechella Festival. The show they played that day was recorded for their new album Live at Moechella 2021. The album has remained in the ABARAC Top 25 charts for three months since its release

Waz E James is often referred to as ‘Australia’s best kept secret’. He is a songwriter and regular performer at many of Australia’s largest festivals, and has performed legendary shows at the Tamworth Music Festival for more than 15 years straight. The last few years he has added the Cairns Tablelands Music Festival and Airlie Beach Music Festival to the band’s regular festival list. He is currently performing with Andrew Pendlebury, Steve Hadley and Scotty Martin