The first seven acts
announced for the seventh

MITCHELL CREEK

ROCK’N’BLUES FESTIVAL

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Mitchell Creek Festival has got a mojo working. The Hootchie Cootchie Man is in the house and so, on this 7th Day of February the first 7 stellar artists performing at the 7th Mitchell Creek Rock’n’Blues Festival are hereby officially announced for September 21, 22, 23, 2018.

The Legendary Lady of Soul Renee Geyer, Mr. Eagle Rock, frontman for Mondo Rock and Daddy Cool, Ross Wilson,  International Blues legend Gerry Joe Weise, grinding riff experts The Fumes, the amazing Jesse Redwing,  The Backsliders, featuring Midnight Oils’ Rob Hirst and the talented Cass Eager and the Velvet Rope are seven of many more acts to be announced on the seventh day of each month for the next 7 months.

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There are at least seven more reasons
not to miss this years event, starting with the location.

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Mitchell Creek Festival is held on 100 hectares of private property nestled in the lush woodlands of the Mary Valley in the Noosa Hinterlands on the Sunshine Coast of Queensland.  Everyone who attends agrees that their is something very mystical about the location, in fact “The Spirit of the Place” is often spoken about by organiser, Jimmy Budgen as a place where everyone comes together in harmony to enjoy the gift of music. The beautiful landscape and mineral rich waterways host a plethora of native plants and wildlife but it’s not just the location that has allowed this event to thrive over the last seven years.

The three day festival appeals to a wide cross section of community and music lovers. It is an ideal destination for campers, RVs and caravan enthusiasts with free camping offered as part of the ticket to the three day event, with option for VIPs to arrive early to set up camp. It is a family friendly event, featuring a kids area with programmed activities as well as multi-cultural food stalls and a variety of market stalls.

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When the event organiser and Promoter, Jimmy Budgen, started the festival in 2013 he knew he had a big job ahead of him. The decision to “risk it all” was a giant leap of faith after being made redundant in the shrinking mining industry, then investing in a cattle stud, which was drastically devalued due to the Traviston Dam debacle in 2009.  Ironically a it was a musician, Peter Garrett who at the time was the Federal Environment Minister, saw fit to refuse approval of the damn by then it was it was too late. At the time, Jimmy decided to turn his cows into burgers, running his own fast food van at various festivals and community events. It was the Peak Ridge Music Festival in 2011, after an exhausting weekend of catering the Hootchie Cootchie Man appeared to Jimmy.  Excited, with enthusiasm he returned back to his cow farm in Mary Valley with a vision and plans to sell a couple of restored motorbikes from his prized collection to get the show “up and running”.

Jimmy doesn’t flip his own burgers anymore, or restore old motorbikes. His cows are long gone (along with all the motorbikes) from the property, and he jokes that now he herds people instead of livestock.  He remember the intense struggle of the first few years of the festival, all the naysayers, a year spent waiting on council approvals, being on the ground in the cities putting up posters and handing out cards at popular events, year after year. He cites that his dedication and commitment to guerrilla marketing, days and nights spent walking the streets, going to gigs, talking to thousands of people, as an essential part of making it this far.

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Getting people to come along is one thing, but providing a unique and impressive live music experience was, and still is, the key to growth, by getting people to return year after year, according to Jimmy.  “My experienced staff that I’ve collected over time and the people who came in those first years, who keep coming back and bringing all their friends and family. They have been integral. Each year everyone goes away happy, vowing to return” says Jimmy.

 “I  have an obligation to raise the bar each year and I do that by booking great acts, not just the usual suspects (who play everywhere all the time) and providing the best services possible to make the whole weekend run smoothly”.

More recently the facebook phenomenon and social media aspects of promotion have taken the event to new heights. 1000’s of positive facebook comments after last years sell-out event tell the story from every perspective. You need only scroll through Facebook page comments to get an understanding of it’s popularity or have a look art the aerial photos to see the phenomenon that Mitchell Creek has become.

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The seventh reason…  The Music!

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Mitchell Creek is musically independent of the Australian Music Industry. For this reason it has fast become known as a breeding ground for emerging Rock and Blues artists and bands.  The programming is done by just one person, the man who runs the show. The criteria and focus is strictly rock and blues and it’s Jimmy’s favourite job as the Director, worthing out of the square with unorthodox ideas that would never work past the larger mainstream festivals. There’s nothing Jimmy loves more that to orchestrate Musicians and songs, and he has done this in the past with resounding success.

For example, Jimmy likes to place musicians within emerging bands for festival performances, adding horns, or putting a band behind a solo act (such as Sandy Thom in 2014) at times he has requesting specific songs from bands booked to perform. The results of this style of programming has benefitted many musicians who have gone on to great successes working together in the industry or forming new bands that have success beyond Mitchell Creek. Such is the case with newcomer Amanda Emblem. After performing a requested song by Chain, the 1971 No.1 hit “Black and Blue” at the 2016 event. Amanda went on to re-make the song with Matt Taylor. Last year Amanda joined Chain on stage in front of 2000 fans to launch the single.

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If Jimmy likes what he hears, he will give it a shot. “If a band applies, first they must fit the genre. If they sound and look good to me online there’s a very good chance i’ll investigate further and they could easily make it onto the lineup, regardless of their achievements, but when I book a fresh new act, I’ll give them direction. I’ll say my honest opinion, make suggestions to make their show memorable for my audience. Whether or not they want to take my advice it up to them.”

But wait, there’s more. The after hour “Zeppelin Bar” has become famous for it’s quality jam. Patrons and musicians mix it up together in what Jimmy describes as “the most organised and exciting jam night he’s ever witnessed” saying “this is where many lasting musical relationships have formed”.

So the mystical “Hootchie Cootchie Man” from Willie Dickson’s famous blues tune has donated his Mojo to Mitchell Creek in this 7th year, all the foundations for a fabulous live music experience are already in place for the 2018 Mitchell Creek Rock’n’Blues Festival.

Stay tuned for the seventh hour of the seventh day of next month for the next line seven artists to be announced.

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THE SEVENTH ANNUAL

MITCHELL CREEK

ROCK’N’BLUES FESTIVAL

Event Date: Dates: 21-23 September, 2018

Keep up to date with the latests news and book your ticket on the website

www.mitchellcreekrocknbluesfest.com.au

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AMNPLIFY – DB