It has been a long wait but the 2022 Australian Blues Festival is finally just around the corner.
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The iconic Goulburn festival will run across three days from Friday, November 18 to Sunday, November 20, with more than 25 incredible blues acts performing in venues around town.
Event producer, Scott McDuff, said he was excited to finally see the festival come to life and was looking forward to it being a success.
"We've now got an outdoor stage, a new venue at the Hume Conservatorium, and it's at a different time of year," Mr Duff said.
"It's going to be something different."
It's been a rough few years for Australian National Events, who took over organising the festival from Laing Entertainment, with the Black Summer Bushfires and COVID-19 restrictions.
The festival was last held in February, 2020, under difficult circumstances following the bushfire crisis, and was further affected by rain across the weekend. This year's festival had to be postponed until November due to COVID-19 restrictions.
However, with the support of the Australian Government, Goulburn Mulwaree Council and the event venues, this year's Australian Blues Music Festival is set to be something exciting, and better still, completely free.
"We've certainly got some great acts so we believe the quality of our performances is improving," Mr McDuff said.
"It's been frustrating over the past two years but we're excited to finally be back."
Here's a run down of what's planned for the weekend to help you get the most out of the three-day festival.
Where are bands playing?
Performances can be seen at multiple Goulburn venues including the Goulburn Railway Bowling Club who will be hosting an outdoor stage with licenced bar and food offerings, the Goulburn Workers Club who will host two great locations, The Lounge Bar and The McKell Bar, along with the Hume Conservatorium and the Goulburn Club.
Who is playing?
The 2022 festival will present fabulous acts along with a celebration of local talent. The line-up includes some of the finest local and interstate acts, featuring well known stars of the blues circuit like Owen Campbell and the Cosmic People, Sultana Southwell Roulette and The SunBears as well as exciting visiting acts to thrill all tastes, including Minnie Marks, The Marvellous Hearts and the amazing new talent of Chloe Kay and the Crusade.
Here's the full list of acts:
- Owen Campbell and The Cosmic People (alternative blues and oceanic rock)
- Sultana Southwell Roulette (a collaboration of Frank Sultana, James Southwell, Ben Wicks and Johnny Tesoriero)
- The Sunbears (voted by the Sydney Blues Society as favourite blues 'Emerging Artist 2022')
- Chloe Kay and the Crusade (a powerful yet delicate approach to the blues)
- The Marvellous Hearts (oozing with attitude, a melting pot of sounds)
- Minnie Marks (prepare for mind-blowing, dynamic guitar wizardry and an insanely powerful voice)
- Simon Kinny-Lewis Band (a voice like American blues star Joe Bonamassa)
- PJ O'Brien (knows how to get a Blues party started)
- Killwater (electric funk/soul-infused rockin' blues)
- Escapado Sol (a feel good mix of soul, blues and funk)
- Divine Devilles with Dave Blanken (a powerhouse trio with bags of cheek, charm and pizazz)
- The Wildfires (bending the boundaries of blues, country and roots)
- Boneyard Blondes (a seasoned Melbourne based Blues/Rock band)
- Catfish Soup ("What Robert Johnson would've sounded like with an electric guitar")
- Aaron Pollock (one of Australia's most refreshing acoustic acts)
- Guitar Case Troubadores (blues tunes in a country style)
- Chris Harland Blues Band (screaming, weeping, singing guitar solos with soulful vocals)
- Howlin Mitch (a one-man blues band who plays with energy and conviction)
- Jeff and Deej Trio (cruisy and bluesy trio with vibes from the bars of New Orleans to the swamps of southern Texas)
- Lying Cheating Bastards (a straight up honest blues band who love playing music together)
- Matt Ross (a range of Swampy Blues, Heritage country, Gospel and Southern Soul music)
- The Piano Wizard (a well-known, loved and respected Australian blues, jazz, boogie woogie, classical piano player, songwriter and singer)
- Thomann King (strong story telling, dry observations, playful wordplay and a reflective "blues" vibe)
- The Honey Sippers (Mark's finger picking guitar work, together with Trish's soulful vocals, display versatility and authenticity)
- Isy Cappo Band (17yr old Goulburn local, singer songwriter Isy Cappo's voice soars effortlessly above her own original compositions)
- Nick Charles ("Australia's virtuoso of acoustic roots guitar")
- The Johnny Reynolds Band (playing original Johnny Reynolds compositions and some classic covers with their own original slant)
What time?
On Friday, November 18, performances begin at 12.30pm and will wrap up at 11pm.
On Saturday, the day starts earlier at 9.30am and wraps ups at 11pm.
On Sunday, sleep in a little before catching the final day of performances from 11am until 8pm.
You can view the program for specific performance times at australianbluesfestival.com.
Mr McDuff said he hoped to continue to build and improve the Australian Blues Festival in coming years.
"We'll get next week's festival over the line and just see how the public and our audiences receive it," he said.
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