New festival for Anglesea

Erin Pearson
ANGLESEA is set to rock out to its first music festival in October.
Organisers are promising a “new direction” with a combination of music legends and grassroots talent taking the stage between October 8 and 10.
Festival Director Karren Stoneham said Anglesea Music Festival was now an “exciting reality” after years of wishing and waiting.
Stoneham said “the concept has evolved” from an existing Anglesea Live platform, which features about three family-oriented shows a year in a function room at the town’s pub.
“I just felt that we had so many artists coming to Anglesea Live that we really needed to expand off that,” she said.
“It’s really going to be an exciting time for Anglesea.”
Stoneham plays in band Mangy Black Dogs and duo Mystique, both of which will appear at the festival.
“I’m very in-touch with the local music down here,” she said.
“So often I see band and am blown away and I want others to be able to experience the talent that I see.
“Down the track I want people to say ‘Wow, we saw them at the Anglesea Music Festival and now look at them’.”
The run to the festival’s finish line has been anything but easy, Stoneham said, with many hurdles to overcome.
“The biggest challenge so far has been securing funding and we’re still looking for a major sponsor,” she said.
The keen muso and performing arts teacher said she had even returned to study public relations and event management to sharpen her skills for her hands-on role with the festival.
Stoneham said Anglesea Live would continue as a “stepping stone” to the new festival.
“The line-up we have is pretty special and we’ll be different because we will maintain a focus on grassroots music,” she said.
“This will be our footprint.”
Stoneham expected the festival’s “exciting list” of headline acts would be the drawcard for music buffs.
“We have the likes of Wendy Stapleton, Paul Norton, Michael Christian and Chris Wilson on top of Dave Steel, Tiffany Eckhardt and Lisa Edwards,” she said.
“The big unknown acts are Jessey Jackson, who plays some amazing soul blues, Almacknjack, who play an alternative style of music, and Underhanded, which is a new combination that recently won Geelong’s Battle of the Bands.
“The not-so-well-know will get to play with the well-known because at the end of the day it’s all about celebrating all that’s great about our music and our community.”
Stoneham said early-bird tickets were on sale, with more information available at angleseamusicfest.com.au or www.moshtix.com.au.