Launch It!

The Surfers Paradise Festival presents… Launch It! with Pete Murray and Clare Bowditch, on the beaches of Surfers Paradise

On a winters day here on the Golden Coasts of Australia, when the sun is beaming and it’s easily t-shirts and short weather, you would hardly want to leave the beach, even if a music festival is in town. And I think that is exactly why the Gold Coast council realized that they have to bring the festival to the beach.

On the golden beaches of Surfers Paradise was one of the most unique music festivals I have ever attended. The Surfers Paradise festival is just over a 3 week festival, starting in mid-June going to the 9th of July. With a variety of different acts contributing to festival, with local restaurants featuring the food one day, to some of the best Aussie rockers, rocking on the beach another.

Launch it! is probably the main feature of the Surfers Paradise festival, bringing Aussie sensations to Surfers Paradise such as Peter Murray and Clare Bowditch. Starting off at 12:00 noon, on a Saturday afternoon to a rapidly gaining crowd was local band, Frankie and the Moon. Frankie and the moon led a strong 40 minute set, playing music all original to themselves, written by Frankie herself. Following Frankies group, was Dan Hannaford and Clay Blyth. This iconic Duo has toured throughout Australia, playing at major festivals such as Bluesfest, has been ever so increasingly making a name for themselves, and I’m not sure if it’s their ideal ‘bluesy’ voice, or their high abilities to song write, but one or another (or both), they rocked the stage that afternoon with their 45 minute set.

As the sets started getting longer, the crowds were becoming bigger, and with Busby Marou coming out, I knew exactly why. Busby Marou happened to be one of my favourite performances of the day. Getting titles given to them such as ‘Most Promising New Talent’, they sure played a show as if they had been around for decades. At the end of their 45 minute performance, they left the stage to a crowd, who will not be forgetting their name. Following Busby Marou was the John Steel Singers. The John Steel Singers, were a band unlike anything I have personally seen before. Having 6 members, this indie-pop group definitely played a wonderful set. With a bit rockier music than indie bands such as MGMT, they managed to have the majority of the crowd head bobbing to the beat.

All Photos by John Delaney
www.exquisitephoto.ca

At about 4:30 the first headliner appeared, and Clare Bowditch started her set. Now if you’re from Australia, chances are you own a Clare Bowditch CD. And as another iconic songwriter, some of Clares songs about friends and family related to many of our own experiences, which really got the crowd involved. Clare, and the crowd, was at climax, when she rocked her hit single ‘Start of War’, which forced many to be humming along. Having an hour long set, she left big boots to fill for Pete Murray, who was next in line at 6:00.

With Pete Murray being one of the poster boys for Australia music, this had the entire beach packed with fans. Pete singing his hot hits on this warm winters night, with the hum of his fans singing the background accompanied by the ocean waves, resulted in an unforgettable night. Murray spent the majority of his set, playing some of his latest tracks, some which haven’t been released yet. But also went back to playing his greatest hits. Which had every female aged 10-100 singing along, word for word. He finished his set at about 7:00, coming back for a 2 song encore, which started off with Better Days. Overall, Surfers Paradise was in for a treat, as it was one hell of a festival, on a perfect day, in simply paradise. This festival will leave a lasting impression on me, as I’m sure it will with most!