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AUSTRALIA’S ORIGINAL & BEST AMERICANA/ALT-COUNTRY MUSIC FESTIVAL, OUT ON THE WEEKEND RETURNS WITH A STELLAR INTERNATIONAL & LOCAL LINE-UP IN OCTOBER

Mick Pacholli
Mick Pachollihttps://www.tagg.com.au
Mick created TAGG - The Alternative Gig Guide in 1979 with Helmut Katterl, the world's first real Street Magazine. He had been involved with his fathers publishing business, Toorak Times and associated publications since 1972.  Mick was also involved in Melbourne's music scene for a number of years opening venues, discovering and managing bands and providing information and support for the industry. Mick has also created a number of local festivals and is involved in not for profit and supporting local charities.        

ON THE LANDS OF THE  BOON WURRUNG / BUNURONG

AUSTRALIA’S ORIGINAL AND BEST AMERICANA/ALT-COUNTRY MUSIC FESTIVAL, OUT ON THE WEEKEND RETURNS TO MELBOURNE’S INNER WEST WITH A STELLAR INTERNATIONAL AND LOCAL LINE-UP IN OCTOBER

…..and we’re back. OUT ON THE WEEKEND returns for its eighth glorious instalment in its traditional month of October. Come Saturday October 8, the rhinestones and good times will be shining bright down by the bay at Seaworks in historic Williamstown.

 Australia’s original and best Americana/alt-country festival, lovingly put together by concert and festival promoter Love Police  – the same folks involved in the longer-running much-loved out of town festival Boogie and, perhaps more importantly in a musical context, decade’s worth of tours by the likes of Gillian Welch, John Prine, Justin Townes Earle, Old Crow Medicine Show, Wilco, Gomez and the Felice Brothers – OUT ON THE WEEKEND has, since 2014, been introducing Australian music lovers to a plethora of diverse music connected by heart, soul and spirit.

 A few words from BT of Love Police: “Hello friends. It’s still feeling a little weird out there, but we are gonna give it a go again this year. Stoked to have Sierra Ferrell back, headlining no less, and what a day it will be with Jonny Fritz playing and calling the shots around the site. It’s 50 years since Neil’s Harvest was released, we love him, even ripped off the album cover for our artwork, so let’s celebrate that with an all star band. They used to be called Mandolin Orange, but are now called Watchhouse….and if you like Gillian and Dave, you better in place when they take the stage. Plus so many much more to be had on the day. Sweet memories to be had for sure. See you in October.”

After knocking the locals dead on short notice during a break in lockdown in December 2021 with an all Victorian line-up, we’re back to full-steam and our first round announcement is all killer. BT just mentioned the three internationals we can so far announce. OOTW regulars will know and love SIERRA FERRELL, but this time she’ll be with her band – so get ready to swoon and dance at the same time – and she’s following the release of her acclaimed Rounder Records debut. OOTW first-timers, North Carolina’s WATCHHOUSE, are a sweet duo that the festival has had it’s eye on for years; and loooong-time festival friend JONNY FRITZ cut in on BT’s MC duties and perform a set or two to boot. 

On the local artist front, we have a diverse range; from pioneers like unsuspecting Americana hitmakers THE BADLOVES and sublime singer-songwriter LISA MILLER, who was making classic alternative country records before anyone knew what the concept meant, through to up and comers FREYA JOSEPHINE HOLLICK,  ALEX HAMILTON, THE COLLINGWOOD CASANOVAS, SWEET TALK and FOGGY NOTION. We have celebrations of a couple of icons – Neil Young and Dolly Parton – and our new pals the DEADNECKS, with their great take on the Grateful Dead’s under-acknowledged Americana classics. And from North of the border we have Sydney’s #1’s alt-country outfit CAITLIN HARNETT & THE PONY BOYS;  Australia’s now- iconic Queen of Honky Tonk, WANITA, fresh from releasing her Nashville-recorded album that was the subject of the acclaimed documentary I’m Wanita; and we proudly introduce the next Aboriginal country and rock’n’roll superstar, JERIKYE WILLIAMS.
 
Add to all this some of the best local beers, cocktails, amazing and diverse food selections and a glorious location in picturesque Williamstown, and you have the perfect Spring Day just waiting for you to show up. If you are in Melbourne, or Victoria or anywhere where travel is a possibility, you need to be at OUT ON THE WEEKEND. Come and celebrate a musical genre, a lifestyle, and good times like nowhere else, down by the water in Williamstown.

 
OUT ON THE WEEKEND
SATURDAY OCTOBER 8, 2022
SEAWORKS, WILLIAMSTOWN

 
ON SALE TUESDAY JULY 12 AT 9AM
 HERE

 SIERRA FERRELL
A CELEBRATION OF NEIL YOUNG’S HARVEST
CAITLIN HARNETT & THE PONY BOYS
WATCHHOUSE 
(FIRST AUSTRALIAN TOUR)
THE BADLOVES
FREYA JOSEPHINE HOLLICK
THE DOLLY PARTON EXPERIENCE 
WITH VANESSA & THE JEALOUS GUYS
LISA MILLER PERFORMING CAR TAPE (CELEBRATING 20 YEARS)
AUSTRALIA’S QUEEN OF HONKY TONK WANITA
DEADNECKS
 PLAY GRATEFUL DEAD (AMERICAN BEAUTY & WORKINGMAN’S DEAD)
ALEX HAMILTON AND BAND
FOGGY NOTION
THE COLLINGWOOD CASANOVAS

AND INTRODUCING JERIKYE WILLIAMS
AND PERFORMING LIVE AND YOUR MC FOR THE DAY – IT’S JOHNNY FRITZ!

outontheweekend.com.au
lovepolice.com.au

SIERRA FERRELL
On the back of her long-awaited and much acclaimed Rounder Records debut album Long Time Coming , Out On The Weekend’s West Virginia-via-Nashville’s discovery, the amazing Sierra Ferrell returns to Australia and to OOTW with a band for the first time. Described by NPR in the US as someone who “sings with abandon, with a huge repertoire that spans jazz, country and cowboy music, with undertones of the blues,” Sierra is the real deal, and a drop dead stunning singer and songwriter and an absolute charmer who will leave you bewitched and bewildered as you wonder how a young woman of such incredible talent not a superstar already. Think Hank Williams meets Dolly Parton and then some.

A CELEBRATION OF NEIL YOUNG’S HARVEST
It’s 50 years since Harvest was released, and you know we love Neil. (And yes, we’re named after one of his songs.) You expect us not to mark the occasion? Look forward to an all star line up celebrating this classic slab of tunes. Details down the line.

CAITLIN HARNETT & THE PONY BOYS
Sydney’s #1 Americana (and party) outfit have carved out their own rabid fanbase on both sides of the Murray and a reputation for raucous live shows that saw them win Best Live Act in NSW 2020 in the National Live Music Awards. They won much acclaim for their LP, Late Night Essentials and have even toured the US a couple of times.  Caitlin is currently perhaps THE Queen Australian indie-country, with a knockout voice that has been described by The Guardian as “like Mazzy Star’s Hope Sandoval jerked out of a long sleep”.  OOTW asks you to give them a warm Melbourne welcome!

WATCHHOUSE (first Australian tour)
Until recently known as Mandolin Orange, Watchhouse have long been on OOTW’s radar. A duo, cofounded in North Carolina over a decade ago by Andrew Marlin and fiddler Emily Frantz, Mandolin Orange became new flag bearers of the contemporary folk world, sweetly singing soft songs about the hardest parts of our lives. But the name didn’t feel right, so they changed it.  The new name represents their reinvention as a band at the regenerative edges of subtly experimental folk-rock. Challenging as they are charming, and an inspired search for personal and political goodness, their music offers lessons about what any of us might become when the night begins to break. Or, as Love Police and OOTW’s BT says, “… if you like Gillian and Dave, you better be in place when they take the stage.” 

THE BADLOVES
Inspired by the likes of The Band and ’70s locals The Dingoes, The Badloves were playing “Americana” before the music really had a name. Purveyors of earthy and authentic music in an era of autotune, Michael Spivey and gang were perhaps surprising hitmakers back in the ’90s, but their impact was indeed substantial. Their first OOTW appearance follows the recent first-ever vinyl release of their classic debut album Get On Board.

FREYA JOSEPHINE HOLLICK
As her 2021 single “Viv, June, Dolly & Jolene” attests, Melbourne’s Queen of Cosmic Country knows her country music history, but she’s intent on helping create its future. After two albums and a swathe of great reviews, Freya recorded her forthcoming third album, The Real World in the US with backing from Lucinda Williams’ band and her own diamond-sharp band in Joshua Tree. It is a righteous demand to elevate the feminine energy and a call for inclusiveness, and Freya is set for stardom. She will showcase her soon to be released new album in all it’s grandeur this October for us. 

THE DOLLY PARTON EXPERIENCE with VANESSA & THE JEALOUS GUYS 
Melbourne’s King of Honky Tonk and his new sometimes singing partner Vanessa have worked up something special for you. It’s a name that says so much. Dolly. “Don’t call it country; don’t call it pop. It’s Dolly Parton music. This year at Out on the Weekend we worship the songwriting genius of one of popular music’s greatest and best-loved musicians. Come join us for the Dolly Parton Experience with Vanessa and the Jealous Guys.” – James Ellis 

LISA MILLER performing CAR TAPE (celebrating 20 years)
Back in the ’90s, before alt-country was really a thing, Melbourne’s own Divine Miss M was the face of a small vibrant Fitzroy scene immersed in country soul and classic American singer-songwriters. As the new millennium dawned, and after two highly acclaimed records of original songs she wanted to do something different, less introspective and more fun. The initial idea was to just to bung out some cover versions and put it out as a mixtape, and while it eventually arrived on CD instead of cassette, the original concept was maintained. Car Tape was immediately loved, first by critics and then by fans. It went on to be one of the best selling Australian independent albums of 2002 and 2003, and earned Lisa three ARIA nominations including Best Female Artist. And now 20 years later, Lisa Miller will perform the album in full for the first time, alongside its co-producer Shane O’Mara and a crackin’ band.

Australia’s Queen of Honky Tonk WANITA
We welcome back Wanita – the undisputed queen of good time, honky tonk country, who perceives the world through an autistic lens and exists at the centre of a turbulent life which undoubtedly is what makes her music so raw and real. Her newly released Nashville-recorded album hosts a mix of Honky Tonk, Rockabilly, Rock’n’Roll and Country Music, and captures “the dichotomy of Wanita’s life and torrid mood swings, her monumental stage presence, her exceptional vocal capacity and her deep connection with traditional country music,” and its making inspired the acclaimed and much-seen 2021 documentary I’m Wanita, as seen at MIFF and on ABC TV.   

DEADNECKS play The Grateful Dead’s American Beauty & Workingman’s Dead
Misunderstood by most – in Australia at least – The Grateful Dead were a cornerstone act in the development of American roots music, and their two 1970 albums are country rock classics to equal anything Gram Parsons or Neil Young ever recorded. The Deadnecks will bring them to life for you at OOTW. How these kids from Melbourne’s Western suburbs could capture the feel and recreate the music of the Grateful Dead so authentically is beyond us, but they do so beautifully, and they have the chops to follow the Dead’s extrapolative example as well. Thank us later for this one.

ALEX HAMILTON AND BAND
After blowing the roof off the Pirate’s Tavern last year, and a stellar set at Boogie festival, Alex and band bring their ragged glory outside this year. Alex is an integral part of Melbourne’s current singer/songwriter scene and knows how to make ears ring. While his superb debut album, Sweetest Wine, out now on Love Police Records & Tapes, shows off his sensitive side and the high lonesome wail of his voice, when Alex fires up with his band it’s extra-dimensional.
   
SWEET TALK
Melbourne’s Sweet Talk are Southern Boogie all tied up: think Little Feat, Allman Brothers, Black Crowes, with deeper roots in blues, country, gospel, soul and rock. Brilliant songs, super chops, a funky loose but tight vibe, and SIX-PART harmonies. Already renowned for their high-energy live shows, the band recently doubled down on their ethos to record their first release completely live to tape. Catch them at OOTW before they do a Tesky.

FOGGY NOTION
Take two parts outlaw cosmic country, one part surf-coast garage blues, add a shot of front porch psychedelic merriment and you’ve got Foggy Notion, the band you’ve always wanted to see. Renowned for their energetic and captivating live show, 2022 has seen Foggy Notion release their second full-length album (and debut vinyl record) and record a cover of Beasts of Bourbon’s ‘The Hate Inside’ for the second volume of the Spencer P Jones tribute album series, due out on French label Beast Records later this year. Life is too short to miss Foggy Notion 

THE COLLINGWOOD CASANOVAS  
Hot bluegrass picking, sweet harmony singing and great songwriting from some of Melbourne’s hopeless romantics. The Collingwood Casanovas play a mixture of original country music and classic bluegrass to get your toes a-tapping and your hearts a-breaking. Having recently performed the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack in full with special guests Tracey Ann Miller, Freya Josephine Hollick and Loretta Miller, The Collingwood Casanovas have proven their chops and are ready for their big OOTW debut!

Introducing JERIKYE WILLIAMS
Only 20 years old and sporting the sort of hair and sideburns that Baz Lurhmann’s people would’ve killed for, Jerikye is a proud Wiradjuri man who lives in Queanbeyan on Ngambri/Ngunnawal land. Jerikye is a natural-born showman and the next big country rock’n’roller. A nephew of Aboriginal country music legends Harry and Wilga Williams of the Country Outcasts (he performs their ’70s classic “The Streets of Old Fitzroy”), Jerikye cut his teeth singing Elvis and Roy Orbison songs and can reach those operatic highs while at the same time keeping things down and real. He is a great singer in the making. Catch Jerikye live in the Pirates Tavern when he makes his first appearance in Victoria and you can tell your friends you saw him first.

And performing live and your MC for the day it’s JONNY FRITZ!
Born in Montana-born and Virginia-raised, OOTW favourite Jonny is a torchbearer in that celebrated country music tradition of giant-sized personalities overflowing into song. John Hartford, Roger Miller, Billy Joe Shaver— fans looked to these country musicians for more than just music strictly speaking. They looked for life, for outrageous legend— for a showmanship on and offstage that Jonny Fritz will never fail to deliver. He might not have shot anybody, or spent any considerable time in prison, but he reminds himself and his fans that sometimes great lives can also be pretty good ones. 

 

(Top – Sierra Ferrell; Bottom left – Jerikye Williams; Right – Caitlin Harnett & The Pony Boys)

Mick Pacholli

Mick created TAGG - The Alternative Gig Guide in 1979 with Helmut Katterl, the world's first real Street Magazine. He had been involved with his fathers publishing business, Toorak Times and associated publications since 1972.  Mick was also involved in Melbourne's music scene for a number of years opening venues, discovering and managing bands and providing information and support for the industry. Mick has also created a number of local festivals and is involved in not for profit and supporting local charities.        

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