Live Review: Woodford Folk Festival

Now in its 29th incarnation, the Woodford Folk Festival opens its gates yet again to celebrate the passing of another year and the birth of the next. Held over six days and nights, of dramatically contrasting weather conditions, the 2014/15 programme is a monolith that spans a vast display of national and international culture. With 1,536 shows taking place over 35 onsite venues, it has a dizzying plethora of music and entertainment packed into its time frame. This, however, is a festival that's much more than the list of names printed on the line-up. With an endless array of street performers, food and market stalls, creative workshops, a children’s festival, and much more in its boarders, it provides a well rounded experience that nearly has it all.    

          

A gigantic wooden sky-gate, akin to the great piece that has stood at the entrance to the Amphitheatre since last year, now stands at the mouth of the newly transformed entrance. As the punters pass through the structure its internal core invites them to a moment's cloud, or star, gazing, before they’re welcomed into the festival’s interior realms. From there on in the roller-coaster ride of festivities truly begins and the days become blurred together in a kind of technicolour haze.

 

Canadian fiddle, banjo and guitar three-piece The East Pointers bring a contemporary twist on traditional Celtic music. Shifting between instrumentals and harmonious melodies, they have the crowd engaged from word go. To make things even more festive they have their very own jig dancer on stage, whom performs sporadically throughout. They certainly bring a cheer to dampened faces on this typically wet Woodford morning.

 

Over at the Parlour, local Brisbane poet Eleanor Jackson captivatingly performs poetic verse monologue, with poise and charm. She has a unique storytelling ability, which makes you feel she's talking to you personally; one minute making you laugh and then the next wanting to cry. With her sharp wit and beautifully crafted verses, she holds the audience in the palm of her articulate hands.

 

Keen and ready to satiate the desires of the many, The Violent Femmes play their career-defining hit, Blister in the Sun, straight off the bat. The classics keep rolling with Kiss Off and Please Do Not Go, and by the time they get to Add It Up, it becomes apparent that they’re actually playing their self-titled, debut record in its entirety. This nostalgic indulgence has their devotees grinning from ear to ear. However, there doesn’t seem to be any real magic happening on stage, so there is little in it for those hoping to find some inspiration for conversion up on stage tonight.

 

The back-and-forth between polar weather conditions of rain and unforgiving sunshine look set to continue through the week, but any one of the tents down Artisania Alley easily become one of the many great places to find shelter between catching performances. Though a selection of creative workshops are on offer, the real hit of this year is the free onsite postal and letter deposit service, which provides a constant stream of playful written exchanges to flow throughout the festival.      

 

After playing their fair share of sets on smaller stages over the past years, there’s a sense that Sticky Fingers are at home at this festival. Tonight they finally play Woodford’s mainstage, and the vibe between them and their ever growing fanbase turns the Amphitheatre electric. Songs like Gold Snafu and Australia Street translate like instant stadium classics in this live setting, and their praise rings out through the night. 

 

The Cat Empire have come a long way since their breakthrough hit, Hello, and their decision to exclude said wretched piece of novelty from tonight’s set takes them a tad further more. They’re in their element in this particular live setting and the packed out Amphitheatre laps up every dish served with an enthused vigor that reflects the colourful onstage commotion.  

  

Playing a late slot on a packed out mid-sized stage, Mia Dyson delivers a performance that is among the highlights of the week. With a stellar band in tow, she infuses a considered concoction of blues and roots with a powerful rock undertow, often loosening the reigns into majestic little excursions only to pull them in tight again and bring the house smashing on down. It’s the surprise gems like these that really make the festival experience such a valuable one!

 

When Christine Anu graces the stage it is with great humility. With uplifting, powerful vocals and between song storytelling, the iconic Indigenous Australian entertainer charms the audience with her talent and spirit. She gets the audience chanting along to Sunshine on a Rainy Day and it miraculously stops raining, for awhile. Anu saves her anthem, Island Home, til near the end, and further illustrates its closeness to her heart (she has included a version on every album thus far) through the great depth of its delivery.  

 

Melbourne’s Hiatus Kaiyote are on a roll. If this set is anything to go by, there’ll be more accolades to add to that Grammy nomination in short time. They concoct an infectious medley of neo-soul, and entrance the crowd with their gorgeous melodies and complex rhythms in no time. Frontwoman Nai Palm has a hell of a lot of presence on stage. She confidently leads her three band mates and three backing vocalists through a well rounded set that leaves one feeling paradoxically content yet hungry for more at the same time. The end of their set likely leaves many counting down the days until the release of their forthcoming album.

 

A true storyteller, Archie Roach has a very special talent for weaving narratives that come across very powerfully in the live arena. He often introduces a song with an anecdote that provides an enriching context and draws one into its intimate space. Over the top of his splendid band and backing vocalists his poignant verses hit home hard. There is a sense of enlivening beauty to found in even the darkest folds though, and none on this occasion is a better case of this polar tension than the exquisite performance of Walking Into Doors.

 

Sydney's Caravana Sun let loose like a band of juiced up gypsies each time they take a stage throughout the week. They fuse the odd bit of Spanish guitar into their wayward brand of ska, and it never fails to get a great many knees lifting in response. They're most powerful, however, when they slow things down to let the trumpet take the spotlight; it's here that their Spanish influence has more room to work its subtle charm.   

 

Propelled by the driving rhythms of West African percussion, Keyim Ba deliver an all round joyous experience. Guinean native Sibo Bangoura is one hell of a charismatic frontman, and much power is added to the already mighty charge by his funky bandmates and adorable children onstage. It’s a rare gem to witness a three year old banging a long on the percussion racks, and even rarer again when he is introduced and whacks out his own little solo. A truly electric energy flows around the tent throughout their set, and overflows after their departure.  

  

One of the most surprisingly powerful events of the festival is the 3 Minutes of Silence, which commences at  11:30pm on New Year's Eve and marks an extended moment's reflection on the passing year. Candles are passed out prior, and if one is sure to get a good vantage point, thousands of tiny flames can be seen flickering all across the grounds. The silence is like a vacuum that momentarily distorts the space through a sense of hollowing and deflation, but when the end of the third minute arrives the great release shoots a grand cacophony of voices and sounds hurriedly flooding back in and it inflates the space again, this time as if to near bursting point.     

 

A mixed medley of cultural celebrations, falling under the banner of Hogmanay, takes place at the Amphitheatre during the transition between the years. Traditional Aboriginal performances of song and dance and bands of merry fiddlers take turns at leading the procession, and as it approaches the countdown and beyond the atmosphere is simply ecstatic. 

 

Japanese rock maestros Dachambo are in fine form and get the new year off to a cracking start. Their progressive structures create colour mazes that are more than fitting for the 1am mindset. As they build and build many are joyfully lost within their rock oblivion. When it finally all comes crashing done in a climactic finale the devastation of  a moments quietude is heard loud and clear, and then the night's sounds seep on over again, beckoning us on toward the dawn.  

 

As their name well suggests, Dehli to Dublin are a perfect vessel to channel the unifying spirit of the festival. They take Eastern and Western musical traditions and translate them through an amped up contemporary format.  A riotous dance party erupts as the mix of tribal and folk is intensified by some furious fiddling and Punjabi style dancing. 

 

The whole festival comes to a stand still for The Fire Event, which sees the amphitheatre’s stage and main floor play host to an epic finale of musical theatre and pyrotechnics that is the ceremonial closing of the festival. After the lantern parade and opening song by The People’s Orchestra (true to its name, players of all instruments and levels of ability are invited to take daily workshops and join) and the Fire Choir mark its commencement, a larger than life theatre production ensues that is as bizarre as it is entertaining. Complete with car-sized bug creatures and monstrous sized puppets that scale to the height of a three-story house, it's an eclectic event that concludes with a fireworks display and the burning of a monolithic wooden sculpture.    

 

There is an inspiring sense of community from the moment one enters to the moment one exits this great festival. Whether it's the attitudes towards sustainability, interpersonal responsibility, and mutual respect, or the fact that the festival is a non-profit that is fueled in part by the efforts of 2300+ volunteers, there's a real sense that it's a festival fueled foremost by the passion of people.

 

At a time when corporate and political agendas are becoming more and more transparent in their mutual interest, The Woodford Folk Festival is a welcomed escape that allows so many people to come together and celebrate the things they love. There is no doubt that the memories of its fine music, food, and myriad forms of culture will carry a great, lasting weight throughout the duration of another year. Thanks, Woodfordia!