When Will Country Music Invite Everyone Else To The Party?

While tens of thousands of people converge on and party through Tamworth for the annual country music festival, the behind-the-scenes industry discussions are firmly focused on the future on the genre.

The topic of the 'Australian country sound' has been prompted by the controversy surrounding the Golden Guitars, perhaps, but it feels a long time coming. There's a lot of great country artists in Australia at the moment – and plenty coming through as well – but while the road to Tamworth is clear, the road beyond that is anything but sealed.

While the rest of the music industry was battling with illegal downloads and the collapse of the physical recorded music market, country music wasn't. People were still going to shows and people were still buying CDs. For a while it seemed immune to the ills everyone else was facing. But after a decade of innovation and an injection of young industry professionals and thinkers, the wider music industry is rebounding and country music, having not needed to react as desperately, is yet to adopt those new business models.

Busker Rex Baldwin

Country music feels isolated from the rest of the industry, which hasn't been a bad thing given the size of the market – this year's Tamworth festival alone drew an estimated 11,000 people to an opening night party with Troy Cassar-Daley and Adam Harvey. Exact numbers are impossible to confirm given the spread and breadth of the event, but a figure of over 55,000 is probably a conservative estimate for the festival's full attendance.

That built-in industry has had the shakes at times and there's an understanding that if country is to grow and remain sustainable then it needs to engage the rest of Australian music listeners. The fact that 'Americana' American Justin Townes Earle can sell out metro venues around the country while 'country' Canadian Corb Lund struggles outside of the festivals is baffling when you consider the similarities. But Earle isn't embedded with the country industry and Lund is.

A lot of the artists – particularly the young ones whose careers may well depend on it – are hesitant to criticise the industry, but they tell theMusic.com.au something along the lines of “We'd like it if country music became a bit more mainstream and got into the cities.” What they are not yet saying is, 'We're the ones who are going to work with the industry and make that happen ourselves.'

Plenty of the next generation are on show

If the first few nights of discussion are anything to go by, there are a few realities that industry folk are coming to terms with.

The touring structure needs to be overhauled. The regional pub-to-pub circuits that play on the romanticism of Slim Dusty are easy to get stuck in. Where are the young kids trying new ways to tour and opening up new audience bases? Why aren't people trying to run young bands into the heart of cities early on?

Independent labels need to rise. The majors rule this land at the moment and it's hard to get noticed if you're not on those key run sheets. Independent distribution channels – and market competition for them – can only be a good thing for financial avenues. But do people know that they can actually release their own record and have it seen by more than friends, family and the passing Peel Street trade?

Australia's 'country sound' is the bush-ballads, but the majority of young musicians aren't playing them. As such, there's no local brand of artist that international markets are eager on, like has been achieved with the Flumes, Gold Fields and Airbournes of the world.

While there are more questions than answers at the moment, those answers are certainly around.

On the ground at Tamworth, however, you wouldn't know these conversations are happening.

The 11,000 people who turned up to opening night are can't see why the market needs to grow, while the 1,000 plus that watched (and danced to, after some repeated encouragement) The McClymonts yesterday make have taken away a highlight of the year, such was the energy. Bush balladeer Rex Baldwin is still busking and selling CDs at $25 a pop and the locals are loving the value they can get from the abundance of free shows and the $10 festival-long bus pass.

Country music rolls on as it has always done, but imagine if everyone was invited to the party.

BUSKER OF THE DAY: Rex Baldwin

VENUE OF THE DAY: The Good Companion Hotel

SIGN OF THE DAY: