HITS, The Scientists, Ron Peno & More Named For 2015 Leaps & Bounds Music Festival

The City Of Yarra has announced the return of the Leaps & Bounds Music Festival for its third iteration across several venues in the area over just more than two weeks this July, and the event isn't cutting any corners, conscripting a wealth of veteran and fledgling talent for the celebration. 

The event, which takes its name from Paul Kelly's 1987 classic of the same name and is proudly presented by The Music, will run from Friday, 3 July, to Sunday, 19 July, encompassing more than 300 live events from about 800 acts at a smorgasboard of venues in Fitzroy, Collingwood, Richmond, Abbotsford, North Carlton, Clifton Hill and North Fitzroy in a celebration of the region's vibrant local scene and the people who dwell within it.

Although the full line-up is yet to be revealed, organisers are doing a good job at painting a tantalising picture of what's to come, with the promise of a mini-festival over two stages at the Corner towards the end of the event, on 18 July, featuring the original line-up of The Scientists, plus the Dubrovniks, Rocket Science, Spencer P Jones & The Escape Committee, Brisbane's HITS, The Pink Tiles and more. Another drawcard to appear in the back half of the festival are cult punk heroes The Television Addicts (featuring Dave Faulkner and James Baker of the Hoodoo Gurus and Beasts Of Bourbon, with Ray Ahn of Hard Ons) at The Tote on 17 July. 

Earlier in the piece, Leaps & Bounds 2015 will see the inaugural conversion of Collingwood's Melba Spiegeltent into a live-music venue, with Graveyard Train booked to kick off shows in that space from 4 July, followed on consequent weekends by Stella Angelico and Mojo Juju. In addition, the festival will see a series of All-Ages events orchestrated in conjunction with Yarra Youth Services, including a free skate-park gig, a symposium at Bakehouse Studios and a FreeZa show.

A diverse array of interests and tastes are catered for at Leaps & Bounds 2015 — from the Richmond Theatrette's planned intimate shows and the Singers With Strings two-concert series at the Fitzroy Town Hall, which pairs local artists with a string quartet, to the Rock N Roll Bake Sale (boasting live music, cakes, scones, tea towels and cooking advice from local musos), live in-store events at Northside, Polyester and Hares & Hyenas, and the Icecream Hands reunion at The Evelyn, which will see them bring their classic Sweeter Than The Radio to life.

In addition, the festival will welcome Peno Sings Pretty, for which Ron Peno revisits the songs of Died Pretty at The Corner (4 July); tribute shows to inspirational musicians who died too young such as Jason Molina of Songs Ohio, Mark Linkous of Sparklehorse, Townes Van Zandt, Gram Parsons and Hank Williams; multicultural performances of Aussie rock classics; a remembrance gig for local country outlaw A.P. Johnson (1946-1995) with Chris Wilson, Dead Livers and more; local indie-act showcase Labels Of Love at Shadow Electric; a vinyl album launch for Black Cab at the Corner (17 July); the revival of CONTROL HQ and, of course, the closing party, which descends on Yah Yah's on 19 July.

And that's just the new stuff — this year's Leaps & Bounds will also see the return of several beloved features and events from previous iterations, including Bruce Milne's bus tours of iconic Yarra sites; JVG's Brown River annual homage to Yarra River on opening night; the free Smith Street Dreaming showcase of indigenous music, dance and culture with Archie Roach, Emma Donovan & The Putbacks, Coloured Stone and MC Aaron Pedersen (18 July); the Living Legends showcase, at which iconic musos are honoured by their peers and successors; the Morning Ritual at Copacabana featuring five bands, DJs, Uncle Dougy's catering and a local indie-label record fair; PBS Live To Air with David Heard; Emily Ulman and Liam Gerner's "Tour Of Yarra", for which they'll grace intimate venues around the event area, and a series of Music Victoria panels, including two two-day workshops with one panel on Arts Victoria grants and one focused on Exporting Your Music, plus a follow-up full day of one-on-one sessions with workshop participants.

It's little wonder that it needs the full two weeks to get through all the goodness on offer — for more information about this year's Leaps & Bounds Festival, see the event website, and keep your eyes peeled for further announcements in the near future.