Frogfest 2012 - Dave Carr's Fabulous Contraption
Frog is the amalgamation of folk and progressive (prog) styles, and Frogfest is a celebration of this genre. beginning last year as a single event in Sydney, the festival returns in 2012 as a seven-date tour through NSW, the ACT and Victoria, hitting the White Eagle Club Friday, Katoomba RSL Saturday, Kantara House Central Coast Sunday, Brass Monkey Wednesday 9 May, Cambridge Hotel Newcastle Friday 11 and Red Rattler Saturday 12. Organiser Dave Carr, also part of Dave Carr’s Fabulous Contraption, explains a bit more about the festival and the music.
FROGFEST started out last year as a single event in Sydney, and this year it's stretched to a seven-date tour. What do you think is the main influence/drive for this festival to become bigger?
The main drive was to take the music to more people to gain more exposure for the bands. Multiple shows also make it more worthwhile for bands to travel long distances to the gigs. And let's not forget that more shows mean more fun!
How would you describe the presence of folk and progressive music styles in Australia?
There seems to be indie-folk everywhere, and there are festivals for traditional folk music all over the place in Australia. Progressive music exists in Australia but it's underground and can be difficult to discover, which is a big reason for FrogFest's existence. The Bird's Robe Collective is doing a great job of promoting progressive music in Australia too.
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What is it that drives you to take part in the celebration of these genres?
It's such an enticing combination – a style that is so heavily rooted in the distant past combined with a style centred on exploring new avenues within music. There's so much variety in what the style can involve, so I'm really looking forward to hearing a number of bands in a row, each with their own stylistic amalgamation.
There are some pretty strict do's and don'ts that go with the festival environment. Are open-toad (ouch!) shoes allowed?
Anything that hints at French cuisine will probably not be the most tasteful option for these events. If the combination of folk and prog is frog, then the combination of folk and rock must be frock, so a frock would be relevant.
What can festival-hoppers expect from FROGFEST 2012?
Expect a blurring of boundaries – post-apocalyptic hoedown, crazy men with deadly tales, heavy metal banjo and webbed feet.
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