DIY Or Die? Touring Regional & Remote Australia

As part of the wealth of knowledge shipped to Byron Bay at this year’s sophomore Regional & Remote Music Summit, the Thursday panel DIY Or Die? Touring Regional & Remote Australia cut straight to the reality of road-tested independence.

Moderated by APRA AMCOS’ Chris O’Neill, the discussion brought together four working artists and industry operators deeply embedded in the grassroots: Ashlyn Jada Koh, Matt “Magpie” Johnston, Jack Parsons, and Raechel Whitchurch shared half an hour’s worth of stories of their careers, jam-packed with seasoned advice.

Providing a not-so-stark contrast between the rivalry of metro and underdog areas, it's clear that regional and remote touring isn't just a scrappier version of the metro circuit. In fact, in a very limited Australian touring market, some of the country’s most authentic musical connections are waiting to be made out bush.

“You are literally driving the bus”

Magpie, a seasoned musician and festival organiser responsible for the Hunter Valley’s Dashville, nailed the tone early when he shared that despite his years in the game, he's still “stubbornly waiting for someone to draw up a stage plot” for his next gig.

“I’ve done everything else,” he said. “I’m dragging the PA, talking to the venue, getting up to play… that’s the reality of being a musician.”

Jack Parsons, co-founder of Guts Touring, chimed in with a dry jab: “I was just thinking about how hard you’re gonna be gripping the mouse disappointedly when you’re doing that stage plot.”

Parsons knows the grind well. Through Guts Touring, he’s led multiple regional and remote circuits that defy the traditional pub-to-club touring logic. “We’re doing less regional now and more fully remote stuff,” he explained. “That seemed to be the most memorable. We fundraise, so they’re free shows. We take the risk out of it, because counting pennies was getting a bit tough.”

It’s not just about budgeting, though, with Parsons speaking to the gatekeep-y attitudes that come attached with a multi-bill bus of musos. “Everyone uses the same gear,” Parsons said. “We’ve never replaced a drum skin or blown a fuse. It’s just rock and roll. Let’s put on a fucking show.”

The simplicity is deliberate. “It’s a socialist tour,” he joked. “Everyone’s on the same bus. It’s like school camp. Everyone’s getting their drinks from the same fridge.”

Community As The Engine

Ashlyn Jada Koh, an entrepreneur working extensively across the West Kimberley region, offered a more nuanced view of regional engagement, one rooted in cultural exchange and relationship-building. Her touring often includes community workshops, often co-led by local artists, in places such as Broome, Derby, and Fitzroy Crossing.

“I think I’ve worked backwards,” she explained. “I have, like, workshops or shows and performances in communities and have a local person be a part of it to deliver and facilitate that workshop as well.

“I enjoy all the shows and workshops and all those areas of having someone local there, we can kind of pick up on going and being a safe space for people who want to learn about music, or know about music. “It's just building relationships.”

She concluded with a poignant statement: “You’re going into their space. You’re a visitor.”

Maintaining trust, especially when you’re not physically present, takes intention. Ashlyn spoke about returning to communities through various artistic roles — not just as a musician, but as a friend. “You go back, you hang out, go fishing, work in the art centres. You become part of that world.”

Whitchurch, who grew up rural herself, echoed the sentiment: “You have to meet people where they’re at. Not come in like you’re doing them a service.” With a laugh, she recalled a conversation between her assistant and “Martha from Betoota” while booking a country hall gig. “She’s a vibe,” the assistant had said. “I thought she was normal,” Raechel chuckled.

The Ethics of Exploits

Whitchurch, who also runs a touring agency, didn’t shy away from industry critique. In her early twenties, she witnessed how easily agents and promoters could exploit regional venues — driving up artist fees, knowing full well that the shows wouldn’t recoup their costs.

“I do think that, if you're good at your job, you are in a position where you probably are able to exploit people, if that makes sense. Because that's our entire job - exploiting demand to create opportunities for our artists,” she says, clarifying that the semantics of exploit aren’t necessarily only negative.

“But,” she continues, “If you know that something is not a reasonable ask, then just don’t ask someone to do that.”

It all comes back to knowing your value, both financially and characteristically. “If you can see the pokies out the back, then take the guarantee,” Parsons quipped. While peppered with pub jokes, the key theme is that venues vary, and so should your expectations.

The Long Haul (Literally)

Logistics aren’t just a hurdle; they’re often the deciding factor. Getting from Brisbane to Darwin, for instance, is no quick hop — it’s a multi-day drive with real financial weight. Spare tyres, water, gear redundancy, and even basic reception can be unreliable or nonexistent.

“You’ve got to call people,” Jack insisted, reminding a grimacing audience of the existence of landlines. “Pick up the phone. You can’t email your way out of this one; you’ve just got to call.”

“And you speak to some wonderful freaks and fruit loops, and you meet some total legends, and you just yarn away and tell them what you want to do, and they’re like ‘You want to put a show on where and with who and how?! Alright, sounds pretty good!’ You know? And just the best part of it is you just got to call complete strangers, you know, which I guess feels more and more unnatural as we get further away from that kind of thing.”

Ashlyn added: “People will help you. But also,” she laughs, “There are no diet restrictions. Just be ready.”

But not to fret, there’s a unanimous agreement that regional sangas and sausages in bread make for some of the best.

Localised Loyalty

Another standout thread was how regional audiences differ from their metro counterparts — not just in size, but in loyalty and etiquette.

“Metro fans can be a little fickle,” Raechel said. “In regional and remote areas, you work harder to win them over, but once you do? They’re yours for life.”

“I think that's been one of the most beautiful things about touring regionally is just seeing, you know, how like, yeah, they're like, they feel like they know you, right? I feel like they've been in from the beginning, and they want to go with you on the journey, and so they're not, they don't come in because they like that one song, because they saw you on the show or something.”

They may not express it in the same way. Applause might be quieter, jokes might land differently. But Raechel recalled surveying fans after gigs who said they loved the show, even if they barely made a sound.

“Doesn't mean they don't like what you're doing,” she said. “It just means they’re a different type of audience than a metro audience, and so you have to be, I think, really comfortable in your own skin and just do what you do and turn the amps up.”

Payoff & Purpose

Magpie put it plainly: “Given the choice between Sydney or Dungog, I’ll take Dungog every time.” He spoke about his work with the Dashville Bowlo and building community through performance - even in towns that, frankly, didn’t always know what to do with him at first.

“I do remember failing so fondly,” Jack shared a similar experience of not yet being on the map. “We had Pist Idiots and Press Club and, you know, 14 people there, and this netball team showing up on their Mad Monday or whatever.”

“The captain came up, and it was a $30 ticket, and she just, she refused: ‘I couldn't, didn't want to pay 30 bucks.’ And I was at the point where you kind of do this thing going, ‘Well, we need the money, but we also need bodies in the room so it looks okay, so the band feel better.’”

The lesson? You just keep going. “I remember a kid in a Pist Idiots T-shirt doing a backflip. You know, one of the 12 could do a backflip. So, that was great.”

Leaving Advice: How to Prep

Asked for practical tips for artists considering their first regional or remote tour, the panellists didn’t sugarcoat it.

“Use your connections,” Ashlyn said. “Ask questions. People will tell you what you need to know.”

“Accept that it’s part of the job,” said Jack. “You just gotta do it. It’s good for you. You get better. You get to hang out.”

“Be the change,” Magpie said, simply. “Touring regionally adds to the culture. You don’t have to play the big rooms. Just play the good ones.”

In the end, that’s what this panel was all about: the power of persistence, mutual respect, and choosing connection over ‘clout’. If you’re ready to do the work, the road’s already being paved, sometimes by artists gripping the mouse on their own stage plots, praying someone else might help out next time.