Wild Weather Continues To Wreak Havoc On Live Music

A Day On The Green festival went ahead at the Mt Duneed Estate this weekend, despite weather forecasts of damaging winds and thunderstorms.

Headlined by Crowded House, Angus & Julia Stone, and The Waifs, A Day In The Green promised a chill time listening to great music. Attendees kept the party going, wearing raincoats and tarps to survive the wild weather. 

"We are extremely disappointed and upset with the impact of the weather on last night's concert. The organisers expected last night to be wet, but definitely not to the extent that it became," a representative for the Mt Duneed Estate began in a statement shared yesterday. "We have tractors working now and more to come soon to help move your cars," the spokesman said about the bogged cars in the paddock.

Two hours later, organisers issued another statement: "UPDATE re bogged cars on-site. We have tractors ready to assist you. Please make your way to your cars ASAP as we have a lot of tractors waiting with very few people at their cars." Mt Duneed Estate representatives later commented on the kindness of local farmers who assisted with the moving of cars stuck in the mud. 

Similar scenes unfolded at Illuminate The River festival in Aberfeldie this weekend; however, organisers decided to cancel the event in the afternoon due to wind gusts of over 84km/h. 

Punters watched sets by Teeny Tiny Stevies, Mia Wray, Max Lawrence, and Sly Withers and a short performance by Something For Kate, who played two songs before the extreme winds shut them down. 

Moonee Valley City Council Chief Executive Officer Helen Sui took the stage and told punters that Illuminate The River was off.

"Today was meant to be a day when we celebrated our resilience over the past few years, but with the extreme gusts of wind damaging the stages beyond the limits of safety, we're not able to continue," she said. 

"Protecting our community, crew, artists, contractors and vendors from harm is our number one priority. As such, we must sadly inform you Illuminate the River cannot continue as planned this afternoon.

"I apologise and share your disappointment. I am so sad to have to end this event early, but safety is the most important thing to Council, and we cannot risk anyone being harmed or worse."

Earlier this month, Above & Beyond were forced to relocate Group Therapy Weekender Australia (Dec 17 & 18) from the Yarra Valley to central Melbourne, removing the inaugural event’s camping element.

“With no reprieve from the rain in sight, Anjuna and our wonderful local partners, Symbiotic and Hardware, have decided it’s too risky to proceed with a camping event this year,” they said in a statement.

“Our goal is to deliver the greatest Anjuna event ever to visit Australia, and we can’t confidently do that in unfavourable weather conditions. Your comfort and safety is always the priority, and sliding around a sodden farm for two days isn’t the experience any of us want to have, particularly for an event’s debut year.

“Many of you were really looking forward to camping, but if we’re to heed the word of Australia's Bureau Of Meteorology, the current La Niña event may very well continue on through the summer months.”