Live Review: Dashville Skyline

Day One

Arriving at the Dashville property instantly feels like the perfect respite from the city and a healthy disconnect from the digital world. After campsites are established, it quickly becomes apparent how easy it is to move around and access all the onsite amenities - from the bar to the food trucks, market stalls, a kids' zone with petting zoo and skate ramp, merch tent and more. 

They’re all staple festival requirements, but each year at Dashville they’ve been refined and upgraded when and where necessary. This year there was more shelter from the sun and seating spots to hang out, all with prime vantage points to kick back and take in the sounds from either the main Townes Hall Stage or the smaller Willie Wall Stage.

Lincoln Mackinnon & The Wrecking Train (WA) were the first surprise highlight of the festival. The towering frontman pulled out all the stage moves and backed it up with great songs, some killer saxophone playing and unbridled enthusiasm. 

Freya Josephine Hollick showed just how her sound continues to evolve with a set that included tracks from her forthcoming third album. She’s less folk now, drawing from a wider palette of cosmic country sounds that suit her to a T. 

Archie Roach was one of a handful of artists sharing the largest font size on the festival poster and, accordingly, he gave a magnificent performance. He only played a handful of songs but the attentive audience, seated in the dust in front him, were transfixed with stories of the land and this country – the good and the bad.

Skyscraper Stan & The Commission Flats found themselves with a prime evening position in front of a crowd that wanted to cut loose. Stan Woodhouse, the poet and showman, led them into the night, complete with a raunchy dance with a bride-to-be stage invader.

Day Two

With the music kicking off at 9am, there was a long line for coffee on the morning of day two. Perhaps it was to nurse hangovers or prep for the 15 hours of music ahead. With light, misty rain falling, The Weeping Willows were a spot-on choice to start the day with warm vocal harmonies and Andrew Wrigglesworth’s sublime acoustic guitar playing. 

As the morning proceeded, Dave Garnham & The Reasons To Live (NT) played a strong set before the youngest act of the weekend, Little Quirks, brought a bouncy folk energy to the main stage. It was great to see the teen band, comprised of siblings and cousins, bringing their melodic songs and personality the responsive audience. 

Ahlia Williams threw a spiked heel and spilt drink into proceedings with her wired and stripped-back blues rock. She showed she has attitude to burn, with the songs and guitar playing to back it up, as did Nicholas Connors later in the evening. 

Suicide Swans had driven down from Queensland and, though frontman Kyle Jenkins was showing the effects of a heavy Dashville bar induction the previous night, they impressed with their psych alt-country widescreen sound while Sean McMahon & The Owls provided a warm and beautifully melancholic soundtrack to the dust-filled beams of late-afternoon sunlight streaking through the gum trees. The evening was again a mixture of styles and intensity. 

Emily Wurramara blended story and song and it was a fascinating companion set from the new generation of Indigenous songwriters. 

Irish musician Amy Montgomery’s voice and infectious enthusiasm connected strongly with the audience. From heavy metal wailings to Jeff Buckley-like prog explorations, there was much to be impressed with. 

It was left to William Crighton, who in the past we’ve described as the dark prince of Dashville, to close the Saturday night. It was a consolidating set with songs from across his albums, delivered with less intensity than at past Skyline events but no less passion and artistry.

Day Three

On day three the music was interspersed with a range of workshops, instrument swap meets and panel discussions  - part of a welcome addition right across the weekend. 

The main stage reopened with Andy Abra & The Big River Band laying down solid and authentic outlaw country songs before the high contrast of Archer and his cosmic poetry and old-world folk songs which were both hilarious and layered with deep observations.

Magpie Diaries, led by one of the festival organisers Matt "Magpie" Johnson, were resplendent in their sweet blend of Americana and yacht rock before the irrepressible Fanny Lumsden instantly won over the early afternoon crowd. 

Dark metaphorical clouds gathered over JD & The Hunger Men’s set as they upped the volume, stage banter and rock shapes before the traditional Sunset Super Round kicked off with a revolving door of artists covering favourite songs from The Band, Nick Lowe, Phoebe Bridgers, Joni Mitchell, Warren Zevon and many more. 

Closing night found an absolute barnstorming set of soul, country and rockabilly from Tami Neilson. It was a world-class performance, the highlight for many at the festival, leaving them screaming for more, to no avail. 

Leo Rondeau brought things back to earth in his inimitable way - that super mellow mix of Townes Van Zandt and a honky-tonk hardwood floor (in this case dust). 

Dashville Progress Society played a themed set of songs from Tarantino movies. Not all of the songs worked as well as the many highlights but it was an impressive undertaking that excelled on the back of the band’s enthusiasm and playing, with up to eighteen people on stage during some songs. 

Wagons closed out the festival and they did that with an uptempo and, at times, manic set - highly entertaining and a reminder of their status as one of our pre-eminent alt-country rock bands. It all ended in a climactic singalong with Henry Wagons among the tired and delirious punters screaming out the song Willie Nelson at the top of their lungs. The perfect end to a top-shelf festival with a real sense of community and impeccable curation that continues to get better and better each year.