Having the privilege to enjoy the heat of Summer on New Years Eve is something deeply embedded in the Australian experience – and something we shouldn’t take for granted. So why have the same, boring old NYE, when you could be rocking out to the worlds finest bands, in some of the countries most beautiful surroundings, when the clock strikes midnight?
Read ahead to find out how you could win a double pass to Purple Sneakers NYE House Party in Sydney!
Covering TAS, VIC and NSW, we proudly presents part three of our Summer Festival Series: 5 ways to rock in 2010.
We start this journey with the least “commercial” of the five – Peats Ridge Festival, a sustainable arts & music festival that takes place in Glenworth Valley – just an hour outside of Sydney. Those who claim Sydney is without camping festivals clearly haven’t looked hard enough (and they’ve been missing Playground Weekender, too!).
While you’re not going to find a barrage of big names here, you are going to find a lineup unmatched in size. We’re talking hundreds here, leaving punters with a truly eclectic collection of artists to discover, as they relax under the sun in some unforgettably beautiful surrounds. There’s a little “hippy” in all of us, and this is certainly the place to embrace it.
But Peats Ridge did pull out a massive last minute surprise this year, which excites all of us here at the AU review – Peats Ridge will be the ONLY place anywhere near Sydney that you’ll be able to catch one band who needs no introduction: LAMB! And what’s better, it’s with the Manchester duo that you’ll be hitting midnight with!
Sarah Blasko, The Panics, Blue King Brown, Steve Poltz, Liam Finn, Jeff Martin, Passenger, Jeff Lang, Jack Ladder, Dappled Cities and Ash Grunwald are among the other highlights. OK, so were were lying when we said there wasn’t a barrage of big names. This lineup kills.
Visit the Peats Ridge Festival Website for full lineup, tickets and more information!
And now we come to the slightly more upmarket version of the aforementioned, The Pyramid Rock Festival, perched on Philip Island in Victoria. Now in its sixth year, the festival has become well known for an incredible atmosphere, unarguably impressive lineups, and some of the most breathtaking surrounds any location – let alone festival – have to offer in the country. Tickets tend to sell out for this thing, and it looks like there are few ticket options remaining. So don’t dawdle if this option looks like the experience for you!
The stellar 2009 lineup includes: BIFFY CLYRO, EMPIRE OF THE SUN, CAT POWER (USA), THE CAT EMPIRE, GRINSPOON (who famously closed out the 2005 event), UGLY DUCKLING (USA), THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT, ARCHITECTURE IN HELSINKI, FAKER, THE BEAUTIFUL GIRLS, LCD SOUNDSYSTEM (DJ SET) (USA), AMP FIDDLER (USA), BLUE KING BROWN, KRAFTY KUTS (UK), THE DRONES, TAME IMPALA, BADDIES (UK)
Visit the Pyramid Rock Website for full lineup, tickets and more information!
Borrowing a page from Reading and Leeds’ book, The Falls Festival is a 3 day festival taking place in two locations – Lorne, VIC and Marion Bay, TAS. Much like Splendour in the Grass, this has fast become a ‘trendy’ camping festival in which the tickets are harder to come by than Radiohead actually coming back to tour Australia (now THAT would be a New Year Eve concert). But it remains the music and art lovers’ getaway that it has always positioned itself to be.
The lineup, which also (partially) replicates itself in festivals in January in WA and QLD, is the best you’ll have the opportunity to experience on a New Years Eve anywhere on the face of the planet. This is OUR Summer – the time of the year where bands from around the world shun the cold and celebrate the new year in style. Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Moby, Grizzly Bear, Editors, The View… they’re all there. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
Visit the Falls Festival Website for full lineup and more information!
VIEW THE 2009/10 FALLS FESTIVAL SIDESHOWS!
But we’re not all keen to wear our “hippy” out on New Years Eve – no matter how commercial it might be. Some of us are just indie kids screaming for a place to… well… scream. And dance. And if you fit into that category, there’s no better place for you than Purple Sneakers House Party, taking over Manning Bar at Sydney University.
And with a lineup featuring The Grates, The Boxer Rebellion, Ponytail, Baddies, Philadelphia
Grand Jury, DZ, Red Riders, Chaingang, Young Heretics, Deep Sea Arcade
and The Trivs + More – could you really argue with the above?
So why not attend? Win a DOUBLE PASS to the event!! We’ve got ONE to give away to one lucky reader. Simply e-mail [email protected] with your name, e-mail and address and the subject like PURPLE SNEAKERS by December 16th for your chance to win!
Visit the Purple Sneakers NYE Website for full lineup and more information!
… and be sure to check out our interview with Jim from Baddies.
Finally we come to our last NYE experience – and it’s certainly the most commercial, the “danciest” and most traditional way to spend your New Years in Sydney – but let’s face it – dancing to some of your favourite performers/DJs whilst guaranteeing yourself the best spot in Sydney for the fireworks – Luna Park – Well there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. And with a Pendulum doing a DJ Set, plus Ian Carey, Sinden, Ajax, Lost Valentinos, The Aston Shuffle and many more – you’re probably not going to be too worried about the fireworks by the time that midnight rolls around anyway. You’ll be too busy groovin’ your face off.
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So, what have we learnt today? I guess that there really is a New Years Eve experience for everyone – especially when it comes to live music. From the camping festivals that bring out the hippy in all of us, to the harbourside dance-offs, everyone will have a place to ring the New Year in with their tastes. There are more than enough pub gigs happening as well (e.g. at the Brewery in Newcastle with The Living End and Children Collide) – alongside one offs like Fake Blood at the Oxford Art Factory in Sydney. So get out there, enjoy the Summer, take advantage of the unique Australian New Years Eve experience, and rock the fuck out. You better believe we will.
Header contains a Peats Ridge Photo taken by Riley McDougall
