The third and final day of the Mundi Mundi Bash opened with a world-record attempt at doing the “Nutbush City Limits” dance for over five minutes. However, the numbers were just shy of the 4084 number set at the Birdsville Bash in July. Participation via registration for the Nutbush raised more than $55,000 for the festival’s charity partner, the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Each punter paid a $15 registration fee to dance in the event.
Following the Nutbush event, event-goers were also invited to dress for the Mad Max theme, as Mad Max 2 and the most recent movie were filmed on the Mundi Mundi plains. One of the great things about this festival is the chance for crowd participation.
Then it was on with the music, with newcomers to the scene, The Buckleys warming up the crowd on a beautiful sunny day. Nostalgia then set in for Bachelor Girl, followed by the frenetic energy of Pierce Brothers. Russell Morris had the crowd singing along to his hits, with “Sweet, Sweet Love” a definite favourite.
Darryl Braithwaite delved into his expansive range of solo songs as well as some classic Sherbet songs. He quipped that many of the young people in the audience had probably never heard of Sherbet, except for the sweet of the same name. Kasey Chambers also led us through her great repertoire of songs. She noticed a particularly bearded man in the crowd singing enthusiastically along to “Am I Pretty Enough?”
The night belonged to closing act Jimmy Barnes, with a solid support group on stage. Once again the list of songs was drawn from his recent solo work as well as several Cold Chisel favourites. Closing of the set was “Goodbye (Astrid Goodbye)” which was very enthusiastically received. DJ Master Baitz then played a few tunes as the attendees made their way back to camp, ready for the long trek home the following morning.
With around 8000 attendees, the August Mundi Mundi Bash is expected to deliver a welcome economic boost to Broken Hill and surrounding regions. The Broken Hill City Council reported that the inaugural Mundi Mundi Bash brought $3.5 million into Broken Hill in April 2022 alone, putting the festival well on track to exceed its forecasted visitor expenditure targets of $5.4 million over three years.
