Saxophonist Matt Hewson joins Red Eagle on stage at the Kennedys Creek Music Festival.
THE usually quiet hills of Kennedys Creek reverberated with the sounds of rock’n’roll at the weekend, as about 600 people enjoyed the sleepy village’s annual music festival.
Local bands joined Melbourne acts on a bill that kept the crowd rocking for 12 hours on Saturday, with most punters camping in the grounds of the Kennedys Creek Hall.
Despite a slow start that included a blown fuse and at least one lost and late musician, the festival was a great success.
Melbourne quartet Singing Is For Humans were an early highlight with their jangly guitar-pop, Warrnambool’s Blackwood Jack impressed yet again with their tasty blues riffs, and Mailors Flat export Jackson McLaren was joined by his backing band The Triple Threat to showcase songs from his new EP.
The crowd swelled through the day, with punters happy to kick back and enjoy the music from an array of chairs, blankets and tree stumps.
But as soon as the sun went down, the audience was on its feet.
Fittingly, the first afterdark slot went to Kennedys Creek’s own Red Eagle, who were not only heavily involved in organising the event, but were also a highlight of the weekend. Kingswood were the big drawcard on the bill and didn’t disappoint, while Colac’s The Fire Alive were a perfect finale.
The 600-plus crowd makes it the biggest Kennedys Creek Music Festival to date, which took a year off last year.
Jorge Gardner, who is a member of Red Eagle and part of the organising team behind the festival, said he was delighted and proud of the way the event came together.
“It all went pretty smooth in the end,” Gardner said.
“There was a good crowd and good tunes.
“It was just like a big party.”
A small line-up of acts kept the music running on Sunday for the first time, which Gardner said worked well and was something they would look at expanding next time.