Small Town Big Sound music festival rocked Koroit over the weekend with over 350 people packing into the Koroit Theatre to experience state-of-the-art live music.
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Rock band Bad//Dreems headlined the event alongside Floodlights, Kee'ahn and Killaney singer-songwriter Nancie Schipper.
The Dart and Marlin owner Dave de Carteret was approached by the organisers of Small Town Big Sound to host the event but looked to the Koroit Theatre to cater to a bigger audience.
"The guys approached us to host the event at The Dart but given they were looking for large capacity, and with coronavirus restrictions, we knew that'd be impossible to achieve," he said.
"We looked at alternative venue and together with the organisers we were able to get the Koroit Theatre."
The Koroit Theatre was transformed for the event and featured an outdoor beer garden, bars and food vendors.
Mr de Carteret worked with the Koroit community to ensure the event was a success.
"The response from the community has been amazing," he said. "Everyone was so keen to attend and the energy in the room radiated off the musicians.
"It was rewarding to see the flow on for tourism in Koroit. Local businesses were booked out for the night and the pub was full.
"We had chats with the neighbours and told them what was going on and they were super supportive and happy to see an opportunity for the young people to enjoy themselves.
"It was great to have conversations with Koroit locals who really valued the event. We'll definitely be looking to utilise the theatre again in future."
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South-west songbird Nancie Schipper opened the day festival and said it was her first major gig performing and attending since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
"I picked a good gig to get back into," she said. "To get an opportunity like that in Koroit is amazing.
"I've played in that stage for so long and to see everyone rock up and support it was great.
"They have a saying in the industry which is not what you know but who you know; I'll play at a festival and a band will see and say hey come on tour with us.
"To get something on a scale like this for the town is crazy."
Small Town Big Sound was also the first time Schipper played her new music as she heads in a new career direction.
"I'm kind of figuring it all out as I go," she said. "It was nice to be back on stage, I'm not sure how frequent it will be in future as I've been learning to say no to a lot of things.
"I'm trying to find a balance between music being my job and my passion.
"It was nice for me to take a long time out and now I have a new perspective on my career.
"I'm still doing a lot of writing and having a really great time."
Transport Accident Commission's youth program Vanessa introduced Small Town Big Sound, which has brought a range of music to diverse regions across Victoria.
Melbourne's pervasive alt-rock trio Camp Cope will be joined by acclaimed hip-hop heavyweight Birdz, and self-proclaimed pop patron of sad girls, Elizabeth on May 8 at the town hall of Pomonal with tickets still available via HumanTix.
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