Words by Marlena Katene

Photography by Simone Gorman-Clark 

We have made it to day three and the vibe here could not be stronger.  

Casey Barnes

Our local Gold Coaster Casey Barnes performed for his first time at Bluesfest on the Crossroads stage, and a loyal group of fans who have followed his career from his early days assembled.  Belting out a selection of their favourites such as ‘A Little More’, ‘We’re Good Together’ and the spine-tingling ballad ‘Sparks Fly’ and one of my favourites ‘God took his time on you’.  I first heard this song being played on commercial radio last year and it circulated in my brain for weeks, such an earworm. Now the country is starting to open up with shows Casey Barnes is one artist to watch in the coming year. I know after his regional tour wraps up we will be hearing of bigger things on the horizon from Casey and his team.

Kate Millier-Heidke

Kickstarting a few hours of strong women's performances on the Mojo stage, Kate Miller Heidke entered the stage in a long golden dress with a floral headpiece looked into the crowd and mentioned, “It is so good to be here. It is so good to see all your euphoric smiles”.

Kate Miller Heidke has had a few very memorable years from performing as Australia’s representative on the 2019 Eurovision stage with her song Zero Gravity, TV appearances on the Mask Singer and unfortunately (like many Bluesfest artists) having her tours postponed or even having them cancelled.

Tonight on the MOJO stage at Bluesfest the crowd were blessed to hear a wide array of songs from new to old. Kate’s writing takes her audience on a lyrical emotional rollercoaster ride with feelings of intense pain and rage in some songs to love and empathy in others. “Caught in the crowd” is one such song she played tonight that shows the amazing lyrical talents this angelic voice has.

'You Can’t Hurt Me Anymore' was another song Kate performed that shows how empowered she has become after experiencing trauma. One cannot help but be transformed into feeling the raw emotion that must have been behind the origin of this song. The Sombre audience is taken to a place of reflection as well as empowerment with a song Kate describes as 'Dancing on the grave of an Arsehole', a song written about her own experience with being sexually abused.

While tonight we had many such moments there were also moments of laughter.

At the beginning of her set, she told the crowd how she came up to Byron a few days early. “I came up and decided to go for a swim. The water was pretty brown after the floods and I thought I probably shouldn’t go for a swim in that but did anyway. I rang my mum later in the day and told her I went for a swim and she said you shouldn’t do that you could get a vaginal infection.  I told her I already had one but now it is healed because I went for a swim”. The crowd erupted in laughter and went on to enjoy the show.

Kate Miller- Heidke did not disappoint with her cross between a theatrical performance, cultural stage show, storytelling and a touch of a pop concert as well. You feel the intensity of how lyrically these songs were written but do not leave a show feeling depressed. Kates's ability to use humour and have a laugh at life moments no doubt has helped her heal while rightfully remaining angry at certain things that have happened in her life. The Bluesfest Mojo crowd dispersed feeling entertained as well as emotionally challenged. Music, combined with meaningful lyrics, has the power to move our souls and also heal where required. Tonight, we have witnessed a true artist display this and there were a lot of reflective moments that left people leaving emotive or at the very least appreciative of others that may have experienced trauma and pain.

Missy Higgins

With a simple backdrop lit up with the word Missy the crowd tonight was in for an amazing night of women on the Mojo stage. With a common theme of empowerment and encouragement, Missy Higgins was the perfect follow up act to Kate Miller Heidke. Many of Missy’s songs come from a place where as a mother to a daughter herself she wants the world to be a better place for her to grow. This is evident in many of her songs tonight which she describes as “Encouraging a new power of women to grow strong, harness the power and take it back”.

Missy shared with the crowd how during covid how she was lucky enough to write for ABC TV for a character was an indigenous woman who comes into power and shook things up. “We need more women in Australia that bring these characters to life”. The crowd approved with a loud and massive cheer of approval.

Mid show Missy was joined on stage by Kate Miller Heidke to perform the beautiful ballad 'Last Time'. Two amazing strong women on stage left me and the crowd wanting more.

With the audience crowd yelling out “I love you missy or play steer” it was clear there were many long-term followers of loyal fans. The settings seem to go very quickly with hit after hit. For the encore Missy returned for crowd favourites ‘Steer’ and ‘Scar’ with a majority of the crowd singing in perfect harmony to end what was a memorable performance.

Amy Shark

Being a Gold Coaster myself one can be forgiven for having locally biased toward Amy Shark. Performing and perfecting her craft in local pubs and clubs her career has been a journey, to say the least. If one was to define the word persistence, I believe Amy should get a mention as she has refined her craft. Tonight, on the mojo stage was yet another milestone in this multiple Aria award winners career thus far. Opening her 90-minute set with the hit ‘Adore’ Amy had the fans entrenched from word go. Dressed all in white Amy rocked her Puffer jacket, white denim jeans and black studded Doc martins. Introducing herself to the crowd she said: “Hi Bluesfest my name is Amy Shark and I will be your entrainment tonight. This is my first Bluesfest so please be gentle”.

On the Mojo stage tonight a wide variety of people encompassed her crowd with mums, dads and young kids singing every word of her songs. Having heard Amy numerous times before one can reflect on her writing ability and some of the meanings behind her songs. This deepness and realism can only come by continual persistence and grind knowing that one day these words scrolled down will be shared among many. The self-titled song ‘Amy Shark’ gives us an indication of how her music has in some ways been a therapeutic outlet for her. This honesty and approach to her writing has been instrumental in many of the world's largest names lining up to do a collaboration with her, Ed Sheeran, Keith Urban, and Travis Barker to name but a few. When playing these collaborations tonight she joked “I did this song with Keith Urban and tonight I would like to welcome on stage. Kidding he is in Nashville”.

Amy’s journey has been one hell of a rollercoaster ride. Tonight, it was encouraging to see her enjoy her set and make the comment “My focus at the moment is just to be happy because if you are not happy what else have you got”.

Amy gave her growing fan base an amazing show tonight and now she moves on to her ‘See u somewhere Australia tour’ across Australia. With the sold-out red bold print plastered across many dates what started as a 65-date tour is now expanding with new dates being added daily. A local girl at heart is still grateful every day for her fans and recently said on her Twitter: "Holy moly. More sold out, second shows added in some places. I can’t even count how many shows this is, this could kill me but I’m so excited to see you all”. Knowing Amy’s strength and determination the phrase ‘What doesn't kill you makes you stronger comes to mind, however, Amy’s career thus far has proven she is already a strong woman. If you are after a great night like we have witnessed here tonight I suggest you check out her tour and judge for yourself.

Paul Kelly

With mainly an older crowd it was encouraging to see pockets of younger fans that were here to appreciate the real musicianship and talent Paul Kelly has had to offer for many decades.

“We are here tonight in mourning for our dear friend Chris Bailey from The Saints who passed this week and was an inspiration to us all”. The crowd let out a deafened cheer before Paul and the band broke out into ‘In the Mirror’, which Paul dedicated to their late friend. Upon completion, Paul said “That was for you Chris, we will never let true music fade away” before going straight into ‘Before Too Long’ with 100% crowd participation.

When we consider some of our favourite Australian musicians that have had longevity in their careers and still performing Paul Kelly is up there with the best of them. Tonight, was Paul’s 8th time coming to Bluesfest where he performed on the Crossroads stage to a sea of appreciative fans. Entering the stage, he declared “Tonight I am a bit teary. With a long pause, and the deafening silence of the packed Crossroads stage, he continued but we are finally here tonight and it is so good to see you on Bilungal Land”.

I was reminded of Paul’s longevity in the Australian music scene recently when I was at a conference and as part of a presentation, we were shown a clip of Paul Kelly’s song 'From Little Things Big Things Grow'.  A song, that was written, in the early 80s, highlighted the Gurindji people’s struggle for land rights and their ability to persist when all seemed lost. When I heard this song, it left me in a reflective mood and showed me the power of music. Sometimes music energizes you but sometimes it leaves you feeling sombre with a sense of wanting to make a change in the world and play your part in making the world a better place. The ability to tell a story with a guitar opens up a whole new audience and I knew this set was going to be unique and possibly something different to anything I have seen before.

I have never been fortunate enough to see Paul Kelly perform and was not sure what to expect as far as crowd participation, but was pleasantly surprised. Were we going to be dancing or was it going to be a performance that would play at the heartstrings and leave me feeling encouraged to be that positive change in the world? Hopefully, I would have both of these experiences in one gig. I was open to whatever this seasoned performer was going to give me tonight.

The power of music is a wonderful thing and tonight I learnt that we can be entertained and educated in the same breath. Without being the hugest Paul Kelly fan prior, now that I have seen him live, I am intrigued to learn more about the meaning behind many of his amazing songs. It is not often (or for that matter perhaps at all) I have left a concert feeling entertained but also wanting to learn more about an artist. A true artist and storyteller in every sense of the word it is clear that Paul Kelly will be performing for many years to come. This will not be the last time I see Paul perform. Thank you, Paul, for your show tonight.