:: Falls Festival - Melbourne

By: Louise Preece

This year the Falls Festival 2005/2006 attracted 14,000 people and was again the three day festival of music, comedy and entertainment, where New Year revelers travelled from all over the country to attend. The 40 degree heat set the event apart from other years and while people were tuning into the music, most chose to cool down under the people mister, as well as enjoy a cold tinnie from the beer tent, which provided some much needed shade.

The popular festival sold out tickets in only four days and some campers were placed on another site, as there was no space left. The beautiful scenery at Erskine Falls, Lorne was the back-drop for headline acts such as the Hoodoo Gurus, the Dandy Warhols, Cat Empire and Sarah Blasko. The crowd also enjoyed the soulful and passionate voice of Mia Dyson, who is an ARIA Awards winner from 2005.

Hip/hop jazz group Ozomatli kept the festival-goers grooving on the first night as well as Aussie rockers Wolfmother, who provided an amazing performance.

The second day was hinged with a few technical difficulties getting equipment from the Tasmanian Falls event, which resulted in Little Birdy losing their time slot. The now slightly sun-burnt, but still satisfied, crowd waited until 2.30 in the afternoon to enjoy music on the big stage, although acts in the Big-Top stage still rolled on, but had nothing to do with lion taming. Spicks and Specks host Adam Hills and comedian Danny Bhoy’s show was a big hit.

Other acts that graced the stage were The Zutons, 2 Up, the Vasco Era, Ash Grunwald, Faker, Starky, Ugly Duckling, Dallas Crane, the Shins, the Beautiful Girls, Evermore, and End of Fashion. Headline acts on the second night were Melbourne group Cat Empire who played some funky horn sets and got the crowd dancing to the beat of their catchy rhythms. The other huge headline act, The Dandy Warhols rocked the crowd into the 2006 New Year. Punters partied on in the dance tent, while some chose to take a short nap in the chilled-out sushi tent on some comfortable pillows. The waffle-van also was also popular, with one enthusiastic festival-follower choosing to enter the tent and make her own.

The rain held off until New Years Day and, while some tents blew far away in the wind, the spirit of the Falls Festival lived on.