It’s a gorgeous Brisbane winter day (7 June) on the Queen’s Birthday long weekend and the neighborhood is absolutely buzzing with that splendid sunny festival feeling.
The Caxton Street Festival is iconic to Brisbane’s street-party scene and is famous for its mix of food, wine, music and massive party atmosphere; and it’s a double birthday celebration today, as the festival turns the big 2.1!
Image © Amanda Starkey
Now let me just say, everyone who went on Sunday, or who has been to the festival before, knows this is a BIG day, so a certain element of festival stamina is certainly required. The festival always treats us to a fantastic Australian music line-up, this year featuring The Beautiful Girls, Grinspoon legend Phil Jamison, Thelma Plum and DZ Deathrays, to name a few.
Click here for photos from the show.
I arrived in the afternoon and the street was buzzing with a soft hum of party atmosphere. Compared to previous years, the festival feels more relaxed and represents the street perfectly with a smooth city vibe and a fashionable crowd.
Inside the venues, all of the bars and restaurants feature special food menu packages, music and a mix of activities for the day, perfectly showcasing everything that Caxton Street has to offer. Outside, the street is lined with pop-up food stalls, wine bars and DJs, and although this was a great mix, I felt that good quality street food was a little scarce and regretted not booking into a restaurant for some great fresh seafood options, which were on offer.
Image © Amanda Starkey
As the sun sets over the street on this gorgeous day, the smooth and soulful sounds of Thelma Plum play with the backdrop of the sunset framing the stage; a perfect closing act to the day part of the festival.
Once the sun has disappeared, the relaxed energy of the festival shifts into gear at full speed and starts to literally burst into life. It is almost as if someone has hit a super-hot party switch when DZ Deathrays perform a killer set; the whole crowd literally dancing (and moshing!) which was impressive to watch. As I look around, the street is now absolutely packed and this is the point where I hope that I remembered my party stamina boots because it is clear that a big night is ahead of us all…
Phil Jamison - image © Amanda Starkey
Phil Jamison performs an incredible set, which sounds like a stripped back, country-folk rock version of Grinspoon, performing Grinners classics, some gorgeous covers and originals and pulling out the sweet sounds of the harmonica to get us in the mood. It was just ace ;-)
The Beautiful Girls are the perfect final act, leading the crowd through a reggae-infused dance party to finish off the night.
The Beautiful Girls - image © Amanda Starkey
After the party is of course, the afterparty and Caxton Street never failing to disappoint was bursting at the seams with reckless party people dancing in the clubs. Leftys, The Caxton, Brewski and Gambaro’s were all pumping hard and the party continued all night long as per usual.
I can say as a Paddington local, the 2015 festival has been the best one by far, seamlessly managed with a top festival crowd, great tunes and fun party vibes.
Thanks for the party Caxton Street; see you next year!
