5 Acts The Seven Ups Want To See At Blues On Broadbeach

An original seven-piece band from Melbourne, The Seven Ups blend influences from 1970s underground funk with jazz, psych and fuzz rock.

You can expect unrestrained solos by unkempt horns over an unpretentious rhythm section whose back catalogue is now four studio albums deep after the release last year of 'The Old World'.

As the heavy groove merchants prepare for their new interstate adventure when they head to Blues On Broadbeach, band member Trent Sterling shares five acts he can't wait to see at the Gold Coast music festival.

1: Emma Donovan and The Putbacks

It doesn't get much better than this combo. The Putbacks are one of (if not the) tightest funk outfits in the country and Emma's voice almost brings me to tears when I hear it.

I've been lucky to see them play plenty of times in Melbourne and we've shared a bill a handful of times too. We're very lucky to share a home town with these guys – Queenslanders are in for something special!

2: Robben Ford

Seeing Robben Ford on the bill took me back to my uni days when I was studying him as a young guitarist.

I had a teacher who introduced me to him, as I was trying to get into real technical guitar playing but (at the time) I wasn't vibing on the high-brow jazz guitarists.

Hearing Robben's amazing guitar playing applied to blues and rock really opened up my playing. Pretty stoked all these years later to be sharing a bill with him.

3: Cookin On 3 Burners with Stella Angelico

Cookin On 3 Burner's cook! They cook! These guys groove like nothing else.

It's old-school Hammond combo but, man, it's so funky and sooo tight! I've seen them play as an instrumental three-piece and am always blown away; it's going to be super nice to see them with Stella fronting the band too.

4: Mia Dyson

To my peril I still haven't had a chance to see Mia Dyson live. She's an amazing vocalist and guitarist, so I'm very glad to see she's on this bill. It'll be great to finally see her set live.

5: Karl S. Williams

This guy's been on my radar for a while but I'm yet to have a chance to see him live. His stuff has got a real nice, old, down-home, folk-blues vibe.

I feel like I'm in some lonesome shack in the wilderness when I hear it. Very excited to see he's on the bill and looking forward to his set.



The Seven Ups play Blues On Broadbeach (Gold Coast) which runs 19-22 May.

2022 Blues On Broadbeach Line-up

Karise Eden
Osaka Monaurail
Blue Empress All-Stars
Matty T Wall
Hussy Hicks
Minnie Marks
Frank Sultana
Mike Beale
Dom Turner & The Rural Blues Project
Sweet Felicia and the Honeytones
Taya Chani
Jackson Dunn
The Blues Preachers
The Long Johns
Anna Scionti Trio
Devils Kiosk
The Holy Rollercoasters
Eamon Dilworth's Crawfish Po' Boys
The Mojo Corner
Melody Graves and the Hokum Redemption
Peaches & The AlphaSonics

Who join:

The James Morrison Motown Experience
Robben Ford
Mia Dyson
Cookin' On 3 Burners w/ Stella Angelico
Emma Donovan & The Putbacks
Bondi Cigars
Hamish Anderson
R.L. Boyce w/ Dom Turner
The Seven Ups
Karen Lee Andrews
Jimi Hocking's Blues Machine
8 Ball Aitken
Dave Hole
Karl S. Williams
The Soul Movers
Checkerboard Lounge
Bitches Brew
Sweet Talk
Dogsband
Dishpan Hands
Oscar Ladell
The Magnificence
Dave Blight w/ Mick Kidd
Sweet Thunder