The now annual Big Pineapple Music Festival not only brought a breath of fresh air to the Sunshine Coast, but also brought together an eclectic mix of people from the young to the old, the locals to the foreigners, and the hippies to the metal heads.
The festival, located at one of Queensland’s tourist hotspots – the Big Pineapple in Woombye, was a perfect hinterland location for punters to gather in awe of some almighty acts. Notable mentions include Adelaide hip hop trio Funkoars who played a bouncy midday set.
Funkoars: © Marc & Kristen Austin-ZandeAlthough their interaction with the crowd was slightly annoying as it mainly consisted of “who’s ready to get f**ked up!” and “your hangover is tomorrow’s problem, skull!” Okay, we get it. Despite this, the crowd was enjoying themselves and sing-a-longs were at an all time high with ‘It’s All Good’, and ‘The D’.
Karl S. Williams played directly after and changed the pace with a perfect mid-afternoon blues-fuelled set. This mystery man’s songs were unknown to the crowd, but he managed to capture the our hearts with his spiritual, acoustic and banjo heavy set.
Shortly after their set, Brisbane/ Sunny Coast supergiants Dead Letter Circus hit the stage. The crowd poured in leaving not a single bit of space surrounding the main stage. The progressive rock outfit played a flawless set and kept punters entertained with their explosive energy. Crowd highlights were ‘I Am’ and ‘One Step’.
Dead Letter Circus © Marc & Kristen Austin-ZandeBrisbane six-piece dub/ reggae lords Kingfisha sent the energy of the crowd soaring. Every single person in my sight was bopping, booming, and skanking to their rootsy and Jamaican inspired rhythms. Kingfisha is a must-see act.
Kingfisha © Marc & Kristen Austin-ZandeOne unexpected festival highlight includes underrated Sunshine Coast band The Brains Trust who opened their set on the Safari Stage with a dub, downbeat remix of James Brown’s ‘I Feel Good’ – this immediately had the crowd amped and mesmerised. The rest of their set was filled with mellow electronic, and bassy ambience. It was without a doubt the “feel good” set of the day.
Written by Keara Forde
Click here for socials
We arrived mid afternoon with no trouble getting in. The festival grounds were set up in an elongated shape, which made for easy navigation to different stages. We pretty much bee-lined for the Main Stage and set up camp for the big acts.
Dead Letter Circus was first on the agenda. These guys performed with a determined amount of energy. Their eerie rhythms blew across the crowd gathering momentum under the afternoon sun. Drummer Luke Williams made it for me. His fabulous, sweaty hair emphasising every pound on those snares and toms. It was going to be good day. They rocked out, playing some really awesome tunes looking like proper rock gods.
Spiderbait were superbly good fun. Fast-paced, energetic toe-tapping tunes were the order of the day, as the rock veterans worked into their set. But as it drew close to an end people were wondering if they were actually going to play their crowd pleasers. They did not disappoint. The whiff of the ‘Black Betty’ riff heard earlier between songs in the show was confirmed. These guys know how to make the most of the entire time slot.
Art vs Science © Marc & Kristen Austin-ZandeMy personal favourites were Art vs. Science. Now veterans of the scene, these guys do not fail to impress. Pink jumpsuits with white frilly tuxedo chests would impress anyone I should think. How many people can make get “down with your flippers” sound like the time of your life? Loved the vocals, loved the theatrics. Chris and Dan faced off between themselves versus the crowd, getting us to sing the chorus of ‘Parlez-vous Francais’ – never gets old. Hats off Dan M for holding his own.
The Living End were awesome! The intro began with some trippy electronic tunes which startled us. They dropped straight into it with old favourites like ‘Prisoner Of Society’ as the crowd went wild.
The Living End © Marc & Kristen Austin-ZandeChris Cheney didn’t miss a beat. These boys really know how to put on a good show. Credit is due to Scott Owen when he threw his double bass above his head at the end of ‘The Ending Is Just The Beginning Repeating’. The songs they played were great, a few of them with hard hitting messages and just the right amount of satisfying favourites.
