Picnic Hill returns in February for another evening of live music, food, drinks and fun in Redcliffe (Brisbane).
The monthly event is the brainchild of Redcliffe Area Youth Space as part of a programme helping at-risk Redcliffe youth gain vital work experience, while also being a fun day out for the family. Every event sees a host of activities, with plenty of market stalls and the best food trucks from South East Queensland.
The event also boasts a line-up of young and exciting bands from across the area, with the February line-up featuring Van Larkins, The Counterfeit Umbrellas and new band Fatal Aphrodite, who’ve only been performing since October.
“We all started with very little sense of direction,” lead singer Pier Hidalgo says.
“We didn’t really know where we were going. We had a few songs and a setlist, and we were doing it just for fun. It was only the end of last year that we decided we should actually do something with this. It’s been what we’ve been working towards since then.”
The band members are fresh out of high school, with Pier in her second year of university. “I’ve been playing music with Ricky Maravilla and Oska Zervoudakis, the guitarist and drummer, since high school, so 2015. We never had a bass player, and then I met Duncan Adamson while studying a Bachelor of Music at QUT.
"I showed him one of the songs that we’d recorded and he really liked it, so he was happy to join us.”
The band cite a number of different influences across many genres, some you wouldn’t imagine going together. It was a particular Brisbane band that made Pier want to take to the stage. “We like psychedelic music, but then also jazz,” she says.
“We want to create something that’s dark, interesting and complex. I’m so inspired by female musicians. I was always such a big fan of Billie Holiday and Brisbane bands like WAAX. Seeing them live towards the end of high school, that made me decide [music] was something I really wanted to do.”
This isn’t the first time Fatal Aphrodite have been booked to play Picnic Hill, but they weren’t able to perform originally due to unforeseen circumstances. “We’d actually been put on to play last November, but it didn’t happen.
"There was a storm and the thing was called off. They said they’d book us next year (2018). We’ve been waiting for it.”
Pier is grateful for the wait, as it’s allowed her and the band to play more gigs and further develop as a group. The band is excited for the future; they have written a number of songs and plan to release their debut EP this year.
“I think at the moment we’re kind of just a work in progress.
"We’re Fatal Aphrodite at the moment and we’re still figuring it out – humble beginnings. We’re really looking forward to what this year has to bring.
"At the moment, my idea for the band is to create a little world; something very interesting.”
