Spook Hill are bringing Jezstock back to Brisbane in late June for the sixth consecutive year.
The fundraising music festival is hosted annually by the local band and is held in memory of their late, original vocalist, Jeremy 'Toecutter' Blue. “What we enjoy most about it is that it's a way for us to get together and remember Jez,” Spook Hill's Will McNelis says.
“He loved music. It's kind of a day to remember him. He would be absolutely wrapped with the whole idea.”
Will describes this year's Jezstock as the biggest festival they have ever hosted. “It's more bands and because we are going into The Bearded Lady, we have the front bar and the back room [to use].”
Jezstock will take place in West End and include 12 bands across 2 stages, with proceeds benefitting local radio station Triple Z. “There's a couple reasons why people should come along.
"The bands themselves; there's some really good bands playing so come along if you like live music. But also because it's benefitting Triple Z, which does so much for our local music scene.
“My perspective, coming from the stage, is that they do so much for the local music scene and they do it off their own, hard work. There are so many great people that work there.
"So much stuff that they're doing for the local scene. It really, truly is altruistic. There's nothing commercial behind it and they need all the help they can get. They support us, so we need to support them to make sure they can keep doing what they're doing.”
Jezfest will feature local bands such as Lords Of Wong, Woodshed and The Stone Fox. “Lords Of Wong are headlining this year. They’ve played at almost every one. They're always fun,” Will explains.
“[There's] a bunch of new bands this year that haven't played at Jezstock yet. The music is the highlight of [Jezfest] and every year has a bunch of real quality performances.”
Punters can also look forward to a laidback environment that Jezstock is known for. “[We have] some awesome local live music. We've got a bunch of good bands. Something for everybody. Their all quality, seasoned performing acts.
“We have some raffles. One of the traditions of Jezstock is we raffle off a guitar that all the bands sign. There's also a bunch of other raffles and door prizes and stuff like that.
“We are going to be offering some food deals for some of the local restaurants around West End. You can bring food into The Bearded Lady.
“Everybody is pretty mellow. It's not a sit down sort of thing either. Some of the bands that are playing later on are heavier, so there will be people dancing, but I wouldn’t say moshing,” Will says.
“It's mellow, friendly and welcoming.”
