Having once spent six months in a leaky boat, these days you're more likely to find singer-songwriter Tim Finn on stage at a festival.
“In terms of live work, I suppose you could say I'm semi-retired,” Tim says.
“I love playing the festivals; I've done some great festivals over the years like Woodford, Byron Bay Bluesfest, Lost Lands, Splendour In The Grass. They're just a real gift to a performer because the crowd is already amped; they're on this big roller coaster ride through the afternoon and evening, and you just step into that space and whoosh, off you go.
“You'll get a lot of people there that might not know you very well, they don't know all your songs, they're not fans particularly but they're up for it and it's a great feeling for a performer to step in front of that sort of crowd. Apart from that, I don't play live much.”
There's little to say about Tim that hasn't already been said. His contribution to music over the past four decades speaks for itself: Split Enz, Crowded House, his work with brother Neil, and own solo career, not to mention his recent foray into musical theatre with 'Ladies In Black'.
This November, Tim stretches his festival legs at Queenscliff Music Festival (QMF) on a line-up that also features Missy Higgins, Clare Bowditch, Ash Grunwald, Troy Cassar-Daley, Newton Faulkner and many more.
“I'm feeling excited about it,” Tim says of performing at QMF, complimenting the event on its welcoming, home-town atmosphere.
“We did it once before about eight or nine years ago and it's one of those festivals where as you drive up in your van or your car, the guy that's going to tell you where to park is going to be a local who lives in the town. You get that vibe about it; it's very neighbourhood [sic], the crowd are super-friendly and super up for it.”
With more than 40 years of material to choose from, Tim says audiences can look forward to a wide selection of songs spanning the various phases of his multi-faceted career. “I'll be bringing out a four-piece band – two guitars, bass and drums,” he says.
“We've done a couple of shows recently where I haven't used a keyboard, which is quite a change for me, but I've found it's quite exciting having two electric guitars. I have two guys coming over from New Zealand who play beautifully together and can play all the parts that are on the keyboards on the old songs.
“It's just a fresh feeling for me to get up there and get into a bit more of a rockier place. So plenty of dynamics in the set; it's definitely going to be covering songs that people know from Split Enz, Crowded House and solo work, and it'll be a lot of fun.”
Sharing the line-up with Missy Higgins, who once toured with Tim and Neil as well as covering 'Stuff And Nonsense' on the 'She Will Have Her Way' album, there's a good chance Tim and Missy will reconnect onstage at Queenscliff.
“I'm hopefully going to get to sing with her,” he says. “If we're in the right place at the right time we might actually perform together down there.”
