Paynesville Business and Tourism Association – Visit Paynesville
Photo Album – Relive the 2023 Music Weekend!
The PMF has moved to every second year alternating with another big event happening in Paynesville, the Classic Boat Rally which is on 1-3 March in 2024.
The PMF will be back in 2025, but don’t worry – just because there isn’t a festival, it doesn’t mean there won’t still be plenty of live music in Paynesville throughout the year. Look out for updates from The Floating Tin Shed, Paynesville Wine Bar , Three double8zero Paynesville Motor Cruiser Club and Paynesville Hotel for live music news!
Performers from previous years include:
* The Black Curtains * Electric Empire * Mike Elrington * Things of Stone and Wood (Acoustic) * Stu Hughes & The Blues Cruise * Jamie-Lee & Geoff Stagg * Moore Fiddling Around * Justin Rebbechi * Carmel Chayne Black Slacks * Bairnsdale Secondary College Swing Band * Craig Atkins * Swamp Donkey * Joe Cool * The Soultanas * Xtra Cover * East Gippsland Symphonia *
Check back here or on our Facebook page for information.
The 2023 Weekend was proudly brought to you with the support of our sponsors – Paynesville Opp Shop, East Gippsland Community Foundation, East Gippsland Shire Council, H2O Tours & Adventures, Music Victoria, & Paynesville Business & Tourism Association.
Aussie folk-rock band Things of Stone and Wood will be making a special appearance at the Paynesville Music Weekend on Sunday 26th Feb from 2:45pm on The Floating Tin Shed!
Starting in Carlton in 1989, Things of Stone and Wood (TOSAW) have turned out two top-ten albums, a top four radio hit, toured Australia and the world, and won ARIA and APRA songwriting awards. In the early 90s they had a hit with the joyful ‘Happy Birthday Helen’.
Greg Arnold and Justin Brady join together to present this acoustic tour in 22-23. This tour will be a chance to re-visit some of the songs from their top 10 album and of course, the classic TOSAW hits as well.
Greg has just returned from 8 years living in Geneva, Switzerland where his wife Helen (yes, That Helen) was working for the Red Cross, whilst Justin is back touring after his house burnt down in the Mallacoota bushfires. Both musicians are ARIA winning artists. Justin has won the Tamworth’s Golden Harmonica Award and Greg was APRA Songwriter of the Year.
The Things of Stone and Wood (Acoustic) tour will see Greg and Justin play a selection of intimate venues. This is your chance to hear these wonderful songs right up close, remember how good they are as well as be reminded of what an electrifying instrumentalist Justin Brady is.
See Things of Stone and Wood on the Floating Tin Shed on Sunday at 2:45pm.
East Gippsland party band the Electric Empire will have you singing and dancing along to rock, country and a bit of funky! Made up of four longtime musos and performers, since its inception in 2020 the band has been entertaining audiences at festivals, parties and events across the area. Ready to rock the Tin Shed for Paynesville Music Festival!
Don and Kay have been playing together as “Moore Fiddling Around” for the past 10 years. “We have developed our own style, encouraging experimentation and spontaneity whilst blending instruments with vocals covering genres such as; light Classical, Irish, Bluegrass, Swing, 60’s,& 70’s & Country.” Don and Kay perform regularly at venues in Gippsland and while touring around Australia. Hear Kay play hot and fast and haunting fiddle while her mandolin lead solos bring out the power of a tune. Don brings a “rock” influence to the sound with his melodic style on guitar. His vocals will capture everyones attention. Kay contributes with harmonies to Dons vocals.
We hope you enjoy our music. Cheers
Joe Cool is an acoustic duo who have played together for 10 years. The boys play a variety of music genres including Aussie rock, country and western, pop, rhythm and blues. Joe regularly join forces with other musicians to cater for gigs. Joe Cool will be playing on the “Lady Jodie” for a one hour cruise around Paynesville and at threedouble8zero pizza bar & grill. Expect a fun time with audience participation a must!
The Soultanas started out in 2008 with a mix of music teachers and one off shore worker. The aim was to use a line up of musicians who had a large knowledge of different genres and could therefore play many musical styles very well. The 3 piece horn section (Trumpet, Alto sax, Tenor Sax) compliment a traditional pop band line up (Drums, Bass, Guitar, Keyboard), combing to produce a wide range of musical colours and tastes.
Each gig is a journey through the past 50 years of pop songs from all walks of life with emphases on crowd pleasing favourites through to semi forgotten gems. The idea is to create a musical experience that is special, memorable and above all, FUN!
Justin is performing at ThreeDouble8zero on Sunday 26th February from 12 noon – 6pm.
Stu Hughes and The Blues Cruise are a professional blues band with a rich history of involvement in the Australian blues scene. Between them the members of the band have toured, played, recorded, (and continue to do so), with the very best musicians this country has to offer.
Stu Hughes and The Blues Cruise was formed on Raymond Island 20 years ago and are:
Stue Hughes – vocals and guitars. A very accomplished musician, Stue is highly regarded as one of Australia’s best blues guitarists by both musicians and audiences. He was a founding member of the very popular Melbourne blues band Rocket 88 and for 15 years hosted the “Bluescruise” radio program on 3PBS.
Pete Howell – double bass. Regarded as one of Australia’s top bassplayers, Pete has played bass for many of this country’s best blues musicians – Dutch Tilders, Phil Manning, Broderick Smith, Kelly Auty and Margret Roadknight to name but some.
Winston Galea – drums. Winston is one of the top go to drummers in the blues scene. He has toured extensively in Australia and overseas (Europe and USA) with artists such as Phil Manning, Dutch Tilders & the Blues Club, Lloyd Speigel, Jeff Duff, Peter Cupples, Brownie McGhee, Lonnie Mack, Lonnie Brooks, Kirk Fletcher, Albert Collins, Hubert Sumlin, The Meters.
The core of our music is 90’s pop and rock punctuated with both modern and old school classics to lock in the fun vibes, augmented with an occasional original to tweak the audiences’ ear. The charts are selected to engage a wide audience in an entertaining and energetic mix.
With a musical set-up that includes the ubiquitous guitars, drums, bass and keyboards, we also add trumpet, trombone, harmonica and didgeridoo to complete a unique, professional and engaging sound.
The core of our set list is 90’s Indie rock (Cake, Black Keys, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Nirvana, Cake, Mumford & Sons), intermixed with 80’s rock hits (Talking Heads, Mental as Anything, Lumineers, REM) and punctuated by an original track or two. The sets typically culminate with a selection of harder rocking charts (Rage Against the Machine, Black Sabbath) to get the crowd pumping.
Background:
The Black Curtains started as a local school ‘dad’s band’ founded by a mix of professional and semi-professional artists with a passion for fun and engaging music.
It has evolved into a professional musical act that has performed on large and small stages, bringing joy and a little uniqueness into the classic and indie rock we all know and love.
Getting crowds up, singing along and dancing is a whole lot of fun, and bringing out the core musicality of the charts whilst adding our own little twist grabs the audience and delivers an engaging sound.
XtraCover is all about great classic rock music. What could be more classic than The Who, Beatles, Rolling Stones, Bad Company, Eagles, Tom Petty, The Hollies Neil Young, just to name a few? Throw in great Oz Rock acts like Men at Work, LRB, Daddy Cool, Crowded House, Sunnyboys, The Angels, AC/DC, Paul Kelly, H&C and Aussie Crawl and you’ve got one great night of songs to sing and dance along to. Mitch, Pete, Brandon, Grant and Macca give each song the XtraCover treatment which means, as Grant says, “The best cover band you’ve seen, since your last one!”
Mike Elrington is a gifted singer songwriter with incredible guitar skills. Standing at almost two metres tall, delivering his signature, gut-wrenching vocals like an instrument all on its own, very few people forget a performance from this man. The commitment to his live shows and the well-earned reputation for leaving nothing behind but sweat has seen him invited to perform at some of Australia’s finest festivals, including the iconic Byron Bay BluesFest, Bendigo, Sydney Blues and Roots Festivals & Blues on Broadbeach to name but a few.
The Bairnsdale Secondary College swing band has been a staple presence at music festivals in the East Gippsland area and beyond, since its establishment in 1984. These include the Paynesville Music Festival, the Mount Gambier Jazz Festival, and the Merimbula Jazz
Festival, all of which were annual gigs for the band up until two years ago. The band’s leader, James Newman, is very excited
by the band’s prospects. In his words, “These kids just love playing. Their attendance at after school rehearsals is exemplary and, what’s more, they concentrate hard to get the finer musical points right. I think they are terrific representatives for their school and the local
community.
Swamp Donkey are a good old fashioned Aussie Rock n Roll band that kick up a storm wherever they play, and then some. The Donkey is not satisfied until the dancefloor is full and some seriously bad dancing moves are on display.
Hear Donkey versions of songs by The Stones, Mellencamp, AC/DC, Australian Crawl, Johnny Cash, Led Zeppelin, Creedence Clearwater Revival and many more.
A well-deserved reputation as being one of the best live bands in Melbourne, come and see the ‘Donkey from the Swamp’ and bring along your dancing boots and a good excuse to go home late…..
Hell Yeah, Brothers and Sisters, Swamp Donkey are heading for Paynesville!
The local brass band who are vibrant and energetic and will have you tapping your feet to their tunes. The talented musical director, Kees Dogger, arranges and finds a variety of music genres for the band to perform, including rock, pop, jazz, classical, traditional marches and hymns which are enjoyed by all. The band is a community band and everyone is welcome to join and participate!
The festival is organised as a community event through the Paynesville Business and Tourism Association.