University’s support of contemporary music on show at Mullum Music Festival

Two bands emerging from Southern Cross University’s contemporary music course will take to the stage at the Mullum Music Festival at Mullumbimby near Byron Bay from November 22 to 25.

The Mullum Music Festival will also feature workshops by the University’s contemporary music course coordinator and renowned bassist Dr Barry Hill.

University bands Fat City Strut and The Familiars were selected to perform on the SCU Showcase stages.

Fat City Strut is a seven-piece dub band, with influences in funk, reggae, Afro beat and Afro Cuban.

Fat City Strut bass player and lyricist Jack Keough said the band was excited to play the SCU Showcase stage.

“Audiences can expect a high energy show. Our line-up has really gelled. There’s great energy and everyone has great musical ideas. It’s a lot of fun to play together.”

Fat City Strut – 6pm Friday November 23 at Mullumbimby High School

The Familiars is a high-energy, two-guitar, high-impact indie rock band.

Since forming a year ago The Familiars have played gigs in Byron Bay and Brisbane and supported bands like Sticky Fingers.

Their appearance at the Mullum Music Festival coincides with the release of their new single 'Start It Up' available from Bandcamp.

“This is the biggest festival we have played so far, so it will be a great opportunity,” said drummer and vocalist Michael Hardy.

“It’s an early show so we hope people will rock up and won’t mind that we’re really loud.”

The Familiars – 11.30am Saturday November 24 at the Ex Services Club

Dr Barry Hill will run two workshops at the Mullum Music Festival, with the support of Live Solution, an Australian government-funded concept developed by Mushroom Marketing to challenge the culture of binge drinking among people aged 16-24 across the country.

“Historically, the development of technology has always changed the way that we perform music. These workshops will explore the ways making music is being affected by the technology of the 21st century,” Dr Hill said.

• 'What makes a good music jam sound and feel good?' Saturday November 24 at 12.15pm.
This interactive music workshop looks at ways to make jamming with others sound great. Dr Hill will demonstrate some ways of turning jam sessions into great sounding bands. Participants are encouraged to bring their instruments.

• 'Turning smart phones into musical instruments' Saturday November 24 at 1.30pm.
Dr Hill has a special interest in technology and the social impact of music. In this workshop he looks at thought-controlled computing and the new technology of music making.

The location for both workshops is the Byron Community College, corner Burringbar and Gordon streets, Mullumbimby.

Festival organisers have called upon the live performance technical expertise of the University’s School of Arts and Social Sciences. The School will be providing amplifiers and drum kits for most stages throughout the Festival as part of its backline technical support.

Photo: Fat City Strut has emerged from Southern Cross University’s contemporary music course.