Peats Ridge

Surrounded by tents, river and bushland, Peats has truly found it’s feet as an event that mixes both crowd-pulling live music and a relaxing, sustainable environment, and has evolved into one of the best options for New Year’s on the Australian festival scene.

The unrelenting heat of the 3 day festival tempted many revellers to the cool shade of the riverbank throughout the days, but those who braved the scorching weather were rewarded with an endless array of live arts and music.

Whether you were squeezing into the packed Underworld stage to catch the childlike charm and golden era bluesy tunes of Lanie Lane, lolling by the shade of riverside gums to soak in the haunting lyricism of Ernest Ellis, getting your dancing shoes on to Jonothan Boulet’s joyous indie collaborative pop, or stumbling upon a variety of wonderfully zany theatre troupes at Boudoir De La Fox, something was always waiting to catch your fancy.

As the sun began to sink each evening, the scorching heat abated, and the crowds began to drift up from the creek side to absorb the kaleidescope of live music on offer. The predominantly local line up this year stood testament to the plethora and strength of Australian talent, and the intimate surrounds provided the perfect atmosphere to soak it in.

Festival highlights included PVT, delivering an electrifying performance on the festival’s second night. Their sound combines the destructive and the beautiful, the consuming and the cataclysmic. As a live act, they hold nothing back, rendering the pulsating crowd into a dizzying near frenzy with their anthemic song O Soundtrack My Heart.
The last sunset of the year was brought in with gusto by Kyu, a female duo from Sydney, who captivated the crowd with their spine-tingling harmonic vocals and heart-pounding percussion, their visible joy in performing leading the audience onto their feet and to an incredible musical climax.
Cloud Control delivered an impressive set of indie-ballads, coaxing their audience into a euphoric mood in time for Watussi to finally reign in the New Year with style and funk among confused shouts, scramblings, kisses and tears. However it was the Dub Shack that ultimately prevailed each night as the final destination where crowds could frolic and stomp the morning in beneath a blanket of stars.

After three days of glorious sun and a sprawling spectrum of fantastic music, festival goers packed up slowly for the road home bone-achingly weary, yet sharing smiles and glances of recognition in the knowledge that they’d experienced something pretty special.