Joseph –If we had to pick one food that epitomized our band, it would probably have to be pizza. Mostly because that’s what we tend to eat together before a gig. As for hanging out, the concerts and gigs of other great bands!
*Campers entrance only
FULL ARTIST LINE-UP COMING TUESDAY 11 OCTOBER!
As the dust settles on an enormously successful sold out homecoming event on the weekend, CMC Rocks QLD is delighted to reveal dates for the March 2023 festival.
Between Wednesday 15 and Sunday 19 March 2023, CMC Rocks QLD, Australia’s premiere international country music festival will land in Willowbank, Ipswich helmed by some of the hottest global superstars; with the full artist line-up to be announced on Tuesday 11 October!
With just six months between last weekend’s hugely anticipated 15th Anniversary and the 2023 event – which sees the festival return to its regular March slot on the annual calendar – CMC Rocks QLD will once again deliver the ultimate country music line, certain to light up the country community’s spirit like nothing else!
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Over the weekend just gone, the first CMC Rocks QLD since March 2019 went off with the kind of explosive energy country fans have bottled up and waited to unleash for the past 3 and a half years! Across three days, 22,000 patrons descended on Willowbank to take in live sets from international chart-toppers Brad Paisley, Kane Brown, Morgan Evans, Jimmie Allen, Blanco Brown and more, along with an absolute smorgasbord of the finest homegrown talent on offer!
Spirits were sky high as crowds entered the main festival area on Friday afternoon, with local heroes Casey Barnes and Troy Cassar-Daley returning to the CMC Rocks stage. First Nations talents Isaiah Firebrace and Mitch Tambo joined Lee Kernaghan during his set for a stunning rendition of their new single ‘Come Together’.
Friday also served up anticipated debuts from US stars MacKenzie Porter and Abby Anderson, who played in the afternoon, then joined Jimmie Allen on stage that evening during his explosive set. It was Kane Brown’s stellar performance that brought the first night to a close, including chart-topping hits ‘Like I Love Country Music’, ‘One Mississippi’ and more, along with ‘I’ve Got Some Famous Friends’, featuring some of his festival mates – Blanco Brown, Restless Road and MacKenzie Porter – live on stage. Brown left no doubt as to why he’s one of the hottest stars in country music right now.
Saturday’s all female Songwriter’s Show line-up captivated, MacKenzie Porter, Laci Kaye Booth, Lindsay Ell and Abby Anderson playing in the round, stripped-back and intimate, showcasing their incredible raw talent. As day turned to night, crowd favourite Troy Cassar-Daley continued the good vibes, lifting the crowd with his live show.
From debuting in a lunchtime slot at the first ever CMC Rocks in 2008, Nashville-via-Newcastle star Morgan Evans made his anticipated homecoming as a festival headliner at the 15th Anniversary event. On Saturday night, Evans had spirits soaring as he laid down a blistering set featuring hit singles ‘Day Drunk’ and ‘Diamonds’, fans singing along to every word.
Wingham’s own James Johnston is as country as they come, drawing large crowds on Sunday afternoon, with audiences jamming along with singles ‘Raised Like That’ and ‘Small Town’. US singer-songwriter Niko Moon continued to enthrall on his CMC Rocks debut, followed by crowd favourite Brad Cox, who had some serious country spirit on display and fans in the palm of his hand.
Accompanied by an extraordinary fireworks display to close out an epic three days, Brad Paisley’s Sunday night headline set blew the lid right off the Rebel Stage. Delivering a legendary performance punctuated by chart-topping hit after chart-topping hit, plus a duet with Lindsay Ell, Paisley had it all and then some, reminding us why exactly why CMC Rocks QLD is the ultimate country music experience.
Queensland Tourism Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said CMC Rocks was a significant feature on the It’s Live! In Queensland events calendar.
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Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding said two festivals within six months would be a huge boost to the region and inject millions of dollars into Ipswich’s economy.
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CMC Rocks QLD firmly cemented their place as Australia’s most significant country music event in 2022, with a festival experience like nothing else around! From new bars – Big Time Charlie’s and Gordons Pink Pamper Beauty Bar – to fresh new activations including an eight-metre high cowboy boot, Great Northern House, Singles Mingle, Honky Tonk Stomp line dancing and more, CMC Rocks is the ultimate, incomparable country music experience.
The Queensland Government is proud to support CMC Rocks QLD through Tourism and Events Queensland as part of the It’s Live! in Queensland events calendar, showcasing Australia’s best live events in Australia’s best destinations.
Stay tuned for the full CMC Rocks QLD 2023 Artist Lineup –
Coming on Tuesday 11 October!
Sign up to the CMC Rocks mailing list HERE, to stay up to date on all the latest information.
LIVE VISION & IMAGES FROM CMC ROCKS QLD 2022 AVAILABLE HERE
www.cmcrocks.com | #CMCROCKS2023
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Follow us on Instagram | www.instagram.com/cmcrocksfest
Beautiful words: Darren Chan
American singer/songwriter Billie Eilish returns to Melbourne after more than three years. Her exponential rise in popularity saw her performing the first of 4 nights on the Melbourne leg of her Australian tour.
Diehard fans screamed at deafening levels when Billie appeared amidst a wash of
red lighting opening with “Bury a Friend”.
She screams “Melbourne are you ready?!!” was just reiteration of the 15,000 strong crowd more than willing to partake in the audio visual extravaganza the next two hours would bring.
A minimalist stage set up with a walkway and giant ramp helped create a visual canvas for each song. From the backdrop of flames and red lighting of “Therefore I Am”, the oceanic themed “Ilomilo”, to the environment themed “All the Good Girls go to Hell”, every song had a visual wow factor.
A moment was taken for musical partner Finneas to join Billie at the front of the stage for the acoustic song “TV”. Billie dons a guitar and sings “I Love You / Your Power” in her airy vocal style ending with dual harmonic guitar lines with her brother.
The LED backdrop distracts the crowd for a minute before Billie appears floating on an elevated platform at the back of the arena. In a sea of phone torches, she stretches out her hand symbolising her connection with the crowd.
She’s conscious of her rise to fame and takes several moments to acknowledge her appreciation for everyone. She seems to also take on a duty of care for those attending her show – taking a mindfulness moment with some deep breathing.
Billie only takes short moments to bring things down a notch before ramping up again. She had stage presence to captivate the crowd, and they were with her every step of the way.
Jumping around like a metal front person, she concluded the night with the energy expending “Bad Guy”, then serenaded everyone with “Happier Than Ever” as the entire arena rained down in confetti.
It was evident a lot of creative thought and well timed execution had been put into the show. The combination of lighting, staging, LED projected imaging, musical arrangements, and performance delivered a dream-like cinematic experience that fans and even those not attuned to Eilish’s music would never forget.


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Follow Joan & The Giants Spotify | Apple Music | Soundcloud | Youtube |
Photo by: Jazmyn Produces
Hailing from Central Queensland, country pop artist Hayley Marsten has wasted no time in wrapping audiences around the country up in her tales of heartache, rediscovery and poignancy.
Returning with her first piece of new music for 2022 in ‘Bittersweet At Best’, the artist repositions herself as one of the East Coast’s exciting fresh voices. For newcomers, the single is a gorgeous track wrapped around a central narrative of a relationship transitioning from happiness to sadness; the concept of change being at the core of the song.
Following on from ‘I’m Fine, Thanks’ earlier this year, and her impactful 2021 single ‘Drowning Myself’, which cemented Marsten as a dynamic artist who could most certainly match the buzz her debut, breakthrough, album Spectacular Heartbreak conjured in 2019, ‘Bittersweet At Best’ is another confident step forward for the Golden Guitar and Queensland Music Award nominee.
Recorded at Brisbane’s Hunting Ground Studios, ‘Bittersweet At Best’ itself was initially written back in 2020. Working on the song in the studio, Marsten worked with Cody McWaters (King Stingray, The Chats), Kieran Stevenson, Michael Moko and Dan Sugars – the latter who also worked on ‘Drowning Myself’ – on added production duties. McWaters mixed ‘Bittersweet At Best’, before the final cut was mastered by King Willy Sound (Gotye, Spacey Jane).
Says Marsten of the experience, creating ‘Bittersweet At Best’ with such a dream team of musicians and creatives added depth and ultimately, elevated the final product to a perfect level.
“Making this song was so easy, I knew from the beginning I wanted the keys to be the main character and we built it from there. My production team are some of the people who know me best and really understood the feeling I wanted this song to give people. We really focused on trying to make it feel as tinged with melancholy as possible. When we added the strings and Melody Moko’s beautiful backing vocals it was just the perfect little golden feeling song to me.”
HAYLEY MARSTEN
In a relatively short amount of time, Hayley Marsten has become a popular name on the alt-country and country-pop circuits. The release of Spectacular Heartbreak earned the songwriter nominations for Alt Country Album Of The Year at the Golden Guitar Awards, as well as Country Work Of The Year at the 2020 Queensland Music Awards.
A completely crowd-funded album, Spectacular Heartbreak clocked over half a million streams in its first year, while Marsten’s presence as live performer solidified courtesy of successful headline runs and prime slots supporting the likes of Fanny Lumsden, Troy Cassar-Daley, Imogen Clark, Clare Bowditch and Deborah Conway. Selected as part of the BIGSOUND50 crop of artists in 2020 – a selected cohort of Australian names to watch – Marsten made good on the investment from the industry and has since become a weapon of a performer.
PLAY/LISTEN
Single Art by: Hayley Marsten
PRAISE FOR HAYLEY MARSTEN
“I’m excited about this songwriter…”
Double J, Henry Wagons
“Penning the perfect tearjerker is something Central Queensland’s Hayley Marsten has turned into a fine art.”
ABC Queensland, Sam Davis
“Australia’s answer to Kacey Musgraves.”
Felicity Urqhart
“Part chilling, part uplifting, fully badass. I am thoroughly into it.”
Mates of Country, Megan Hopkins
‘BITTERSWEET AT BEST’ is out Thursday 22nd September
Official Website | Triple J Unearthed | Facebook | Instagram | Youtube | Twitter
