Legacy rock band Magic Dirt talk playing Queenscliff Music Festival, the untimely death of their bass player and what lies ahead.
Returning to the stage has not always been a certainty for Magic Dirt.
In 2009, the band’s bassist Dean Turner died, bringing everything to an abrupt halt.
“After Dean died, we didn’t play again for nine years,” guitarist Raúl Sánchez says.
“Losing a band member and a best friend is unthinkable. When it happened, it just changed everything.”
“There was never really a thought of doing the band again,” frontwoman Adalita Srsen adds. “Everything just stopped.”
Magic Dirt – Queenscliff Music Festival
- 27–29 November 2026
- Queenscliff, Wadawurrung Country
- Tickets here
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Throughout the ’90s and early noughties, Magic Dirt seemingly tore through every stage, party and festival they could get their hands and guitars on.
With a fuzz-rock sound that was completely their own, they became the band you wanted to know about. Throwing herself around the stage, Srsen was a clear incarnation of the likes of Debbie Harry or Joan Jett.
Today, however, Srsen is trying to navigate exactly how to use Zoom.
“We’re old people, we don’t know what we’re doing,” she says immediately, apologising for being a few minutes behind schedule.
Later this year, the band will be performing at Queenscliff Music Festival. It is a festival that Srsen has clearly had her eye on for some time, although she cannot quite work out whether she has played there before.
“I feel like I must have,” she says, scratching her chin. “But I just can’t remember.”
Either way, the upcoming show marks Magic Dirt’s first appearance at the festival as the band they are now.
For Srsen, it also marks something of a homecoming.
“I grew up there, so it really does feel like a homecoming,” she says.
“It’s one of those festivals that you really want to get on. So, it’s super exciting to be asked. I mean, every show we do still feels like a thrill.”
The band are also friends with several artists appearing on the lineup.
“We are huge Peter Garrett fans. We also love Tim Rogers and Baker Boy.”
At this point, Sánchez pulls up the full lineup to see who else is playing.
“There’s a band called Midnight Chicken,” he says, seemingly quite taken by the name. “Let’s check them out,” Srsen responds. “Then rename them Midnight Vegan Chicken!” she jokes, on account of her vegan diet.
Magic Dirt’s long road back
While the members continued making music in other ways, the idea of performing in Magic Dirt without Turner was simply too difficult to contemplate. That was until 2018, when the band were asked to perform at a one-off private event.
“We were asked to do a send-off gig and from there things started happening,” Srsen says.
“Then it got to the point where all these stars aligned.
“We just thought, ‘What would Dean do?’ We always knew we had his blessing. It felt right when we got back together.”
What started as a one-off performance slowly turned into something more permanent than anyone ever expected.
“It just felt so natural getting back together,” Sánchez notes. “As soon as we started playing the songs, it was so electrifying. It was the most natural thing.”
The question of who would take Turner’s place was, understandably, not an easy one. Eventually, the band brought in Steve Patrick, who had been friends with Turner.
“He just understood it,” Srsen says. “He was a good friend of his. We just knew that he would get it.”
Since reforming, Magic Dirt have been back on the road and playing shows around the country. Now, they are preparing to take an even bigger step: release new music.
“We’re currently in the middle of making our new record,” Srsen announces rather excitedly.
For years, the answer had always been ‘never say never,’ but eventually the band began talking more seriously about making something new. This led to a few sessions, which eventually led to a fully-fledged album.
“Combined with what the fans were talking about, sometimes you just have to refresh what you’re doing,” Srsen says. “We just craved something new and a slight change of direction.”
What that exactly looks like remains to be seen. But for now, it is very clear: Magic Dirt are very much back.
For more information, head here.
This article was made in partnership with Queenscliff Music Festival.
