For close to four decades now, the Brunswick Music Festival has been a staple of the culture within the titular Melbourne suburb.
A breeding ground for talent, creativity, and a love of the arts, the annual festival never fails to deliver, and in 2024, that dedication to quality is more prevalent than ever.
The origins of the Brunswick Music Festival can be traced back to the ‘80s when the Brunswick Town Hall held a series of free concerts called the Music Of Migration. A celebration of the multicultural DNA that makes up the suburb, the impact of these concerts was clearly felt, and before long, plans to instigate a larger festival was put into place.
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By 1988, the building blocks for what would become the Brunswick Music Festival had fallen into place, and its annual event would officially launch in 1989. In true fashion, the lineup of its first outing is eclectic and nurturing of the local music scene. In addition to local artists, you could find names like Irish musician Andy Irvine, Australian guitarists Tommy and Phil Emmanuel, and even John McAuslan, who would go on to become Festival Director until 2013.
Continuing almost uninterrupted since its inception, COVID threw something of a spanner in the works, but the festival has remained resilient, and survived to continue its impressive reputation.
Brunswick Music Festival’s packed 2024 lineup
Brunswick Music Festival lineup: Wednesday, MJ Lenderman and WITCH lead first drop
In fact, in 2024, the Brunswick Music Festival is as strong as ever with new music and performance programmer Juliette Lalli ushering in a diverse lineup that celebrates both local and international talent on a grand scale. Running for nine days from March 3rd until March 11th, the lineup is packed as ever, with its official kick-off beginning with the Sydney Road Street Party.
On March 3, punters can immerse themselves in a series free events held at a number of venues on the street, including performances by Porpoise Spit, Our Carlson, S.U.G.A.R, and Snowy at The Retreat, Brunswick Ballroom, Stay Gold, and Co-Conspirators Brewing Co. That’s, of course, without mentioning the nine-band bill at The Bergy spearheaded by Poison City Records.
Throughout the nine-day affair, the Brunswick Music Festival intends to celebrate what it is that makes the creative scene in Brunswick so unique and diverse. Alongside events from the likes of Mindy Meng Weng and Sui Zhen, MZRizk X Tarabeat and Hearts and Rockets, you’ll also be able to find the inaugural Brunswick Music Festival Night Bowls, which features music from Don’t Thank Me, Spank Me!, Eggy, Kosmetika, and Obscura Hail.
There’s also label showcases from Blossom Rot Records, Psychic Hysteria, Beloved Recordings and Earshift Music. Beloved Recordings will focus on Rowena Wise, Darvid Thor, Winten, and Lewis Coleman, and Everybody Rocks will be a showcase of disabled musicians, including Rhysics, Billiam & The Split Bills, Inkrewsive HipHop Crew, and Sibyl.
Acclaimed local and international headliners
Brunswick Music Festival: Yothu Yindi, WITCH, Wednesday, Gut Health lead 2024 lineup
The lineup also features a number of international debuts, including the likes of North Carolina five piece Wednesday (and along with MJ Lenderman & The Wind, appearing separately), and Zambian Psych-rock band W.I.T.C.H.. You’ll also be able to find international names by way of US post-punker Sneaks, New Zealand’s Vanessa Worm, and Greece’s Frenzee as part of Highly Contagious, the twilight musical mass put on by locals Gut Health.
As Gut Health’s Athina Uh Oh explains, the chance to not only play a festival such as this, but curate their own lineup, is a testament to their own connection to the local music scene.
“It means playing and enjoying music in the very nooks and crannies that we met so much of our community, and saw so many of our favorite acts over the years,” says Athina.
“It also means having the resources to bring our wild ideas into fruition, because we wouldn’t be able to do this without support. We get to show people what we care about most when it comes to music and events.”
Beginning life as a zine published by Gut Health’s own bassist Adam Markmann in 2020, featuring illustrations by Rowena J. Lloyd and reviews by Fergus Sinclair, this new event as part of the festival reignites and reimagines the ethos of the zine for the live stage.
A celebration of local Brunswick culture
“The idea was simple: explore music and art you love, with people you love,” says Athina. “In the case of Highly Contagious’ first edition, that music and art was from outsiders; those on the fringes, be it a bedroom producer, psychedelic synth pioneer, creatrix Dominatrix, or illustrator.
“Adam had always hoped to continue this exploration of music and art they love through events when we were finally out of the pandemic, and I wanted to remind the crew of how well-loved HC was. Now that the energy is there, we can resurrect it.”
With “more events and other exciting tidbits on the horizon”, along with further issues of the zine, Highly Contagious is looking strong. In true fashion, the lineup for its debut outing hopes to cement everything that makes both it, and the wider music community special.
“Our aim was to stay true to HC: explore outsiders of music, throw genres out the door, and have fun while doing it,” says Athina. “We wanted to show through this event that these spaces should champion people on the fringes of these genres, who are marginalized and often downplayed.
“While singing songs might not solve the problems in the world so much, there’s a place for dance and punk music – one that holds space to safely let loose, process whatever you might be going through and find catharsis. We want this to be a space where people feel like they can come together through the power of community.”
However, the Brunswick Music Festival lineup doesn’t end there. First Nations programming is also a strong focus for 2024, with the legendary Yothu Yindi appearing as headliners for the event and Bumpy and Yirinda headlining the main stage at Sydney Road Street Party. Audiences will also be able to catch an album launch by Canisha, and Music For The Mob, which features Kee’ahn, DANCINGWATER, and Jada Weazel.
Additionally, International Women’s Day on March 8th will see an exhibition diving deep into Indigenous perspectives, music by SOVBLKPSSY and movement artist MaggZ performing a creative response to the Photo 2024 exhibition, “Future River: When the Past Flows,” thoughtfully curated by Kimba Thompson.
Meanwhile, March 10th comes alive with Bulleke-bek Journey which sees 15 unique spaces throughout Brunswick coming alive with free events that range from contemporary Arabic sounds in A1 Bakery to Dancehall at Vola Foods, and an interactive late-night jam session at Jazz Lab.
In keeping with the idea of ensuring an accessible approach to the arts, the vast majority of events at the 2024 Brunswick Music Festival are free, though some events are tickets. For a full rundown of the program, and for ticketing and accessibility details, be sure to visit the festival’s website for further information.
Brunswick Music Festival runs from 3 – 11 March. For the full program, head here.
Beat is an official media partner of Brunswick Music Festival.
