Kicking off with Brunswick Music Festival, finishing on a weekend of MFWF with a stacked event schedule between.
All the usual suspects are there for your weekly Beast activities, as well as album and EP launches, a fair whack of local talent and some out-of-towners on tour. It’s a calendar of punk, soul and rock ‘n’ roll, with a heavy contingent of country and western and a few light folk touches.
Saddle up, rock on and see what’s happening at The Beast in March.
Keep up with the latest music news, features, festivals, interviews and reviews here.
Tuesday Trivia
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- Every Tuesday
- Hosted by The Funky Bunch
- Call to book
A staple of the Beast monthly calendar, it’s time to get your team together and quiz your heart out. Prizes and $10 pints, what more could you want from your trivia?
Soul Beast Wednesdays: Busted Chops
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- Every Wednesday
Slide in for the weekly Soul Beast sessions. Free soul music and $1 wings (so cheap it’s almost free). Busted Chops, the brilliant local funk-fusion hip-hop band, will be playing every Wednesday night throughout March. They kick arse.
Twangover
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- Every Sunday
Country and blues will cure what ails you. And $15 Bloody Marys and $10 vino couldn’t hurt. The free Twangover sets kick off with Hawker Heights, bringing their vintage rhythm and blues and NOLA vibes in a special ‘Lundi Gras Mardi Gras’ show. The rest of March has a lineup of Acid Arrow’s country psych sounds, Night Owls with classic blues, The Kieron McDonald Combo with garage-style 1950s rockabilly tunes and Moonee Valley Drifters showing off their swing, honky tonk, Tex-Mex, Cajun and Bluegrass.
Drop Keys
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- With The Winfield Road Experiment and AstroVillain
- Saturday, March 1
Groove on a night of Naarm-based funk and soul talent. The lineup of big ensembles is led by Drop Keys (formerly Funk Rabbit) with their dynamic, funky rock and soul show. Support act The Winfield Road Experiment brings a unique Latin-style soul jazz and Astrovillain comes blazing in with their vibrant jazz funk.
Wild Dog Mountains
- Thursday, March 6
Riding the Australiana alt country wave, local group Wild Dog Mountains are back at the Beast. These fresh, up-and-comers already have two singles under their belt and bring a unique voice to the scene, with a touch of “Jangle folk and 2020s ennui”. It’s good country fun.
Dead Amigos
- Friday, March 7
Get set for a rager with Dead Amigos. These St Kilda rockers take cues from blues, funk and country, not stressing about painting in the lines of genre. They’ll have just launched their new album, “Way Down”. Known for their energetic, irreverent live shows, this promises to be a hell of a party.
Ben Mastwyk & His Millions
- With Disco Rodeo Bootscooters and Misty Harlow
- Saturday, March 8
Launching his new single with a country and Western takeover, Ben Mastwyk’s swooping in with his brand of ‘Cosmic country rock’ and his seven-piece band, Millions. It’s seventies style western, touch of the psych in the country saloon. You’ll be on your feet for bootscooting with Disco Rodeo, and songstress Misty Harlowe plays support with her heartfelt Americana storytelling.
BMF: Scud and Licklash
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- With Glen, Worker & Parasite and Eris & The Disciples
- Sunday, March 9
Brunswick Music Festival sees an epic lineup for the Licklash x Scud Split 7″ launch party, presented by Roolette Records. Scud blast their sassy punk rock with Licklash and their Amyl and the Sniffers energy. They’re backed up by rockers Glen, Worker & Parasite’s “party music for the proletariat” and electropunk with Eris & The Disciples.
Paper Jane
- Thursday, March 13
Hailing from Central Victoria, Paper Jane are the self-described “succulent Chinese meal” of Melbourne Americana”. Expect old-school country and Western with a touch of gospel and blues, telling Australian stories with twangin’ guitar and heartfelt harmonies.
Forklift Assassins Album Launch
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- With The Reasons Why, Kegging and K Mart WaRRioRs
- Friday, March 14
Forklift Assassins are known for fast and loud rock punk metal, with a touch of Black Sabbath and good lashings of The Misfits and Motorhead. They’ll be launching their album, supported by grunge rockers The Reasons Why and local punks K Mart WaRRioRs.
Super American Eagle
- With Miffs and Humdinger
- Saturday, March 15
Three-piece Naarm-based rock band, Super American Eagle, blends super heavy rock with noise, psych and even 90s grunge. With surf grunge girl band Miffs and frenetic rocket-fuel rock and roll group Humdinger, it’s going to get hot and heavy in the Beast.
Adam Hattaway
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- Thursday, March 20
Kiwi singer Adam Hattaway takes the Beast stage with his signature swaggering alt-country allure and lyricism. It’s country storytelling with a touch of indie folk meets Western gothic and melancholic soul.
Buddhadatta
- With New Estate
- Friday, March 21
Tribal and mystical meets punk dance in Buddhadatta, self-described Japanese “Buddhist-Punx” with a one-of-a-kind genre-bending rock show. An unmissable live performance, they’ll also be supported by local indie rock group New Estate.
Midway
- With Bowlo
- Saturday, March 22
Make way for Midway. The three-piece psych rock band out of Newcastle are launching their new EP, rolling out trippy swirls of electric guitar and sunny, surf-rock beats and vocals that’ll have you swaying all night.
Kyle Brew
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- Thursday, March 27
Kyle Brew presents a throwback to an earlier era of country. His own brand of alt-country folk is driven by his rich vocals and soulful lyrics, with influence from Lightnin’ Hopkins and Justin Townes Earle.
Maggie Alley
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- With Ellen James
- Friday, March 28
Singer-songwriter Maggie Alley is a rising star, likened to a young Patti Smith. Her storytelling draws from her experiences, with inspiration from artists like Kate Bush, David Bowie and Amy Winehouse. She’s supported by alt-folk bard Ellen James.
MFWF – Snacks + Tatts
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- Saturday and Sunday, March 29 and 30
- $100 or $130
- Tickets here
It’s a big Beast of a weekend for the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival. Learn to tattoo from the Ink and Drink pros with a hands-on session (synthetic skin only!) while digging into a “Best of the Beast” snack feast and a mini beer or cocktail flight.
Keep up to date with what’s filling up the belly of the Beast on IG here.
This article was made in partnership with the Beast.
