2 December 2008

Corinbank 2009 - It's on and get your tickets now.

| johnboy
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[First filed: November 30, 2008 @ 23:07]

From midnight 1 December the advance tickets for Corinbank 2009 are on sale from www.corinbank.com. The festival is running from 27 February to 1 March 2009.

On Sunday afternoon I sat down with organisers Nic Welbourn and Dan Watters to find out about where this unique Canberra music festival has come from, and where it’s going to.

Any of us who have travelled has been aware that the rest of the world has a multiplicity of festivals.

Those of us who have been to those festivals knows that unless you actually camp out for the full duration of the event you’re not getting the whole experience. Not even a tiny part of it.

Coming home muddy and dirty is part of the journey out to the beyond and the return to normality. A light sunburn just doesn’t cut it.

When I asked Dan about it he said the full festival experience was a cathartic experience, a removal from reality providing cleansing and an emergence from the other side after a departure from reality.

While in the last couple of years there’s been more day festivals in the region, Corinbank is the only one offering the full experience.

(Slideshow and more below)

Dan had a great inspiration to get it going, his father owns the Corin Forest Recreational Playground.

While recording an album up there with his band Eytis they took, on breaks, to speculating how they could use the site for a festival.

“I always wanted to do something up there,” Dan says.

The idea stuck, and Corinbank was born.

The guys were blown away by how well the event went this year, but have learnt some lessons going forward.

For a start they’re promising fires in the camp grounds to combat the cold mountain air.

(In fact any artists working in metal are encouraged to get in touch with designs for fire bins)

Under 16s are going to get in free this time around.

Warm showers are promised for the obsessive compulsives.

And the artistic program is being beefed up from four hours a day of performance art to a full time program.

In fact they’re looking for more submissions for their Creative Campsites, so if you’d like to share some knowledge with the public get in touch via their website and schedule something.

The idea is to create a marketplace of ideas (based on a gift economy of course).

A real priority for the organisers is getting the people of Canberra involved in the activities.

Sarah, a passerby to our conversation said; “So many festivals don’t include the community… Corinbank is something that hasn’t happened in Canberra before”.

While we’ll have to wait a week for the finalised lineup the organisers are promising it will be bigger and better than before.

When I asked Dan why festivals were finally taking off in Australia he said it might be because local acts were finally achieving the profile to headline these events without the need to import expensive international acts.

He was also keen to emphasise that no-one gets paid to organise Corinbank. They do it for the love and the party.

A big priority for this year is to make sure organisers have time to enjoy the party.

If the whole artistic program is ringing any “Burning Man” bells in followers of American alternative culture then they’ll be pleased to hear that the BM kingpin Johnny Payphone has been confirmed to attend.

The environment is a huge issue for the organisers. Last year’s Corinbank was the first festival in Australia to be powered entirely by generators burning biodiesel.

The environmental dialogue this year is moving out of a single tent into a whole village.

Which isn’t to say you have to sit around navel gazing on the environment unless you want to.

Amongst other attractions are free mountain bikes to borrow with trails running up to the waterfalls.

Dan says there’s nothing quite like having a beer in a natural swimming pool which empties down a 30m waterfall.

Other attractions not on offer in other festivals will include the Corin Forest waterslide, unprecedented opportunities to participate, 5km return hikes and an unique festival site in a mountain setting.

“We’ve really worked at making it an intimate, pleasant, experience,” says Dan.

The tickets on sale now are going for $90 for the three days, including two nights camping. They won’t stay that cheap for long so take the chance and get in now.

Here are some pictures from last year.

For more pictures of the first Corinbank check out the photo gallery pages.

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Whitesnake and Saga! Now there’s a lineup. Where’s my tickets!

Eyeball In A Quart Jar Of Snot12:42 pm 10 Dec 08

Burning Man is one terrible hippie conglomerate.

After reviewing the lineup for Corinbank, I think I’ll spend that day practicing my voodoo.

Nambucco Deliria12:32 pm 10 Dec 08

If Whitesnake, Metal Church and Grand Magus were on the first lineup announcement I’d be there.

But they aren’t. So I won’t.

New Yeah said :

Burning Man, you say?

Those two words are almost enough to make me buy an early-bird ticket. If Corinbank is going to be a fraction as gnarly as Burning Man, and I don’t doubt that it could be, then people should get on board.

Big ups to the organisers for being able to bring Corinbank back for a second edition. Beyond the music, a successful festival needs character and you guys seem to be on the money there.

A friend who recently did Burning Man, suggests that if this can even be 1/10 of BM its a must do.
This leads me to a question, one of the BM principles is donation of services by attendee’s as part of the community nature of the event, do we know if this principle is going to be picked up and if so how will that work with the event as a whole?

Comparing a single day festival to a well run camping multi day festival is like compareing school camp too a day trip. It is all of the other things like camping with your mates that are the icing on the cake.

Plus there are so many fun things to do a at festival like corinbank there is no way you could do them all in one day.

> i dont understand why camping out is considered part of the whole “experience”

It just is. I specifically avoid the one day things even…that’s not a festival, it’s just a long gig. A festival needs something more…& that’s where the camping comes in. East Coast Blues & Roots festival is amazing…& hanging out in the campground for 5 days is a big part of that. I’m old too…another reason to go for camping over fighting it out with 4372884723974 bogans (perhaps a few booners too) at something like the BDO.

I don’t get fire twirling either though.

Skidd Marx said :

I would love it if someone could explain to me what is so great about fire-twirling?

because it’s fun and exciting, it looks good and some people find it sexy.

Skidd Marx said :

Like blokes who wear their boxers six inches above their jeans – I just don’t get it.

Skidd Marx

That I never get, it’s just stupid.

And Mud, and Rigby.

(Rigby have been around for yonks, but they were at the queanbo bowlo last friday, and the place was PACKED).

Actually sufficient toilets is something they promise.

I knew it. Mud, Insufficient Toilets, and Rigby.

Ha ha Grunge Hippy – change your tag immediately!

The best thing about camping at a 3 day festival is stumbling 200 metres to your bed. And then waking up, unzipping the flap, squinting into the sunlight and starting it all over again.

The worst part was the drive home to ‘reality’ when it was all over.

grunge_hippy8:29 pm 01 Dec 08

i dont understand why camping out is considered part of the whole “experience”. to be honest one of the best things about trackside, BDO, homebake etc. is crawling home to your own (or a hotel) bed and dying!! i couldnt think of anything worse than having to camp out with drunken morons in a tent.

but i guess i am old.

last years lineup was totally underwhelming…i am not up for the whole hippy experience anyway (despite my name! it was bestoed upon me by a lead singer after asking for a very old song from their first album!) fire twirling chai tea and happy herb tents are not my bag…

but then again, if the line up is good…… never say never to a festival!!

I went to the last one and try and stop me going this year. Farken rocked!!!

Burning Man, you say?

Those two words are almost enough to make me buy an early-bird ticket. If Corinbank is going to be a fraction as gnarly as Burning Man, and I don’t doubt that it could be, then people should get on board.

Big ups to the organisers for being able to bring Corinbank back for a second edition. Beyond the music, a successful festival needs character and you guys seem to be on the money there.

I saw a “fire twirler” hit himself in the face with his burning spinny thing once. He got a little burned, but it is still a very funny memory.

HA HA that makes sense. You hope that no-one gets hurt but if they do you wanna make damn sure you’re there to see it!

Skidd Marx said :

I would love it if someone could explain to me what is so great about fire-twirling? Like blokes who wear their boxers six inches above their jeans – I just don’t get it.

Skidd Marx

It’s like motorsport. You watch in the hope of a hideous accident.

I would love it if someone could explain to me what is so great about fire-twirling? Like blokes who wear their boxers six inches above their jeans – I just don’t get it.

Skidd Marx

I heard good things about this festival from their first run. I hope they do even better for 2009.

glasscentralcanberra12:38 pm 01 Dec 08

Great! – we love Johnny Payphone.

I totally agree with the compliments!
It was such a wonderful, joyous, different and relaxed atmosphere. Great bands (esp local – hooray!) and top headliners too. Perfect mix of sounds, activities and people, with lots of places to explore and be a part of, but plenty of room to spread out and enjoy the sunshine! As for the loo lineup, never a problem! Even the bars were well resourced to cope with the demand!
(I enjoyed the mud too – lol, though my jeans were never quite the same.)
Looking forward to making the trek out again next year. And gotta love the price! 😉

Thanks for the post John! Just wanted to clarify a couple of things:

– The mountain bike trails run DOWN to the waterfall, not ‘up’ – who’d want to peddle?! 🙂 There’s a shuttle bus to take you back up to the site.
– We ran B100 (aka 100% biodiesel) in our generators last year. A small (and increasing)number of festivals round the country have also run biodiesel in the gennies as well, but as far as I’m aware the best of them only ran B20 (or a 20% bio, 80% mineral mix).
– And the fire bins will be in the entertainment areas, not the campsites – tents and flames don’t mix particularly well! We’re looking for some wild artistic creations for fire bins!! If you reckon you can make such a thing email arts@corinbank.com.

And Ant – “Rigby and the Men at Work Tribute Band” – you crack me up! They might get a spot if they get their name up fast on the Blackboard in the Chai Tent, but unless we get some chicken wire across the front of the stage they’ll probably end up coated in chai and mulled wine! Note-to-self: purchase chicken wire!

yeah, book me in i think

>Flash. I knew it. They’re trying to hide the massive wait for toilets (and the mud).
Well pretty obvious you didn’t go last year then.

Corinbank was one of the best organised festivals I have ever been to which is an amazing feat for a first year festival. I never had to wait in line for the loo’s there were hot showers which is uncommon for short festivals and was much appreciated after performing. There was nice lighting all around the camping areas. All of that is just the infrastructure, not mentioning all of the amazing acts booked and great day time activity.

Two thumbs up Corinbank 🙂 Cant wait till next year!!!!

Hahaha! 1am on a Monday morning and the cynisism has already begun LOL.

As for me, I have never heard of Corinbank before so it should be interesting to see how it all plays out 🙂

Flash. I knew it. They’re trying to hide the massive wait for toilets (and the mud).

Someone should shoot them for that flash based monstrosity they call a website.

Or you could go to the 2008 program (http://www.corinbank.com/program2008.html) and make an educated guess that you’re going to get more of the same and/or similar, and base your decision on whether to commit your cash based thereon. (Based Thereon is, of course, a distant cousin of Charlize Theron).

You could stump up the dough, and find yourself covered in mud, waiting for toilets and listening to the Little River Band, Rigby and the Men at Work Tribute Band!

Well you can wait until after the announcement and pay an extra $30.

Depends if you’re going for the band or the event I guess.

90 bucks is a fair gamble for zero lineup announcements.

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