GreazeFest 2008 Photos (Page 1)  

words by Lori Lee | photos by Pix by Pete

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Blue Brisbane sky

The die hard fans arrived early to catch the GreazeFest Pre-Party on Thursday night at the Troubadour, the Valley club where Lori Lee hosts her monthly Custom Rockabilly shows. A newly formed band of well versed performers, Paulie & His Crazy Rhythm Boys, were on stage for two sets tonight. The audience kept it intimate but lively, staying close to the front of the stage, to dig Paulie, hunched over his mike, perform his spirited Eurobilly tunes. With three days yet to go, I tried my best to make an early exit and keep some energy in reserve.
 

Friday Sinners Ball                               

Friday’s daylight hours were spent assembling and decorating the main room in the venue, hanging prints and banners, making way for the soundies lugging in the PA, assembling the backline, briefing the GreazeForce, meeting the touring artists, and by habit, scanning the skies for any remote signs of rain. With such a tight schedule, today is the only day of the year that I squeeze the mighty Dodge along a drive-through for some instant junk chow. There was only just enough time to slip on some cowboy threads and no time at all for a fancy hairdo, and the GreazeFest had begun.

The Sinners Ball on Friday night saw a colourful congregation of customised patrons with all sorts of young rockers, glamorous gals, greased and chopped guys and tattooed sweethearts turning out for this night of nights. I was working the rig at the DJ desk, setting the mood for the night with some choice psyched up rockabilly cuts, as old and new friends converged for an exciting night of rockabilly.

When looking at the entertainment schedule for the night, you’d notice the GreazeFest does not follow the old standard of newest band first, famous band last. Each band on any day at GreazeFest is just as important as the band before them and after them. Any thoughts that the Bad Moon Company was the ‘opening act’ for the Sinners Ball were swept aside as their army of fans crammed the dance floor and partied hard to their jungle rhythm rockabilly. The Vaudevillains were quick to follow and the talented trio from Melbourne stepped on the gas peddle with a classy set of hopped up rockabilly. The set included songs such as the catchy ‘Devil Drives A Valiant’ and I’m know they turned many new fans to their slick sounds.

The show schedule was creeping ahead of itself, so I pulled it back on track with another set of rockin’ tunes from the DJ rig, to give the audience a chance for a quick breather before the youngest rockers in town, Checkered Fist, hit the stage.

The Fist opened their show by clunking through Folsom Prison Blues totally out of time, until the anticipated 1-2-3-4 punk scream and the juvenile trio were off and racing! The crowd just went nuts as they quickly discovered these cats could play tight as a fist with energy and angst.

If all this wasn’t enough, there was still one more band to follow and that was Bone Rattlers from Tasmania. The trio was dressed in prison garb, on closer inspection revealing Sing Prison, San Quentin and Alcatraz Psycho Ward! Bone Rattlers slammed it into gear with a tough set of kick ass rockabilly, wrenching more dancing and high jinks from the audience and bringing a fantastic night to an exciting finish.
 

The Bad Moon Company...                            

Checkered Fist...

Bone Rattlers...

The Audience...

GreazeFest Street Cruise

Those who didn’t get to the Sinners Ball started their GreazeFest weekend at the Street Cruise which gathered at The Eliminators clubhouse in Loganholme. Despite petrol prices and the current tightening of economic belts, a solid roll up of vintage cars turned out for a cruise under the blue skies of autumn.

While the hot rod heads were cruising, I was taking part in an in-depth interview by Network 10, the Brisbane television station who is creating a documentary on sub-cultures. I appreciated the opportunity to share some insights into our kustom kulture scene, but I quietly hoped that my comments and my sleep deprived manner were taken in the right context.
 

Saturday Greazers Ball

For many rockabilly fans the Greazers Ball is the highlight of the GreazeFest weekend and the line up this year ensured the show was filled to capacity. DJs Limpin’ Jimmy & The Swingin’ Kitten set the scene with tunes to get the rockers boppin’ on the dance floor. Warren Earl and The Atomic Rockers hit the stage with a fine set of rockabilly and hillbilly bop. Warren’s sweet baritone, backed by Doug Wilshire’s steel licks cemented their authentic sound and had everyone on their feet dancing.

Those rockers looking out the window would have spotted me and stage manager Tim guiding the staging crew trucking in the outdoor stage for the next day’s outdoor car show. It happens every year, I miss the start of the Greazers Ball with these commitments, but these jobs are just too essential to be delegated just yet (maybe next year…).

I made it back upstairs in time to catch the Pat Capocci Combo who had electrified the room with a killer set of trad rockabilly. Dangerous Dan joined the Combo as guest for the evening and the sound of Dan and Pat trading guitar licks and solos was heaven on a stick for rockabilly fans. Any previous thoughts I had of taking it easy tonight were flicked aside as I hit the dance floor to shake off some stress and rattle my bones. It made me wish there was a second GreazeFest where I could attend simply as a punter and party for the whole weekend.

The dancing continued when those crazy intergalactic cats, Men into Space dressed in flight suits and helmets, emerged on stage in a cloud of smoke. Their stage antics and rockabilly tunes were a hit with the audience who were hypnotized by their laser licks. I don’t know how I missed him/her, I must have been in the transporter room, but an alien appeared at the end of their show and took over duties on the double bass. Actually, I think it was a 'him' after checking the photos! Please take a look at all the snaps from tonight, as there are too many cool shots to include in this Roundup. www.greazefest.com/gf2008pg1.htm

It was all eyes and ears to the front as The Detonators took to the stage for the start of two sets of killer rock’n’roll. No strangers to GreazeFest and to the audience, this powerful foursome started with some Dets classics, gradually priming the crowd as they continued to gain pace, until the rally cry by Rockbottom ‘alright, everyone on their bikes!’. The audience obeyed and held their arms aloft, revving their air-throttles, as The Dets slammed it into gear for Throttle Jockey Demon. The boys kept up the pace until taking over the finish line just in time for last drinks in the wee hours of Sunday morning. Does it get any better than this?

When I got back to the Robot Ranch, I was planning to get some sleep, but the elusive slumber simply wouldn’t occur, no matter how I patiently willed it to happen. So after three hours of just laying down, I arose to drive back to the GreazeFest site by 6am to get ready for the Hot Rod Show. By the time I hit the site, the work adrenalin had kicked in again and tiredness was not even an issue. As the sun rose over the oval at Souths, the GreazeForce Team arrived to man their posts and make the Hot Rod Show take shape.

Warren Earl & The Atomic Rockers

Pat Capocci Combo

Men Into Space

The Audience

The GreazeForce