Laneway and Falls Festivals plan all Australian line-ups, but with a tweak to artist contracts

Popular music festivals such as Falls and Laneway are planning to go ahead this year, but with one big change to the way they run. This comes as a promoter has admitted if the gigs don’t go ahead, the artists won’t get paid.

Laneway and Falls are planning all Australian line-ups. Courtney Barnett pic: Jason Edwards

POPULAR music festivals such as Falls and Laneway are planning to go ahead with one big change to the way they run.

The iconic festivals are planning all-Australian line-ups if they are able to proceed next year.

Laneway co-promoter Michael Chugg said the event moving forward while waiting for Government advice on public gathering.

“Every festival would be looking at an all-Australian bill,” Chugg said.

“Our borders won’t be open to let international acts in for some time. Every festival would be addressing the same situations now – what are the health requirements? What capacities are actually going to be allowed?

“How do you enforce social distancing? Do you put seats into festivals like they’re talking about putting into pubs that have live music? What are the ticket prices? What is your break even?

“There’s a lot of unknowns. There’s a chance of smaller capacities everywhere until everyone gets comfortable.”

Promoter Michael Chugg says music festivals are starting to picture how to move forward. Pic: Supplied

Chugg said festivals are changing their contract to include a clause that artists may not get paid if the event cannot take place due to ongoing social distancing restrictions.

“As an artist manager and a promoter I’m trying to come up with clauses that work for everybody. Obviously if you’re planning a festival in December and the Government won’t allow you to stage it you shouldn’t have to pay anybody if it can’t happen.

“As soon as the pandemic happened, the word pandemic was taken out of every insurance policy in the world. It’s a punt for everybody now.”

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The promoter said the large amount of Australian acts doing live streams during isolation will benefit festivals, artists and audiences.

“There’s never been this many hot live Australian bands around. Isolation has created this whole new audience of artists doing live streams, from Delivered Live to Isol-Aid to State of Music, there must be 200,000 people watching live Australian music from their homes every weekend. That’s going to be great for local festivals when they can start again.”

Local artist Ruel at this year’s Laneway Festival. Pic: Mackenzie Sweetnam/Getty Images

Melbourne musician Tones And I at this year’s Laneway Festival. Pic: Naomi Jellicoe

Similarly, Chugg said Australia will be watching how New Zealand come out of lockdown and kickstart their live music industry.

“They’re slightly ahead of us, so there’s a good chance their New Years’ festivals could happen, but really no one has any idea right now,” Chugg said.

“But the Oz/NZ bubble is going to become momentous and very important over the next six months. There’s some heavyweights in the American music industry predicting there’ll be no touring or big live shows there until the last quarter of 2021.”

Chugg also stages the CMC Rocks country music festival, which was axed this year, but is eyeing off an all-Australian line-up for 2021.

In 2019 Laneway featured locals Gang of Youths and Courtney Barnett as headliners, while this year Tones and I, Ruel, Ocean Alley and DMAs were high on the bill.

This year’s Falls Festival featured Flume, Peking Duk, Vera Blue, Pnau and John Farnham.

The Falls Festival, which runs over several states in late January and early February, announced in a statement they would “work towards” an all Australian line-up if the event can take place.

Melbourne musician Courtney Barnett headlined the 2019 Laneway Festival. Pic: Supplied

“We have some of the most exciting acts in the world and this special home grown edition of Falls will ensure that money stays in our local economy, providing maximum financial benefit for the Australian music community – artists, management, crew, agents, roadies, production etc – as well as the thousands of contractors and suppliers who rely on our events for their income.”

The Falls promoters also handle Byron Bay’s Splendour in the Grass, which still plans to take place in October and has many international acts on their line-up.

While the promoters were unavailable for comment, Chugg said he would be surprised if it takes place in September.

“It’s not my festival, but I don’t think there’ll be large gatherings of that size in September. I’d be happy to see it, it benefits all of us, but I think it’s optimistic.”

Originally published as Laneway and Falls Festivals plan all Australian line-ups, but with a tweak to artist contracts