Back To Basics

Ask any young band what they want in life and the answer will always be, “To play as many shows as possible.” Because that's what it's all about, right?

Between early October and Australia Day next year, country-blues picker 'n' pounder 8 Ball Aitken will play 66 shows, plus however many he manages to pull off at the Tamworth Country Music Festival in late January. At least 66 shows in almost four months!

“People ask me if I get tired, and I say, 'I get tired every night and I fall asleep, and then I wake up and get to the next gig',” Aitken says of his gruelling schedule – he's been doing it in this country for a decade.

It's through touring of course that self-managed bands spread their music; it's where they're able to connect directly with fans, it's where they sell CDs, it's where they make their money.“I think it's the best way to go,” Aitken, who's released five records since 2004, concurs. “Everything I've done has been based on playing live everywhere. I've done seventeen countries now, including Australia. And I've had three songs used in TV shows in America this year… so it's nice when that kind of thing happens, but honestly, I just hit the road and just play my music live almost every night to people.”

Aitken, who has been based in Nashville for the past two years, has just finished recording a new album, Southern Hemisphere and will be playing tracks from it at the Grassroots Music Festival. It's held in the Mt. Coot-tha Botanic Gardens in Brisbane in early November, and is an event Aitken started, last year attracting well over 1000 punters.

“We've steadily built it, and we didn't have any idea that it'd get this popular. I went up there for a picnic about ten years ago, then we applied for a Brisbane City Council grant to make it happen. And this is the ninth year, and we've just been given a letter from the Council saying they're going to put it on for another three years. So it's keeping going, and we're just really excited to bring a new lineup of Brisbane roots, blues, country, folk, all kinds of organic music, every year. We're just excited that there's always new performers to play it with all their original songs.”

This year is no exception with Morningside Fats, The Company, Anita Ree, Getano Bann, Bec Laughton and The Leaping Lizards all gracing the stage, plus of course the man himself.

“The ethos is pretty simple. Springtime weather in Brisbane, people in an outdoor setting… listening to Brisbane musicians who write their own songs.”