The Gig, a new two-night punk and metal event at Orange Showgrounds, drew more than 400 fans through the gates in its first year, including punters who travelled from Brisbane, Canberra, Darwin and Adelaide for a Friday punk night and Saturday metal night headlined by Luca Brasi and Windwaker.
Staged by local production company CCT Productions on 4–5 September, The Gig ran a multi-band main stage across both nights alongside Tomorrow’s Noise Today, a dedicated stage to platform showcasing emerging talent from across the Central West.
Organisers say the interstate reach was the standout result. With a punk night followed by a metal night, The Gig showed that regional demand for live music isn’t limited to one genre or one type of crowd – there’s an audience willing to travel for the right line-up, whatever the sound.
“Having people travel in from Brisbane, Canberra, Darwin and Adelaide for a first-time event is honestly beyond what we expected – that’s exactly the kind of drawcard we hoped The Gig could be for the region,” said Mitch Colton, Technical Director of CCT Productions. “It’s been months of work behind the scenes, and to see it land the way it did, with such a positive response from fans, artists and the industry, has made it all worthwhile. We’re going to take some time to properly debrief and unpack what worked before we start planning what’s next – nothing’s locked in yet, but watch this space.”
Fittingly, both headliners know small-town roots themselves and know what it means to bring live music of scale to regional areas. Metal night’s Windwaker formed in regional NSW town, Wagga Wagga before relocating to Melbourne, and used the night to preview new material ahead of their upcoming album ‘smile, you’re on camera’ out in October. “Orange isn’t a city that gets shows like this very often, so we’re stoked to be part of changing that,” the band said ahead of the event.
Punk night’s Luca Brasi proudly call St Helens, a coastal Tasmanian town smaller than Orange, home, and arrived at The Gig off the back of a national tour earlier in the year celebrating ten years of ‘If This Is All We’re Going To Be’.
Beyond the main stage, organisers point to the TNT stage – “Tomorrow’s Noise Today” – as one of the highlights, giving emerging musicians from across the Central West a platform alongside touring acts. They also single out all-ages access as a strength of the event, one that didn’t go unnoticed by the acts themselves. In an email to organisers after the event, touring band Ghazza said the all-ages crowd was great to see, giving them the chance to connect with young fans they don’t usually meet at shows, and said they’d be keen to be part of something similar again.
The event also drew media attention beyond Orange, with Mitch Colton interviewed on ABC Radio Central West and journalists from Sydney Morning Herald travelling to Orange to attend.
The CCT Productions crew say this year’s response has them looking at what’s next, and whether destination live music could become a recurring fixture on the region’s event calendar.
