Carnival of Suburbia features eleven days of live music, from 6­-16 March, at theCaravan Music Club (Voted Rhythms Readers Poll Best Venue, 2013) and the Oakleigh Mechanics Hall.



The world-class program of events includes legendary US swamp rock guitarist Tony Joe White on Thu 7 Mar, performing his blues classics like “Rainy Night in Georgia” and “Polk Salad Annie”, later made famous by the likes of Elvis, Tom Jones and more; stunning American singer and clawhammer banjo wizz Abigail Washburn, fresh from gracing Olympics stages, TED talks to the New Orleans Jazz festival and Bonnaroo, plays Thu 7 March alongside Nashville’s Kai Welch; Sat 16 March hosts a night of musical tribute with “The After Dinner Moose Review – The Songs of Peter Lillie”. The night will honour the cult Carlton artist, former Pelaco Bros. member who passed last September and will feature a stellar line up of special guests (to be announced) backed by Peter’s band The Leisuremasters.



On the lighter side, homegrown laughs come Thu 14 March via “Hanging Off The Hills Hoist”, with stand-ups Dave O’Neill, Glen Robbins and Matt Hardy sharing tales from a childhood in the ‘burbs; Greg Appel’s Sydney Fringe hit Van Park, a musical comic farce starring John Paul Young and The Church’s Steve Kilbey where a group of washed up, beer-swillin’ rockers wind up in the caravan park, plays at the Oakleigh Mechanics Hall Fri 15 and Sat 16 March, while Sat 9 March sees the triumphant return of RRR-legendJon von Goes’ “Stopping All Stations Except Each Richmond”, back by popular demand for its third doe-eyed tour through suburban life with a star studded ensemble to be announced.



On Fri March 15, charming local outfit The Orbweavers will hypnotise with their richly sensual, scientific-minded songwriting, which rediscovers abandoned Brunswick knitting mills, Melbourne creeks, quarries, sewerage plants and other historical spots; to kick off festivities on Wed 6 March comes Rebecca & Billy’s Singalong Society, as much-loved Melbourne singers Rebecca Barnard and Billy Miller host a choir with a twist, leading closet altos and sopranos through Dylan to the Stones in a relaxed and fun community setting. All welcome! With many more acts yet to be announced, Carnival of Suburbia definitively cements Oakleigh’s place as a hub of live music south of the Yarra.



Carnival of Suburbia was born in March 2010 to bring salvation to the suburbs. Celebrating Melbourne’s so-called cultural wastelands of outer-city soul and culture, the iconic annual event has quickly been adopted into the hearts of suburbanites and citysiders alike, offering something different amongst the jam-packed summer festival scene. The festival’s spiritual home, Oakleigh’s Caravan Music Club, has become a haven for music-starved local audiences, becoming synonymous with quality national and international talent and capping a phenomenal 2012 by taking out the well reputed Rhythms Music Magazine Readers Poll Best Australian Venue Award.
 

2013 sees the third annual installment of the Carnival of Suburbia, running across eleven days of the 2013 Oakleigh Music Festival with headline acts thrilling the crowds each night at the Caravan Music Club. Stay tuned for the next line-up announcement, as even more national and international acts prepare to make their way to the cultural hotspot that is Oakleigh. 

”The suburbs are considered by many to be a barren wasteland devoid of culture, but in reality so much of the art hanging in trendy galleries and the music being played in hip inner urban venues is created in the garages and lounge rooms of suburbia so why not celebrate it in its place of origin. Carnival of Suburbia is about celebrating Melbourne suburban culture!” - Caravan Music Club Founder Peter Foley.