Friday 16 January 2015 - Yea Arts Carnivale, Yea (#108)

Our second trip to the Yea Carnivale after a year’s break did not disappoint. A warm summer’s evening greeted the combined band of Pans on Fire and Hot Pans, as we set up on the platform of the old Yea Railway Station. As we set up, it was mostly in shade, but as the evening wore on the setting sun encroached more and more onto the “stage”, with the second set played with most of the players in sunshine. By the third set, however, the sun had set and now we were grappling with difficulties in seeing exactly what we were playing. But it was all worth it, with the brick wall of the old station as a backdrop and the steel roof as a soundshell making a great sound environment for the band to play along with. For once, we could mostly hear what we were playing and, to us at least, it sounded great!

Everyone “frocked up” for the night in the spirit of Carnivale, and presented a colourful spectacle.

We had a special visitor for the evening, ex-player Tom Schwerkolt-Browne, who had come up from Tassie and appeared in the crowd. He was invited up on stage to play in Amazing Grace and showed he had lost none of his touch and style.

And the following week, we were on the front page of the Yea Chronicle - very colourful.