6am.
Things start early around here.
At first light, the trucks come 'round. The rubbish truck is particularly noisy. It's one of those big industrial things with prongs on the front that make it look like a mechanical mammoth. it picks up the car-sized dumpsters, hoiks them over the cab then with an almighty booming bang, empties them. King of these is the glass recycling version. As above, but the crash is followed by the sound of ten thousand shattering bottles. Great fun at 5am. Then come the water tankers, the food, ice, general traffic... But I sleep well here, always have. Not sure if it's exhaustion (not yet!), the gentle lull of the drums (no fecking chance) or just something aromatic in the air (most likely), and even the hue & cry of Woodford waking usually isn't enough to annoy me into getting me up at 6am every day. Usually it's just I start getting fidgety inside the tent. Mornings here are just stunning. The hills behind the valley are usually shrouded in this beautiful moving mist, and the colour of the light is something quite unique. So I'm sitting here, 'puta on my lap, looking out over the hills and just watching people drifting to the showers, chatting, rolling out of their tents with smiles on their faces. This truly is one of my favourite places on Earth. People here will stop to pick up the smallest piece of litter, they chat, ask questions of each other, share food, drink and tobacco, but most of all they're tolerant.
So, today. Big day. Mannie and Bridge arrive properly so the camp will become whole. Mannie also has the other eskie full of Sunas Apple Juice so we'll be able to stop spitting feathers with thirst! Work-wise, we have a gig tonight down at the Muse, which we're itching for, but before that we have the Opening Ceremony. Bridget, Mannie and I have today to learn the song and re-jig one of our tunesets (I was about to say 'no pun intended, but arse it, I'll let that stand. Re-jig a tune. Ha!). It's a great song, very funny and should go down a treat.
Right, I'll sign off here and come back a bit later.
Stunned.
That's what I am.
We just played in front of many thousands of people. Estimates are anywhere between 5 and 20 thousand, though one Woodford person told me he reckoned it was about 17,000. We played Sarah's tune, NightFaeries for the lantern procession, which was just amazing, then we played the Woodford opening song with Terry and finally a long tuneset for the firedancers. It was raining, but not hard, and it was just magic. We were on the huge Amphitheatre stage, standing in front of the huge backline setup for Ash Grunwald and That One Guy, playing our tunes. Every so often, the lights would lift, and we'd get the huge panorama of little heads and lamp-lit trees. It was truly magic, something that will stay with us forever.
The night gig at the Muse was great too. We were exhausted from the amphitheatre, but it was a great way to start our official program. Alas, party animals that we are, we were in bed a scant hour later. Rock and roll. We're playing at the Chai Tent tomorrow, on what is supposedly our day off, but the way we look at it, we're here to play and enjoy ourselves, and there's just no point sitting in a tent all day long.
Weather: Stinkingly humid. Scattered showers.
Byron Bay Organic Doughnuts scoffed: 2
Showers taken 4
T-shirts changed: 3
Ciders drunk: uncountable
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