Newtown Festival Focus: Furnace & The Fundamentals

Answered by: Mike Solo - drummer

Presumably you’ve been to the Newtown Festival before, what’s your favourite memory? Watching sleepmakeswaves play an epic set in 2014 to cap off a really exciting year for them. Getting into the vibe of the festival watching Daily Meds and Bloods warm up the crowd beforehand was a really fun way to spend a sunny Sunday.

Lots of suburbs put on festivals, but Newtown Festival is always particularly huge - why do you think that is? It's a unique part of Sydney that hosts a lot of colourful communities and artists, plus proximity to a densely populated part of the city with a strong arts culture. But big credit to the organisers and volunteers for putting together a consistently well run and diverse event each year.

Favourite spot at the festival to chill and watch the world go by? No favourite spot in particular, I really enjoy walking around and soaking up the atmosphere on the day.

What would be your entry into the dog show? Our guitarist Digby, disguised as a Bichon Frise with a resemblance to ELO's Jeff Lynne.

What is it about the Inner West that inspires so much creativity? We're lucky to still have an area of Sydney with a community that supports live music and arts venues. It's still tough going, but anywhere you allow artists to operate is going to inspire more creativity.

Of all the food stalls on offer at the Festival, what do you reckon is one we should definitely check out and why? I have a giant sweet tooth so it will be a race between myself and our guitarist Tom 'Ibis' Mackenzie to see who can find the best desserts. We'll have to earn it by going hard on stage.

When and where are you performing on the day? Main stage, sometime in the afternoon before Kim from The Presets plays. Come and party with us.