Shot Notes
It is not every day you are asked to photograph the end of an empire. The Mojo stage finale on Day 1 at Bluesfest 2022 saw the final gig of Melbourne 6-piece, The Cat Empire. After 8 albums and 20 years of touring including 16 shows at 9 Bluesfests. Felix exploded onto the stage like a coiled spring. His energy was only matched by the audience who made a sound so loud it tickled my eardrums. This last hurrah was planned before the big pause so the anticipation was electric. They drew heavily on their debut album whose anthemic tracks had the crowd cheering for more. The dynamism of these musicians ensures the legacy of this cat empire will be many musical kittens. (image download here)
UPDATE: Felix is relaunching the Cat Empire with a new lineup and is billed to return to the festival in 2023 tickets are available via the Bluesfest website.
UPDATE: The Cat Empire will return one last time for the final Byron Bay Bluesfest in Easter 2025, tickets are available via the Bluesfest Website.
UPDATE: In 2026 Bluesfest will be the last in a line of major festivals closed from increasing headwinds. This began before covid, with the previous state government’s legislative “war on festivals“. The new government risks letting this trend continue through inaction. However, you can change this. If 20,000 signatures are received, the NSW Parliament must debate Bluesfest’s future. #savebluesfest if you live in the state Sign up here. For everyone else, there is an international petition on change.org Sign up here.
I grew up listening to these guys.
Awesome, luv to see what they come up with next.
[…] female choir draws on musicians and stories from every corner of Australia. Melbourne-based Felix Riebl and Ollie McGill from The Cat Empire produce the music to tell stories of the Yindjibarndi people […]
[…] is Ollie McGill who, along with Felix Riebl are the remaining two-thirds of the founding trio of The Cat Empire. The band’s Wikipedia […]