By ERWIN CHLANDA
It was a blackened weekend in The Alice but that was the whole idea for hundreds of Heavy Metal fanatics, many from interstate.
“Some have been travelling all over the world,” says organiser Pirate. “They still have their wrist bands.”
A bus with bands from Melbourne and Adelaide took a detour to Uluru on the way up and played on Friday night.
This idea to play rock at the Rock (get it?) caught on with hundreds of Facebook thumbs-up, says Pirate.
This sixth Blacken may be the last one here in town (at the Gapview Hotel), with a still secret location out bush a possibility. Even the date may change.
The festival is ready for a shift. Asked what was special about this year’s Pirate said: “It was very professional, running smoothly, a great team, they have developed their craft.
“It’s the people behind the scenes who make it happen.”
Blacken 2018 was promoted as an open air concert now but it is rumoured the air will be even more open next year.
Local band Miasma was supplemented by locals Skank and Shake when Apakatjah got bogged (or something) between here and Cairns, but the nearly 30 groups that made it made the MacDonnell Ranges ring.
So what was it like? Scaphsis will give you an idea …
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