Queensland Music Trails 2023

Overview

If you can't choose between spending your spare time hitting up a music festival or enjoying a Sunshine State getaway, then Queensland Music Trails likely became your favourite event when it first held a trial run back in 2021. This statewide festival turns heading to see live music into a massive road trip, with different legs sprawling through different parts of the state — and it's back in 2023.

The fest's big return this year was announced back in 2022, which was already excellent news. Now, event organisers are getting to the even better stuff, aka lineup details. Among the talent: Lime Cordiale, CW Stoneking & His Primitive Horn Orchestra, Hatchie, Emma Donovan & The Putbacks and Sycco.

Queensland Music Trails' bill covers trails in the outback, Scenic Rim and southern Queensland, including stops everywhere from St George and Charleville to Canungra and Jimbour. Each route varies in length — with the outback trail running for nine days from Thursday, April 13–Friday, April 21; Scenic Rim's for three days across Friday, April 28–Sunday, April 30; and the southern leg for three days from Friday, May 5–Sunday, May 7.

Mitch Lowe

Keen on heading to Queensland's west? Then you can choose between Hussy Hicks, Karl S Williams and Jem Cassar-Daley at Oasis Afternoon in St George — or Emma Donavan & the Putbacks and Alice Skye at the Outback River Lights Festival in Cunnamulla. There's also C.W. Stoneking & His Primitive Horn Orchestra, Everybody NOW! and The Pacific Belles at The Big Base Party in Charleville; Harry James Angus and The Barleyshakes Duo at The Sundowner in Tambo; and a whole on-the-road series of gigs with The Barleyshakes Duo, too.

The Scenic Rim trail welcomes back The Long Sunset for a second year, hitting up Canungra on Saturday, April 29 with Lime Cordiale, Hatchie, Sycco and Tia Gostelow.

And, on the southern trail, there's the also-returning Opera at Jimbour for three days, featuring talent from Opera Queensland, Ensemble Q and the Griffith University Conservatorium of Music Orchestra.

Mitch Lowe