‘It’s always big fun’: Catch the ’Nu-Surf sound of the Beachniks and fill up on pescatarian treats at Apollo Bay Seafood Festival
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15.02.2023

‘It’s always big fun’: Catch the ’Nu-Surf sound of the Beachniks and fill up on pescatarian treats at Apollo Bay Seafood Festival

The beloved festival returns to Apollo Bay Harbour this weekend for ready-to-eat dishes, fresh seafood, panel discussions and an impressive lineup of local music.

Seafood lovers, the countdown is officially on for one of the best days of the year with the Apollo Bay Seafood Festival 2023.

Once again, the festival will take over the picturesque Apollo Bay Harbour on February 17-19 for its first proper event in three years, inviting food and travel lovers to feast on a curated assortment of seafood, listen to renowned speakers on a range of different locally focused topics and enjoy live music by the sea.

Keep up with the latest food and booze news across the region here.

While there will be three packed days of festivities, including special dinners on Friday and enlightening conversation panels on Sunday, the true highlight is of course Harbour Day.

From 11 am -8 pm on Saturday,  February 18, the Apollo Bay Harbour will be filled with pop-up restaurants, cooking demonstrations, and a seafood market offering a myriad of pescatarian treats such as seafood dumplings, Southern Rock Lobster, abalone sashimi, organic oysters, giant paella pans, octopus and Apollo Bay bakeries’ famous scallop pies.

The festivities will continue well into the evening with performances over two stages in a stellar music line-up including Fenn Wilson, Hobson Bay Coast Guard, Go Dog Go, local Aria award winner Matt Orchard and local Nu-Surf outfit The Beachniks.

Avoiding the crowded scene in Melbourne, The Beachniks have earned themselves a solid reputation, playing and living around Lorne for about 22 years. They describe their music as ‘Nu-Surf’ which is a blend (in equal amounts) of Dub reggae,  60’s garage surf-rock, folk-pop and jazz.

Ahead of the performance, we caught up with The Beachniks’ esteemed talent on the trumpet, guitar and vocals Jeff Raglus, a unique contemporary artist who divides his practice equally between music and the visual arts.

Jeff is a multi-instrumental musician, who has toured overseas and around Australia many times with various ensembles, including The Black Sorrows, The Bachelors from Prague, The Feeling Groovies and The Beachniks. He also plays with the Rebecca Barnard Band, the Ross McLennan Orchestra but of late mostly with his partner in love and crime – Victoriana Gaye.

It’s exciting to see you and The Beachniks on the lineup for the Apollo Bay Seafood Festival! What are you looking forward to about the gig?

We have played several Seafood Festivals, and it’s always big fun. Besides anything else, I like an excuse to come down to Apollo Bay.

In what form can we expect to see the band, as an electric four-piece or have you got something else planned?

This will be the classic four piece lineup and Victoriana Gaye will sing a few songs as well.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Jeff Raglus (@jeffraglus)

You’ve performed there in previous years, what’s the vibe like performing at a seafood festival? How does it compare to other gigs?

Great vibe! I also like the fact that the food is the focus… so there’s not that much other music to compete with! You can find us easily!

You’ve made a name for yourselves on the local gig circuit with your unique brand of Nu-Surf, what’s kept you all going and remaining fresh for so long?

That’s a good question, We started playing on The Surf Coast in 1996…so that’s 27 years! A long time! I guess because we never do the songs the same old way, they continue to sound fresh. Also, I listen to and also write new music all the time, so I try not to be stuck in the past. Our music is a strange blend of jazzy/trance/funk and surf/garage/rock all done with a dub/reggae influence!!

What do you love about performing with the Beachniks?

Everyone listens to each other so some amazing stuff happens without ever having to rehearse it.

With a passionate thirst for both music and art, talk to us a bit about the art side of your life. Are you working on anything special at the moment?

Yes! I’m glad you asked, and it’s going to be in Geelong so it’s perfect for Forte readers. I have a solo art exhibition at Big Boom Gallery in Newtown which starts in late April. I’ve been painting on and off for the last two years for this show., but now I’m flat out and fully concentrating on the task at hand. Please come! Everything will be up on my Instagram if anyone wants more details on all my art and music.

 

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A post shared by Jeff Raglus (@jeffraglus)

Talk to us about your artistic style, are you still focused on pop art pieces in the world of fine and graphic arts?

To put it simply, everything I do is a kind of ‘new’ pop… pop art and pop music I guess.

It’s been a challenging few years for artists – both music artists and visual artists (and you’re both!). How did you remain creative and passionate over the challenging time?

The lockdown period was incredibly alarming and bizarre but at the same time very interesting. The music stopped completely, although we (Victoriana Gaye) were in the middle of recording a new album, which we had to stop and then continue once we were allowed back into Melbourne. But that was a kind of busted-up process, and basically, music was really hard. Thankfully at the same time my art took off! I received lots of private commissions, and also had a huge sculpture commission for Torquay Council and also private sculpture commissions. Overall it was an incredible time for fully concentrating on my art. I learnt a lot from it.

Any hot tips for people attending the seafood fest? Anything a must-try?

All the food is fantastic. There’s also usually a great local art show on at The Mechanics hall and make sure you catch The ’Nu-Surf Sound of the Beachniks!

You heard the man!

Tickets are on sale now at www.apollobayseafoodfestival.com