DAY 2 – RIVERBOATS – ECHUCA – 14.02.2026
Review: Craig Eriksson. Photos: Jason Rosewarne.
It was another perfect day at Riverboats Music Festival at Echuca with a wonderful line-up of Australian artists and magnificent weather.
Queenie (Eloise Thetford) is a singer-songwriter and musician from Melbourne, Victoria, with a unique and powerful voice. Queenie has striking red hair, a lot of charisma, and came dressed to impress in her leopard skin leotard and boots. Queenie has a theatrical flair on stage and her vocal range can seamlessly transition from beautiful, raw, and tender songs one moment, then reach the upper register with her powerhouse vocals the next. Queenie played a gorgeous Gretsch White Falcon guitar for much of the show, and performed songs from her debut album, New Moult (2024), which features a diverse mix of alt-country, Americana, pop, soul, and indie rock. Keyboardist (and former Australian Musician magazine Musician of the Month) Clio Renner provided backing vocals, adding to the impressive show.
Felicity Urquhart & Josh Cunnigham played a fabulous set of warm ‘folksy country’ melodies and storytelling songs, creating a joyful, uplifting performance. For those who aren’t aware, Felicity is a country artist from Tamworth, while Josh is from the Blue Mountains and is a well known member of ‘The Waifs’. They shared vocals and harmonised so well together, captivating the audience with their charming chemistry on stage. Felicity plays custom-made banjo, and Josh plays a home-made J45 style acoustic guitar, and their songs are about resilience, hope, and joy. Their set included songs from their Birdsong album (2023), which Felicity announced won them a few golden guitar nominations. They also performed some new material from their upcoming album, Everything Around You, along with The Waifs’ song, Lighthouse.
Brian Nankervis kept the audience warmed up between the breaks and spoke about the recent bushfires and the incredible job the firefighters perform. He then invited a number of CFA Echuca firefighters on stage to loud applause, with several of them talking to the crowd about their personal experience attending and fighting the bushfires, providing an insight into what they do.
Andrew Gurruwiwi Band is a dynamic eight-piece funk band that you need to see. Andrew is a Yolngu musician from Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory and is blind due to losing his eyesight from an accident back in 1998. He sits centre stage and sings and plays the congas and bongos and is joined by a three-piece brass section (saxophone, trumpet, trombone), three guitarists, a drummer, and a backing vocalist that create incredibly fun, funk and reggae music, which the audience got into instantly.
Australian Musician recently spoke with Bleak Squad ahead of the festival. They’re a Melbourne four-piece supergroup comprising Adalita (Magic Dirt and recent AM Muso of the Month), Mick Harvey (Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, PJ Harvey, The Birthday Party), Mick Turner (Dirty Three, Mess Esque), and Marty Brown (Art of Fighting). Adalita and Harvey shared the vocals, as they played most of their songs from their debut album Strange Love (2025). Their music is a blend of post-punk, country and indie rock with a dark, atmospheric sound, featuring brooding guitars and slippery basslines.
Emma Donovan is an acclaimed Australian singer-songwriter who performed her Take Me To The River show, featuring a collection of her favourite soul tunes, which Donovan said tell a story, create a path, and carry her through life. Emma talked about her connection with Echuca and how important the Murray River is, which led into the song Take Me To The River. In between songs, Donovan did lots of yarning, providing the audience with an insight into the indigenous way of life. Respect the land and leave it the way you found it. Donovan’s two backing vocalists wore grass skirts and harmonised beautifully with Donovan’s powerhouse, gospel, and soulful vocals, and Clio Renner on keys was dynamic as usual. Donovan talked about her crazy grandmother and how she would split a storm, which led into I Can’t Stand The Rain. Hearing her cover of Aretha Franklin’s Do Right Woman, Do Right Man was stunning. It was Valentine’s Day, and Donovan appropriately played Love The One You’re With. At the end of the set, Donovan came back out on stage with her young daughter, who thanked everyone for coming (a special Riverboats moment).
Cash Savage & the Last Drinks are a seven-piece band from Melbourne with singer/songwriter and guitarist Cash Savage (also a former Musician of the Month) fronting the band. I have seen this band three times now, and this was the most impressive I have seen them. It was an electric, mesmerising show watching them perform a blend of raw post-punk and heavy pub rock. Savage’s resolute stare, haunting vocals, and towering presence command the audience, and the band has a monstrous stage sound, featuring multiple guitarists, keys, drums, and a saxophonist. The music took us on an emotional rollercoaster, shifting from delicate, vulnerable tunes to gritty songs with attitude, storytelling about mental fragility, vulnerability, and tales of grief. Savage was playful and humorous on stage in between songs, talking about how they drank all the band’s riders the last time they played Riverboats. Savage said to the band, “We better go visit Gran,” and went on to say her Gran is buried in Echuca. As the sun set in the background, they played a number of songs from, So This Is Love (2023).
The Living End, the mighty Melbourne band formed way back in 1994 and have released nine studio albums, received 27 ARIA nominations, won six ARIA awards, and are a ‘must-see’ live band. They opened with Second Solution, and right from the get-go, the crowd went crazy for them. Roll On kept up this vibe with the crowd jumping about and singing along. Frontman Chris Cheney said: “The crowd looks beautiful from here. Cheney complimented the crowd, saying: “Look at you with your bloody beautiful voices, paddleboats, township, and river.” They also played a few of their new songs from I Only Trust Rock n Roll (2025) with Alfie and Misery. Cheney said this next song is for all you skateboarders out there, which led into End Of The World, which saw both Scott Owen perform a wonderful double bass solo and Cheney perform one of many energetic guitar solos during the show. It was Scott Owen’s birthday, and they brought out a cake, as everyone sang Happy Birthday to him. Cheney then played Waltzing Matilda on his guitar, and the crowd sang along with passion. Cheney said, “Tonight we might find a crowd that appreciates Country & Western music,” and they played a rockabilly instrumental that saw Cheney play guitar with a VB stubbie. Crowd favourites and singalongs included Who’s Gonna Save Us, Wake Up and West End Riot, which saw Cheney stand on top of the double bass while playing guitar. They followed with ripping versions of White Noise, Prisoner of Society, and finished the show with Uncle Harry.
It was an incredible day of Australian music, and I can’t wait for what Day 3 will bring us with Xavier Rudd, Paul Dempsey, Merpire, The Counterfeit featuring Freya Josephine Hollick, and Daisy Kilbourne.
