EUROA man Elliot Paterson made his music festival debut at Wimmera Steampunk Festival in Dimboola, Victoria late last month, where he played bass guitar while dressed in steampunk attire.
The 19-year-old has been playing bass guitar for just over two years – he has autism, and learning bass guitar helped him deal with the challenges of facing the COVID–19 pandemic lockdowns as an autistic person.
Elliot now practices the instrument frequently, playing for about three hours every night.
"The walls rattle in the house a fair bit," his 58–year–old father Brendan Paterson said.
Brendan has long been interested in steampunk – an aesthetic that meshes goth, Victoriana, punk and other styles – and he said Elliot's spot at Wimmera Steampunk came about through a casual conversation with the festival's organiser.
Latest Stories
"I just rang out of curiosity to see what was happening and Chan [Uoy], the guy who runs it said to me, 'Oh, you wouldn't happen to know any musicians who'd like to play here, would you?'," Brendan said.
"I sort of half–jokingly put Elliot up, and Chan said, 'Why not, let's see him on stage.'...
"And Elliot just got a huge reaction and positive feedback from people who enjoyed his music and the way he performed on stage."
Elliot, who became interested in steampunk recently, said he was "very excited" at having played his first festival and was "eager to do more of them".
He said he played songs in the "classic rock territory" including "Love Will Never Tear Us Apart" by Joy Division and "Ace of Spades" by Motörhead.
"[The festival] brought light to Dimboola, which is normally a pretty quiet town," he said.
Dimboola has a recorded population of fewer than 2000 people and Brendan said Wimmera Steampunk is "probably the hugest thing that happens in Dimboola all year".
Thousands of people attended the festival and Brendan described it as "pumping", with people from all over Australia there talking to each other and wearing stunning outfits.
The festival was the idea of organiser Chan Uoy, who owns Dimboola Imaginarium, an eclectic gift shop in Dimboola.
"Just one person with an idea – what he's done for that little country town is huge," Brendan said.
"So, I just think it's worth listening to people that have crazy and wonderful ideas."
