Musicians in tune with the mercury

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The Black Seeds delivered a standout performance at Rippon 2010 and had the crowd stomping in a dusty mosh pit. Photo by Matthew Haggart.

Temperatures climbed above 30degC on Saturday, while some of the country best musical acts turned up the heat onstage.

• Slideshow: Hot entertainment at Rippon [2]

About 5000 people gathered on the Rippon vineyard hills above Lake Wanaka to listen to the 11 bands assembled for the first festival of the new decade.

There was a decidedly Wellington flavour to the 2010 festival line-up, with the main crowd-pleasers all hailing from the capital.

Rippon debutantes Opensouls got the crowd on its feet with an impressive early-afternoon set, with the performance of vocalist Tyra Hammond and MC Bjorn Peterson well-backed by a tight ensemble of seven instrumentalists.

The Black Seeds delivered a typically polished performance as veterans of the New Zealand music scene and festival circuit.

Lead guitarist Mike Fabulous told the crowd he could remember playing as a 17-year-old at the first Rippon Festival in 1997.

Police hailed the well-behaved attitude of the crowd and the "terrific" organisation of the management team.

Sergeant Paul Crosshill, of Wanaka, said five males were arrested inside the venue for drunken and disorderly behaviour.

About "two or three" men were arrested in Wanaka after the festival had finished, he said.

The Dunedin team policing unit and staff from Alexandra travelling to Wanaka for the festival, as well as the Central Otago traffic alcohol group.

About 4500 motorists were breath-tested in Wanaka during the weekend, with only one person on Waitangi Day, after the festival, exceeding the limit, he said.

First-aid services treated some people for heat exhaustion, sunstroke, and dehydration during the festival, paramedic nurse Rhonda Johnson said.