A new music festival will be launched in the Catlins over Easter weekend.
The Catlins River Festival, being held this year on Saturday, April 23 and Sunday, April 24, will be an annual event.
Festival manager Jesse Gubb said organisers wanted a "real local focus", and Easter weekend would give festival-goers an opportunity to spend a little longer in the Catlins.
"It's an opportunity for locals to have their own event and I think they'll be blown away." Local bands and businesses had been very supportive of the festival, and the emphasis was on getting Clutha residents to the event.
"I've never felt such a groundswell of goodwill from the community and the industry."
More than 20 bands and artists would take part, playing from noon until early the next morning each day, with a different "flavour" of music on Sunday from Saturday.
Tickets were available from Big River Radio in Balclutha and Cosmic Corner in Dunedin or online, and included two nights' camping. Day passes would be available on the Sunday and proceeds from tickets sold to under-13-year-olds accompanied by an adult ($1 per year of age) would go to Plunket.
The new event should not be confused with the annual Woodstock music festival, which was cancelled earlier this year, Mr Gubb said.
It would be an all-weather gig, with cover available if the weather was bad, and "it'd have to be pretty extreme weather to pull out", he said.
The line-up for the festival includes: The Nomad with King Kapisi and Oakley Grenell; Budspells; Left or Right; Oakley Grenell and Band; and Knives At Noon.
