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Forest Creek Fest Brings the Music Home

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The Nugget
June 27, 2025

★ Forest Creek Fest Brings the Music Home ★

James McGuffie at Forest Creek Records

When music producer and songwriter James McGuffie moved to Chewton, he wasn’t just searching for a tree change.

He was building something – slowly, organically – that has now taken the shape of Forest Creek Fest, a brand-new music event premiering this Sunday at the Theatre Royal in Castlemaine.

It’s the first of its kind, but James hopes it won’t be the last.

“I’d love for this to be an annual thing, where we really get an opportunity to share with the local community – this melting pot of artists, locals, and friends from Melbourne that I’ve attracted out here.”

James is the creative force behind Forest Creek Records, a label he started about a year ago as an umbrella for the singer/songwriters he collaborates with through his home studio in Chewton.

“As a producer, I work primarily one-on-one with artists, but I started noticing a beautiful community forming – amazing writers who were like ships in the night,” James says.

“Forest Creek Fest is about bringing them together. Putting them in the same space, at the same time.”

That space? The historic Theatre Royal, transformed – at least for one afternoon – into the biggest, cosiest lounge room in town.

A House Concert… But Bigger

Forest Creek Fest is about removing barriers between the performer and the audience.

“It has all the perks of a house concert with all the perks of a venue like the Theatre Royal,” James says.

Instead of performers being elevated on stage, James is placing everyone on the floor with the audience surrounding them on the Theatre Royal cinema couches.

The audience gets a rare, intimate, up-close experience with the artists.

James is very aware of the challenges that solo artists have where “you pour your heart and soul into something and are the right performer in the wrong room.

“You can’t always get the perfect gig. I wanted to curate a gig from the artist’s perspective,” James says.

The afternoon will include intimate solo sets, including some debut performances of unreleased material.

The lineup includes Eliott, Benjamin Trillado, Sean Riley and Angus Montaigne along with Castlemaine fave, Eliza Hull.

James has worked with all of them.

“I’ve either written with them or produced their music. So, their songs are in my fingertips.” 

The Choir

The event will also mark the first official performance of the newly formed Forest Creek Choir – a 15–25 person vocal group James accidentally started after a neighbour, Dani Marano, casually suggested it while they were out walking their dogs.

“She said, ‘Hey, can you start a choir?’ And I was like, ‘What?!’ But she brought 15 people to the Chewton Town Hall one Wednesday night and suddenly there we were, drinking tea and singing in a room with perfect acoustics.”

The choir has quickly grown into a joyful and welcoming community space. For many members, it’s a way to connect socially in a safe and supportive setting.

Many of the choir members have a background in singing, so the repertoire has some challenging songs. James has a background in teaching music one on one, so he has a lot of experience encouraging his students to be comfortable with making mistakes. He brings that to the choir.

“I’ll happily, you know, make a mistake myself and try something out, like I’ll try and sing the sopranos part and my voice will crack or whatever.

“But I tried to diffuse any element of judgement and we come together and have a lot of fun and the little Chewton Town Hall becomes a safe space of creative expression.”

At the Fest, the choir will perform a set of four or five songs in the middle and maybe the end (James is still deciding,) filling the theatre with lush harmonies.

Castlemaine

James and his partner moved to Castlemaine on a whim at the start of COVID, having only visited once before. They bought a block, built a house, and didn’t know a single soul.

“It was a total gut decision. But we just had a feeling. I’d played one gig at Shedshaker and thought, ‘This town is different.’ It wasn’t a typical small town. It’s turned out to be the best gut decision we’ve ever made.

“My favourite thing is the pop-in. We have walking distance mates who just pop in for a catch up. We feel integrated into our community. Everything’s an eight-minute drive. You run into your mates at Tortoise without even planning it.”

A New Kind of Studio

James’ Chewton studio has become a destination for Melbourne artists craving something different.

“I’ve worked in a lot of Melbourne studios – windowless rooms in industrial estates.

“It’s got the gear, sure, but no natural vibe. Out here, artists get to go for a walk on the track out the back at lunch and feel revitalised. It feels instead like a creative retreat and sustainable for me.”

James says he’s happiest and at his best in the studio helping others bring their songs to life. 

“We are not thinking about, will this get a million streams? In my studio, we try and forget about everything, have a fun day, and try to get to the bottom of an idea,” James says.

“I have often had artists who have come up from Melbourne say ‘Oh my God, I’m going to come back here and I’m going to stay for a couple of days next time.’ I feel like I’m selling the gateway drug to Castlemaine.

“I’m not playing the music industry game. I’m just trying to create my own space. One where people are heard, and supported, and inspired.”

❀ Thanks, community! The MZ Crew uniforms are🔥❀

The MZ Crew has unveiled their fresh uniforms for the Hollywood Bound dance comp in Sydney.

The crew held some crazy fun disco parties for kids at Movement Zone to raise money for the outfits. They are training hard, with six week to go before the competition.

Two more fundraisers have been organized to help the crew reach their goal:

  • School Holiday Kids Disco Party, Movement Zone, Thurs, 17 July, 4:30 PM - 6:30 PM *Dance games, trending tunes, food and drink

  • BBQ, outside the Castlemaine News Agents, Mostyn St., Sat, 19 July, 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM

♡˖ EVENTS ˖♡

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