The Waifs - Lighthouse (Wave Aid 2005)

JUN 05 2005 · 12:00

The Waifs - Lighthouse (Wave Aid 2005) (2005) Era: Australian Roots Revival & Charity Concert Era (2005) - Mid-2000s Australian folk-rock peak, captured within a nationally televised tsunami relief event at the Sydney Cricket Ground High curatorial value as a primary audiovisual document of WaveAid 2005, one of Australia's most significant benefit concerts. Captures The Waifs performing their signature song 'Lighthouse' at a historic cultural event before 50,000 people, broadcast nationally and released on the official DVD. The footage serves simultaneously as a performance record, a document of Australian roots music at its commercial peak, and a primary source for the study of music-industry humanitarian responses to the 2004 tsunami. The dark-warm aesthetic, fast broadcast editing, and authentic live energy are irreplaceable archival qualities. Context: WaveAid (29 January 2005, Sydney Cricket Ground) was Australia's landmark humanitarian benefit concert responding to the 2004 Boxing Day Indian Ocean tsunami. Organised by Michael Chugg, Joe Segreto, and Mark Pope, the event drew 50,000 attendees and 11 artists, raising AUD $2.3 million for Oxfam, UNICEF, Care Australia, and the Red Cross. Broadcast on Channel [V] and MTV, it represented a defining moment of Australian popular music's civic engagement. The Waifs, a Western Australian folk-rock trio formed in 1992, were among the most prominent roots acts on the bill, performing their 2003 breakthrough single 'Lighthouse' from the double-platinum album 'Up All Night', which had won four ARIA Awards. The dark, warm visual signature of the footage reflects outdoor stadium stage lighting under the January Sydney summer night. Director notes: This is a live concert capture, not a purpose-made music video. The performance was recorded at the Sydney Cricket Ground on 29 January 2005 as part of the WaveAid tsunami relief concert, broadcast simultaneously on Channel [V], MTV, Triple J, Triple M, and NOVA. The footage was subsequently included on the official WaveAid DVD released through Virgin Music, which featured selected performances and a 17-minute behind-the-scenes documentary. No individual director credit for The Waifs' segment has been found in any publicly available source.