Life in reverse with the Australian Rock Collective

SOME of Australia’s most legendary rock musicians will bring Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here and The Dark Side of the Moon to life at Twin Towns on August 13, performing both albums in full as the Australian Rock Collective.

Made up of Powderfinger’s Darren Middleton, Kram from Spiderbait, Davey Lane from You Am I, and Jet’s Mark Wilson, the Australian Rock Collective (ARC) formed in 2014 and has built a loyal following with its powerhouse live shows and deep love of classic albums.

Between them, the four have racked up 33 ARIA Awards, 16 Top Ten albums, and an ARIA Hall of Famer in Jet.

With decades of touring and songwriting behind them, their own anthems are deeply embedded in the Australian rock canon.

“The show is like we go off on school camp three weeks a year with our friends and play an album that we’ll probably never play again,” Wilson said.

“We’re being absolute nerds, going deep and getting forensic on everything, from the kind of guitars they used to the pedals and the same amps.

“It’s never perfect, but we try to get as close as possible, and it’s gotta sound great, of course.”

ARC was originally formed when the four mates were invited to play a set of Australian songs at the World Cup in Brazil.

“Darren called one day and said they wanted a band to play a bunch of Australian songs at the World Cup as there was such a huge Australian contingent there,” he said.

“We’ve all been friends for 25 years and have a long history, so when this came about, we said let’s do it once, and we had so much fun, we decided to do more.”

Since then, the collective has regularly paid homage to classic albums like Abbey Road, Let It Be, Harvest, and Led Zeppelin IV, while continuing to record and tour with their own bands.

Jet entered the scene in the early 2000s.

The band’s tight musicianship was an unambiguous clarion above the fray when they first played Splendour in the Grass, and from the first note, the audience was hooked.

Enormous success followed, with hit albums, mega tours in the US, supporting legends such as Bruce Springsteen, and copious accolades.

The band split and reunited a few times, and in 2023, they were awarded the ARIA Hall of Fame.

The bass player is also a publican, and with a few mates, he is carrying on the fine venue tradition at his Fitzroy establishment, which has a regular roster of live music, including a recent secret Living End show.

At 45, Wilson feels he has proven everything he needed to when he was younger.

“I see it as you live your life in reverse,” he said.

“When you’re successful young, you’re older when you’re having kids and settling, and figuring things out because you’ve had that wild, crazy life in a bus.”

Still, the road calls with Jet touring the US this year and the annual ARC run of shows.

“There’s no strategy other than we just do this tour every year,” he said.

“We love it and get so much out of it.”

For tickets, visit twintownssales1.sales.ticketsearch.com/sales/salesevent/145401