The promoter of the final-ever gig at Australian National University’s bar has spoken about the continuing backlash to the event’s all-male lineup, saying he still doesn’t understand why punters are up in arms.
Speaking on ABC Radio this morning, booker Gary Peadon was asked if he understood why someone would ask “why are there no women or non-binary performers on the line-up?” on the event’s Facebook page.
“No, because I’ve never heard of non-binary before,” Peadon replied, before possibly confusing the terms “genre” and “gender.”
“When I book an act, I don’t sit down and think about the genre.“The only genre I think about is it punk, is it rock, whatever. I don’t sit there and go ‘ah, I need to put a female band on.’”
Regarding claims of potential gender bias in the line-up, Peadon said “I’m just not going to respond to any of it. I’ve already responded – I’m not changing the lineup.
“When I was booking the acts, I already did ask a few local female acts beyond the bill, not because they were female, and it never entered my mind to ask because they’re female, but because I liked their band.”
Peadon said that anyone is free to book a show with the line-up of their choosing, and that if anything, the response to his bookings may discourage him from throwing more events in the future.
“If I’m going to cop backlash over bringing acts to Canberra and paying out of my own pocket for most of the gigs that I do, then I’d prefer not to do them. I’ve got better things to do.”
Those comments follow some inflammatory statements he made on Facebook, in which he asked “why do I even have too (sic) think about this shit?”
The event’s Facebook page is still being lit up with discussion (read: flame wars) about the issue, with gig-goers genuinely worried about the lack of non-male performers being countered by punters who maintain Peadon can book gigs however he pleases.
Regurgitator will headline the 11-act show on Wednesday, June 17. Watch this space to see if the line-up does change between now and then.
