Bush Gothic at the Female Factory: Songs of Resistance

Bush Gothic isn’t your typical folk band. This striking trio, led by singer and composer Jenny M. Thomas, takes traditional songs and flips them on their head – offering something fierce, intelligent and unexpected. Their sound is raw and immediate, their storytelling razor-sharp. It’s no surprise they’ve collected accolades along the way, including the Australian Folk Music Award for Best Band in 2022 and multiple Best Music awards at the Adelaide Fringe.

For Songs of Resistance, Bush Gothic turns its attention to the stories of convict women and children who endured, resisted, and survived one of the harshest systems of the colonial era. This concert has been created especially for the Cascade Female Factory, with Jenny M. Thomas drawing on her deep connection to the site to shape a powerful and intimate performance.

The songs are drawn from folk tradition, but these are no dusty museum pieces. Each one carries a story of resilience: a clever woman transported for theft (Black Velvet Band), a servant punished for a crime she may not have committed (A Convict Maid), a sly grog shop runner hiding in plain sight (Polly). There are tales of heartbreak, injustice and survival – made all the more poignant when heard in the very place where many of these women once stood.

The concert also weaves in well-known Australian songs—from Great Southern Land to Waltzing Matilda—placing these convict stories within the broader story of who we are and where we’ve come from.

Songs of Resistance invites you into a space heavy with history and fills it with music that’s full of life. It’s a reminder that even in the darkest of times, people have found ways to speak, sing, and be heard.

Image credit: Pia Johnson