BBFF26 That Half Barbaric Twang

Part road movie, part music documentary and part love letter to the Australian landscape, this spirited film follows The Number 4 Band - actors David Field and Geoff Morrell, and musician Tim Oxley - as they take their self-described “bad-ass gospel” country music on the road. Travelling far beyond the usual live-music circuit, the trio seek out remote towns, back roads and communities often overlooked by touring acts, playing wherever they can: pubs, streets, retirement homes and unexpected corners of the country. Armed with banjos, mandolins, guitars, harmonicas, clarinet, drums and a catalogue of entirely original songs, they are less interested in fame than in the simple act of bringing live music to people who rarely get to experience it. Along the way, their eccentricities, friendships and occasional chaos become as compelling as the music itself. Field’s irrepressible humour, Morrell’s obsession with searching for obscure rocks, and Oxley’s quiet role as the band’s musical backbone create an intimate and often hilarious portrait of three very different men united by a shared obsession. Against sweeping Australian landscapes and encounters with unforgettable characters on the fringes, the film becomes a celebration of friendship, creativity and the strange freedom of life on the road. And beneath their proudly unfashionable pursuit of “fameless perfection” sits one audacious dream: to one day take their music all the way to Nashville’s legendary Grand Ole Opry. A funny, raw and deeply affectionate journey through music and country, this is a story about bringing people together, one song - and one roadside detour - at a time.