Who Rocked Homebake 2008?

Homebake is the little aussie doer of music festivals. The Big Day Out may grab the headlines with it's 'big name' guests, but the ever-dependable Homebake, in it's uniquely Aussie way, always rocks.

Rock/hiphoppers Bluejuice deserve a gold star for getting the party started in the sizzling mid-afternoon heat, while End of Fashion didn't let their beards get in the way of kicking out the jams like true headliners.

Over at the smaller Hopetoun stage we had the kind of bands you normally see down at your local pub. 78 Saab's arvo set of Neil Young-style country rock was perfect, while Sparkadia's Brit-pop anthems rivalled Crowded House for best crowd sing-a-longs.

Next to the main stage Died Pretty were hell-bent on keeping up with the kids - most of the bands on the bill were still in school when Died Pretty were making history. And singer Ron Peno showed why he's OZ's most enigmatic frontman - strutting around like Iggy in his prime. 

ARIA winner Gabriella Cilmi may want to rethink her choice of cover songs. Midway through her set she followed 'Sweet About Me' with Martha & the Muffins' 'Echo Beach'. Suddenly the crowd thought queueing up at the nearby Thai Food stall was a better idea.

As second headliners, the sharp-dressed men of You Am I sprinkled a few old faves into their set. But there was a bizarre twist when 1200 Techniques singer MC Nfamas joined them on stage to add some hip-hop flavour.

Finally, main stage headliners Crowded House was the perfect choice to close out the festival. By the end of the day everyone was so heat-struck they were happy to just sway their hips in the cool night air to the Crowdies feel-good sounds.