Brian RITCHIE

Born in Milwaukee, USA, Brian Ritchie found fame as bass guitarist with Violent Femmes. His musical career took him all around the world – even playing a gig at the magnetic North Pole – but moving to the relative peace of Hobart, Australia brought an unexpected new direction. Now, as music curator of the Museum of Old and New Art (Mona) and the driver behind the annual Mona Foma festival, Brian has a creative focus that feeds his love of performance and promoting new talent. We chat to the prodigious musician about the coalescent creative scene in Hobart, and washing good local music down with one of the island’s world-beating whiskies.