Secret venue for music festival

The Pussy Whippers at the Concert for James Blas in the Duncan Pavillion, Castlecliff. From left, Jack Mitchell-Anyon, Jamie Waugh drums and Matt Edmonds.

Whanganui is set to host a two-day underground music festival with a catch - the venue is being kept secret.

Those buying tickets to the Gathering in the Forest festival will be told the location then, said organiser Joel Cosgrove, of Eyegum Music Collective in Wellington.

"There will be no door sales, so people will need a ticket to find out the location. It's nice to add a little bit of mystery to the thing, makes it a bit of an adventure to get there, come over the rise in the road and see it all unfurl in front of you."

The festival is planned for Waitangi Weekend on February 4 and 5.

"We're hosting a get-together at an out-of-the-way spot, with little chance of bothering anyone," Mr Cosgrove said.

"We're talking with the couple of neighbours who'll even be aware of our presence, so we're keeping a low profile. If people find out about us, then they can come along. We're not putting up posters or big advertisements."

Ticket sales will be limited to 250. "A couple of hundred people will be comfortable in the space. We've been cutting out tracks and setting up the space so that it's an awesome spot to host some of the best underground New Zealand music there is."

The two-day festival will be a hometown event for Whanganui bands the Pussy Whippers and Castlecliff Lights who will join more than 20 bands from Auckland and Wellington.

"We're massive fans of Castlecliff Lights and The Pussywhippers and they were the first acts on board. They'll be playing key mid-evening sets on either night," Mr Cosgrove said.

Half the ticket revenue will go to the musicians. Tickets are available from the Eyegum website (http://agatheringinthe forest.weebly.com) for $62.19, and $100 from January.