Australian bands will perform in a virtual concert being staged in the 3-D online world Second Life.
The Hoe-Down Under Texas Aussie Music Party, which coincides with the South by Southwest Music conference and festival in Texas, will parade Australian talent to Second Life users.
"It's uncharted territory - this is the first event we know of its kind," says Tony George, a business development manager at Austrade's Australian music office in Los Angeles.
The bands will be rendered into their virtual avatars, which will lip-sync to streaming music.
Bands and artists performing at the "beachside" concert include Kaya, the Maids and Extended Family. Hoe-Down Under will feature bands on two stages, a dance area, swimming and power-ski rides. Avatars attending the event will be offered free band T-shirts to add to the realism.
Mr George says Austrade will invite music industry representatives to attend the event. The Maids' lead singer and guitarist, Greg Nunan, says the foray into the virtual world is novel, but hopes it will help the band get noticed.
"The opportunity to impress music labels is fantastic, but it is just one side of the coin. The other side is marketing ourselves directly to Second Life's online community, and to get our current fan base involved in the event online," he says.
The John Butler Trio, Paul Kelly and Little Birdy are all flying into Austin, Texas, to take part in South by Southwest, the world's biggest music industry conference.
However, not all bands who want the exposure can afford the air tickets.
Highroad Music manager Katherine Beard says Hoe-Down Under "is a knock-out opportunity for a selection of Australian bands, who otherwise would have been unable to attend South by Southwest in person. It would have cost upwards of $25,000 per band to attend this event."
The event will be staged at 1pm-4pm AET on March 15.
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