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BIGSOUND 2024 ANNOUNCES FIRST ARTIST LINEUP WITH KELI HOLIDAY, Y.O.G.A, SLY WITHERS, ALEX THE ASTRONAUT, DUST AND MORE

The two halves of Peking Duk will make their BIGSOUND solo debuts, plus dust, Stand Atlantic, Alex the Astronaut, Gretta Ray, Noah Dillon, Sly Withers and so many others will bring their craft to Fortitude Valley this September. 

The first 70 names of this year’s BIGSOUND showcase lineup have today been announced, with some of the world’s finest performers making the bill. From Peking Duk’s Keli Holiday and Y.O.G.A projects, to Alex the Astronaut, dust, Dear Seattle, Sly Withers, Stand Atlantic, Gretta Ray, PEPTALK, total tommy, Noah Dillon and far beyond, Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley music precinct will come alive with the sounds of blooming talent from 3-6 September.

Chosen from more than 1200 applicants, BIGSOUND Music Programmers Casey O’Shaughnessy and Katie Rynne have selected the 2024 line-up to perform this year to the music industry’s keenest eyes.

“It has been such a privilege getting the opportunity to program the BIGSOUND 2024 line-up. We are blown away by the calibre of artists that applied this year, and we’ve discovered so many amazing new artists in the process,” say O’Shaughnessy and Rynne of the selection process for the festival lineup.

“While it was challenging to whittle it down to the final showcasing artists, we are so grateful to the First Nations Advisory Group and the extended Program Advisory Group that we worked with to help us create this year’s final line up.”

As a major catalyst in the next generation of music, BIGSOUND’s artist showcases have helped to project the careers of globally renowned performers and recording artists like Rufus du Sol, Gang of Youths, Lime Cordiale, Tash Sultana, DMA’s, A.B. Original, Ball Park Music, Courtney Barnett, Tones and I, The Jungle Giants, Thelma Plum and many more.

As it marks its 23rd year, BIGSOUND is focused on showcasing both the most buzzed and best emerging talent, making it the festival for adventurous music lovers to see some of the hottest names in music and future headline artists.

With artists hailing from all states and territories, as well as from regional and remote communities, and international locations, the 2024 festival line-up is stacked with some of the brightest names rising in Australia’s music scene; The Belair Lip Bombs, fresh from wrapping up their 2024 UK and EU Tour, ARIA-charted Rowena Wise, and post-punk outfit, dust, just off the back of an Australia-wide support slot with Interpol & Bloc Party, and heading to Europe again for Interpol’s 20th Anniversary Tour in Europe later this year.

The Peking Duk boys have been a united household name in Aussie dance music for the past decade, but each will rep their solo project Y.O.G.A. and Keli Holiday at this year’s BIGSOUND festival, alongside fellow Sydney-sider pop punk outfit Stand Atlantic, stellar Meanjin duo JUNO and Sunny Coast noisemakers Sex Mask.

The spotlight will shine brightly on Australia’s First Nations Talent, with performances from Maanyung, Ray Dimakarri Dixon and Kiwat Kennell to name a few and with more to come.

NO CIGAR, Dick Move, Paige, Park RD, Reiki Ruawai and DARTZ are crossing the waters from New Zealand/Aotearoa, with a huge array of artists from some of the nations’ capital cities including Melbourne/Naarm’s Garage Sale and MUDRAT, Sydney/Warrang’s Cap Carter and Georgia Mooney and the ACT’s own Sonic Reducer.

Perth/Boorloo’s Fool Nelson and Dear Sunday will take to the stage with BIGSOUND’s home of Brisbane/Meanjin showcasing the likes of sunbleached, Medhanit and Prink. Repping Adelaide/Tarndanya is Swapmeet and DIVEBAR YOUTH, plus Ray Dimakarry Dixon coming from Marlinga/NT.

With rising costs battling the persistent need to boogie, BIGSOUND are this year offering $25 one-night Music Festival tickets for music lovers under 25 years of age, and $75 three-night Music Festival tickets for those that get in early and purchase before 31 July. These tickets are on sale from Tuesday 25 June, alongside all-access Delegate passes via BIGSOUND.org.au. More BIGSOUND artists, including the full Goolwal Goolwal First Nations lineup, to be announced soon.

BIGSOUND is supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland.

BIGSOUND MUSIC FESTIVAL TICKETS
ON SALE 9AM TUESDAY, 25 JUNE

BIGSOUND 3-NIGHT MUSIC FESTIVAL TICKET
A BIGSOUND 3-Night Music Festival ticket gives you access to all performances: 120+ artists, across 18 venues, with just one wristband.
Early Bird 3-night: $75 +bf (on sale until midnight, 31 July, or until sold out)

BIGSOUND 1-NIGHT MUSIC FESTIVAL TICKET
Festival 1-Night Ticket: Standard rate $44.50 + bf

Festival 1-Night Ticket: 25 & Under $25 +bf

Mobility Access Ticket* $24.50 +bf

*NEW MOBILITY ACCESS TICKET*
While every effort is made for BIGSOUND venues to be fully accessible, we recognise that some venues aren’t accessible to those with mobility requirements such as ramp or lift access. If you would like to purchase a Mobility Access Ticket, please complete the form here to submit a request for our Ticketing team to call you OR contact the BIGSOUND office on (07) 3257 0013.

EARLY BIRD ALL-ACCESS DELEGATE PASSES
This is your ticket to access the full conference, 3-night Music Festival, parties and workshops.
Early Bird Offer:
General: $629 / QMusic Members: $529 / Students $379
(On sale until midnight, 5 August, or until sold out)

For more information for BIGSOUND 2024 please visit:

www.bigsound.org.au

Fortitude Valley | Brisbane, QLD

Music Festival 3- 5 September | Conference 3-6 September

BIGSOUND 2024 FIRST ARTIST ANNOUNCEMENT

AKA Lui

Alex the Astronaut

Austin Mackay

Belle Haven

breathe.

Cap Carter

Charlie Pittman

Charlotte Le Lievre

Cooper Smith

DARTZ

Dear Seattle

Dick Move

DoloRRes

dust

Erik Sanders

Flow Kobra

Fool Nelson

FRIDAY*

Front Row

Garage Sale

Georgia Mooney

Gretta Ray

Hellcat Speedracer

Homegrown Trio

Hudson Rose

ISHAN

Jerome Blazé

Juice Webster

Julian Munyard

JUNO

Keli Holiday

Kiwat Kennell

Lotte Gallagher

LUPO.THEBOY

Maanyung

Mac The Knife

MARVELL

Matahara

Matt Joe Gow & Kerryn Fields

Mau Power

Medhanit

MUDRAT

NO CIGAR

Noah Dillon

Paige

Park RD

PEPTALK

Playlunch

Prink

R.em.edy

Ray Dimakarri Dixon

Reiki Ruawai

Rowena Wise

SAME PAINS

Sesame Girl

Sex Mask

Sly Withers

Sonic Reducer

Squid the Kid

Stand Atlantic

Stocker

sunbleached

The Belair Lip Bombs

The Velvet club

This New Light

total tommy

Vetta Borne

Vinnie Brigante

Wade Forster

Y.O.G.A.

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Gig ReviewsReviews

[Review] Bloc Party / Interpol @ Sidney Myer Music Bowl, Melbourne 16/11/2023

In what can only be described as A Y2K indie rockers wet dream, Manhattan force, Interpol, and London legends, Bloc Party team up for an epic amphitheatre takedown. Both groups soundtracked the early noughties with masterful debut albums and their sets on this cool November evening were showcases of their longstanding double decade careers.

Having just returned from a two-week European and UK tour,  Awabakal Land / Newcastle post-punk five-piece, dust settled the crowd with playful power-hits Joy (Guilt) and Ward 52

“We’re dust from Newcastle. This is a lifetime experience.”

As tight and energetic as these young guns were, notably, the rolling green hill of the Bowl was met by ill panning and compression issues on the sound, an unfortunate error that slid into the first half of Interpol’s set and reappeared throughout Bloc Party’s set, seeing the larger-than-life stylings of both indie greatest fractured. Muffled and muddied, the guitars stuck together like chewing gum and vocals were drowned. Gut-punches from the heavy set drumming celebrated throughout both artists’ discographies were non-existent in this fader faux pas but both bands made up for the production problems with intense delivery and enthusiasm.  

Paul Banks strides to the stage mic, his look coming straight out of Don Henley’s ‘Boys of Summer’ – “that hair slicked back and those Wayfarers on baby”. He is joined on-stage by Daniel Kessler, and Sam Fogarino, and touring members Brandon Curtis and Brad Truax all donning head to toe black ensembles and a New York coolness. 

They launch into the mammoth opener of‘Untitled with the first half of the set topped with classic cannonballs including C’mere, My Desire, Roland, and crowd favourite Obstacle 1

The lighting techs excelled in elevating the show. Interpol lived in red lighting states throughout majority of their set with pops of blinding whites and reflections from the low-hanging mirror-ball behind Fogarino, echoing their 2002 debut Turn On The Bright Lights album title and cover art, and a palette that has been threaded through their entire discography of artwork. 

The screen relay was set to black and white, making use of delays, fading transitions and slow mo effects for a real rock and roll vibe.

To a shifting blue light, Rest My Chemistry from the 2007 Our Love To Admire was a Pixies delight at the time of release. Live, the drifting melody of Kesslers guitar with Banks’ prosaic vocals is transportative.  

Sitting largely in their first three albums, Interpol catered to their mostly middle-aged audience, offering only two recent tracks from last year’s The Other Side of Make-Believe, Into The Night and Toni. They closed out with a chorus of “Rosemary”’s for the highlight Evil, rounding out a quality set with The New and Slow Hands.

The impact of this monumental co-headline tour was not lost on either Banks or Bloc Party’s energetic frontman, Kele Okereke

“It’s amazing being back in Australia. It’s been a while so it’s nice to be back with you after so long and sharing the stage with Bloc Party,” Banks acknowledged.

“Good evening Melbournia. We are Bloc Party from London and we are heaps excited to be here tonight. That’s the true,” Okereke quipped as a lead into You Should Know The Truth after slamming in with last year’s Alpha Games hit In Situ. Later in the set, the euphoric This Modern Love was also dedicated to their co-headliners; “They took us on our first ever tour so this song is for them.” 

Kele Okereke’s vibrant green and black cardi, paired with a cream headband, only lasted three songs before being discarded. Bloc Party were here for one reason only. 

“Let’s get this party started,” Okereke exclaimed as the eerie descending notes of Hunting For Witches launched.

Okereke kept the set lively with his contagious stage presence and general hype-attitude. From some cheeky quips to the stage crew “Thank you John that’s enough. He wants his own spin-off show. Now get out of here”, to pumping up the crowd with lines like “Let’s keep it rolling”, his infectious energy rolled into the crowd. 

Offering epileptic strobing, Kettling from the 2013 FOUR brought some pop punk power whilst Song For Clay (Disappear Here) was prefaced by Paul Kelly classic Dumb Things

The middle aged crowd of indie rock ‘n’ rollers were blessed back in 2018 with hearing the game changing debut Silent Album in full on Bloc Party’s last tour and it shows that the album is still as beloved. While only four songs made the bill this time around they were all met with explosive sing-alongs. Banquet was the first in the set with drummer Louise Bartle elevating the track with a smashing tempo building to a huge “I’m on fire” screaming match.

Okereke’s energy did not dwindle, incorporating fancy footwork into Different Drugs and playing with the vocal pedals on the ground. He also never missed a beat with the banter.

Ahead of the latest track from The High Life EP, Blue was introduced with a dig at our weather, “If I wanted a cold summer evening I may as well have stayed in London”.

The final leg of the set was one of epic proportions, not just for the song choices but for the audience’s liveliness, which had thus far ebbed and flowed throughout the evening, spiking for nostalgic songs. The brooding So Here We Are saw Bartle back on the fire, a hard task considering Matt Tong’s original drumming was intense and dynamic. Guitarist Russell Lissack came to the party in this section. Whilst a bit of an enigma on stage, he makes the guitar sing the heavenly builds, catapulting the revelatory, “I figured it out”.  

Swapping to cutting guitar lines, Lissack led in a crowd chorus for Helicopter. There is nothing quite like 13,000 people singing the line “As if to say he doesn’t like chocolate”. Flux followed for a dance floor epic. Okereke hugs his guitar to his chest during the second verse before leading a clapping army from front to the back of the hill, leading perfectly into The Prayer.

Revealed as a song about a boy from St Kilda, the Interpol dedicated This Modern Love started off on a high note. A favourite all round, the build in the recorded version is monumental but live it fell flat in the crescendo. The pummelling “This modern love, breaks me” repetitive bridge lacked guts with Okereke singing down an octave. Not quite the euphoric moment experience of their last Australian tour but still the ultimate Bloc Party belter.

Ending on a high note was what Okereke referred to as a certified banger. “We have one more rocket in our pocket. Back home we call this one a banger but I don’t know what you call it in these parts. Do you like a banger Melbourne?”, he questioned, going out with the rambunctious Ratchet.

Whilst both Interpol and Bloc Party sets suffered sound-wise, both 2000’s giants both put on a show set to invigorate the indie dream and the crowd lapped it up.

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