ONLY AT SPLENDOUR...

At every edition of Splendour in the Grass there are always shows that you just won’t see anywhere else and this year there are some blasters! Festival faves Flume, Mumford & Sons and 100 Gecs will only show their sweet faces at Splendour. Don’t be fooled by their ‘I’m too cool for this’ PR shots, you need to be there!

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Flume

For the past decade, Flume has dominated the music world with his hypnotic and abstract compositions that awaken the senses. Born as Harley Edward Streten, the Australian producer has a fresh approach when it comes to building out an immersive soundscape that revolves around the pursuit of creative freedom.

Following the massive success from his 2012 debut album, Flume’s sophomore album, Skin, earned him a Grammy Award in 2017. Since then, Flume has embarked on headlining tours in stadiums across the globe and many of his singles have topped the charts. On his most recent album, Palaces, the producer challenges listeners to switch gears and consider Mother Nature’s point of view for a change.

Completed during the pandemic after returning to his native Australia, the thought-provoking project reflects this transition as he reconnected with nature and developed an even deeper appreciation for wildlife. His Splendour in the Grass 2023 set marks 10 years since his debut album Flume broke records in Australia for its influential sound.

Flume’s talent knows no bounds as he further explores the vastness of his own man-made universe through complex arrangements and sentimental bangers.

Saturday 10.30pm at the Amphitheatre

100 Gecs

100 Gecs, the duo Laura Les and Dylan Brady, planted their flag on the proverbial pop culture moon with the release of the 2019 debut album 1,000 Gecs. The innovative album captivated online fan forums and music literati alike with The New York Times calling it, ‘some of the savviest pop music of the year,’ and Rolling Stone dubbing it ‘one of 2019’s most exciting debuts.’

The years that followed saw the St Louis natives go from unlikely SoundCloud cult heroes to showstopping wizard-cloaked pied pipers, covering magazines and selling out concerts across the globe. With the arrival of their long-awaited sophomore album, 10,000 Gecs, in March 2023, 100 Gecs appear yet again to be two steps ahead of the curve on the ever-moulting pop music landscape. Pitchfork called it ‘a perfect outro album for the end of the world’ while dubbing it ‘best new music’ in their review. Equipped with stadium-sized anthems like ‘Dumbest Girl Alive’ and ‘Hollywood Baby’, the 10x sized album is road-ready as the band ventures to perform at Splendour.

Sunday 10pm in the GW McLennan Tent

MUMFORD & SONS

Some 14 years ago, a few young men from London formed a band. It was a happy accident, with nothing unusual about how they got together; shared musical interests, an interest to both make and perform music whatever the occasion, and this comparatively unique passion for community and collaboration. They called their band Mumford & Sons and have jokingly regretted it ever since. You can’t get everything right. But there was plenty they did get right. The live show for one – they clasped those instruments like their lives depended on it. Leaving their hearts up on those stages and having won the hearts of all those in the crowd, the growing fervour around Mumford & Sons became inescapable. What followed is number 1 albums, Grammy Awards, BRIT Awards, Ivor Novello Awards, Q Awards, Billboard Awards, sold out arena tours, a debut US stadium tour, festival headline slots – being Bob Dylan’s backing band, being backed by Bob Dylan, the same with John Fogerty, sharing riffs with Tom Morello, adventures with Baaba Maal, trips to Senegal, South Africa, Europe, America, South America, Japan, Australia … it just goes on and on. In 2018, Mumford & Sons released their substantial fourth album, Delta. Helmed by producer Paul Epworth, it’s a record finding Mumford & Sons at their most adventurous. Men now, with responsibilities far removed from their day jobs, but men who feel at their most comfortable with who they’ve become. In a studio. On the road. Making music. Collaborating. Trying different things. Leaning on their strengths. Brothers. United. Mumford & Sons are a British rock band. With Marcus Mumford hinting at new music to come, their new chapter’s just being written. Mumford & Sons close out the festival at the Amphitheatre, Sunday 10.45pm

MOST WANTED –IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE

The Echo loves a good activist and we love the fact that NADYA TOLOKONNIKOVA holds the rare title of being an internationally famous artist while simultaneously being included on the ‘most wanted’ list of criminals in her home country. She was the creator of PUSSY RIOT, a Russian feminist protest and performance art group based in Moscow that became popular for its provocative punk rock. Tolokonnikova has spearheaded a planetary feminist protest-art movement. But she has paid a heavy price, incurring the wrath of a man who Riot say is the ‘World’s biggest villain’, Russian President Vladimir Putin, serving time in prison and now living in exile. In 2012, Pussy Riot gained a global following after Nadya was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment following an anti-Putin performance. While in prison, Nadya continued to protest. She went on a hunger strike, raising awareness for the inhumane prison conditions and, consequently, was sent to a remote Siberian penal colony where she would continue to gain notoriety for her activism despite being forced to do hard labour. In addition to her activism, Nadya is also an award-winning artist. She’s performed at major music festivals and events worldwide; her piece ‘Punk Prayer’ was named by The Guardian among the best art pieces of the 21st century. Most recently, her NFT ‘Virgin Mary, Please Become a Feminist’ and the ‘Putin’s Ashes’ installation at Deitch Gallery in January 2023 propelled her into a new criminal case and landed her on Russia’s most wanted list.

Nadya might just be your ‘most wanted’ on Saturday – in the Forum where she chats live at 3.15pm with The Project host Hamish Macdonald, and with Pussy Riot on the GW McLennan Tent stage at 7.30pm.

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100% PLANT BASED ONLY FROM 8-11AM

$10 BREAKY SPECIAL B+E BURGER & COFFEE

Lizzo

Lizzo, the four Grammy Award-winning songwriter, rapper, flautist and singer will spread the gospel of self-love at Splendour armed with her biggest, boldest, and brightest revolution thus far: her hugely adored second full-length offering Special. She’s maintained unstoppable momentum since 2019’s now-classic, platinum-certified debut album, Cuz I Love You. The album is fuelled by history-making hits including the 7x platinum ‘Truth Hurts’, which ascended to #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100, affirming Lizzo as the first black solo female R&B singer to claim the top spot since 2012. It also became the longestrunning #1 by a solo female rap artist ever. Crowned 2019’s ‘Entertainer of the Year’ by both TIME and Entertainment Weekly, Lizzo has adorned the covers of countless publications around the globe and has lit up the stage at the American Music Awards, the MTV Video Music Awards, the BET Awards, Saturday Night Live, and during her epic opening performance at the 2023 Grammy Awards, to name just a few. Bursting with chunky disco-funk beats designed to make you move, Special’s spirited, charismatic anthems are her most adventurous yet. Lizzo has shifted the sound, soul, and spirit of popular music and culture. Set your watches for bad bitch o’clock, closing out the Amphitheatre on Friday!

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Legendary trio Yeah Yeah Yeahs, makers of iconic indie hits like ‘Heads Will Roll’, ‘Date with the Night’, ‘Maps’, ‘Sacrilege’, and recent tune ‘Burning’, are ready to make their long-awaited Splendour comeback. Their appearance is off the back of the latest addition to their incredible canon, Cool it Down, their fifth studio album and first since 2013’s Mosquito. With their sparkling hooks and high energy performances, Yeah Yeah Yeahs are front-runners for the title of best live band in the world. Be front and centre to experience the alchemy, the transformative magic that will happen when the Yeah Yeah Yeahs hit the Amphitheatre 8.45pm Saturday

Hilltop Hoods

Ten ARIA Awards. Six #1 albums. Over 60 platinum certifications. Sold-out arena tours and the #1 most-streamed artists on Spotify two years running, Hilltop Hoods are returning to Splendour to further cement their status as one of Australia’s most enduring musical success stories. In 2022 they appeared with two brand new releases, setting them up for their first headline shows since 2019. Bursting straight out of the gate in 2023, Hilltop Hoods made triple j’s Hottest 100 history with the title of the most song entries within the countdown to date. Charting both new releases on this coveted list, the group’s Hottest 100 tally now totals 23 songs, taking the crown from previous record-holders Powderfinger and Foo Fighters. They’ve helped to propel hip-hop as a local genre in Australia, the legacy of Hilltop Hoods is undeniable. The Hoods return to the Splendour Amphitheatre 9pm Sunday

J Balvin

Global superstar, entrepreneur and committed mental health advocate, J Balvin, is a highly decorated music icon with wins across Billboard Music Awards, American Music Awards, Latin Grammys and many others. As a Latinx artist, he has steadfastly broken cultural barriers and become one of the top 10 most-streamed artists globally, developing legions of fans worldwide. His latest album, José, arrived on the heels of an eventful summer, following the release of chartdominating singles. In 2022, Balvin teamed up with music icon, Ed Sheeran, with their twosong EP, which soared to the top of the charts. Friday 9pm at the Amphitheatre

Sam Fender

Sam Fender’s debut album, 2019’s Hypersonic Missiles, introduced a smart, streetwise British songwriter with a penchant for euphoric, hard-hitting guitar anthems, but it was 2021’s peerless Seventeen Going Under that sent the Newcastle artist stratospheric. An acute observer, Fender turns the mirror not only on the streets he grew up walking, but on himself too. Seventeen Going Under is already a record that has taken Sam right across the globe, playing to bigger rooms and wider stages, whilst reaping a clutch of awards too (including BRITs, NMEs, Ivor Novellos, and a first Mercury Prize nomination). Having headlined his first festivals in the UK in the summer of 2022, Sam Fender has almost inadvertently become one of Britain’s most celebrated and successful musicians of a generation. See him Saturday 7.15pm at the Amphitheatre