We know how it works. Your body rushes with excitement while reading the top line of the Splendour announcement and your eyes start to blur as you get down to the bottom often meaning you miss some of the excellent pieces of gold down there. To get you equally excited about the newer names of the bill here are seven songs by new artists playing Splendour that you have to hear before you nab a ticket to the festival.
Blossoms
Getaway
Blossoms were tipped on BBC's Sound Of 2016 list earlier this year and they're fulfilling the hype with their latest cut Getaway. There has always been a need for British indie rock at Splendour and Blossoms are just the band to fill that slot bringing epic tunes that have elements of '80s rock fused with pop. Getaway is a cruisy, freedom-searching song that's as liberating as the title would suggest.
Kacy Hill
Shades Of Blue
There's no Kanye on the lineup this year as some speculated but there is Kacy Hill, an artist signed to his imprint G.O.O.D. Music. Her debut EP Bloo released late last year showed she has a talent for making quaint, intricate pop songs with a dark edge. Shades Of Blue is off that EP and it's an ethereal, Kate Bush-esque track that takes frequent trips into thunderous territory bound to thrill live. Her videos have been amazing so far and by all accounts her live show is just as impressive.
Ribongia
OYO
Ribongia has become an interns favourite thanks to his latest EP Escapisms. The Italian born producer is making jungle-rooted beats collecting influences from all over the world and packaging them as energetic, interesting tunes. OYO is a favourite of ours of the new EP. It has those jungle influences but its also tinged with elements of rave and trap. It takes heaps of detours yet it remains cohesive. There's hardly anything this interesting in Australian dance music right now.
[soundcloud width="750" height="200"]https://soundcloud.com/octoberrecords/ribongia-oyo?in=octoberrecords/sets/ribongia-escapisms-ep[/soundcloud]
Green Buzzard
(I Don't Wanna) Break Your Heart
Sydney's Green Buzzard have the goods to be Australia's next favourite rock band. The IOHYOU-signees are making the type of music The Strokes wish they were still making. It's scuzzy and raucuous but it's also held together by a tight knack for melody. (I Don't Wanna) Break Your Heart is a howling, anthemic tune off their Eazy Queezy Squeezy EP. They may be in the lower regions of the lineup this year but these tunes are waiting to be howled by large crowds.
Spring King
Rectifier
If you like your indie rock a little dirtier than the aforementioned Blossoms, Spring King may be the band for you. The Manchester four-piece are trading in pop-punk tunes and were the first band ever to be played on Zane Lowe's Beats 1 Radio show. Rectifier is their latest and it's a raucous, attitude-filled tune full of abrasive guitars and crunching percussion. This one will orchestrate some daylight headthrashing come Splendour, trust us.
Gold Class
Bite Down
It feels like overseas is picking up on our own Gold Class faster than we are here in Oz but their Splendour In The Grass set should change that. They were one of the standout acts of this year's South By South-West with NME saying “there's something compelling about the band” and comparing them to Depeche Mode, Royal Headache and At The Drive In. This track, Bite Down, is a slow-burning scorcher. The vocals are deep and intense while the guitars are dirty but focussed.
Mall Grab
Father
Mall Grab is an Aussie producer making throwback house music with four-to-the-floor beats that are sure to get a Splendour crowd pulsating whether it be early in the day or late at night. he's just released his mature, intricate Sun Ra EP but it's his remix of Kanye's Father Stretch My Hand that's likely to hook you on first listen. He's taken its gospel undertone and coverted it straight to the dancefloor. It may be the best The Life Of Pablo remix we've heard yet.
[soundcloud width="750" height="200"]https://soundcloud.com/mallgrab/father[/soundcloud]
