Bluesfest 2016

Overview

Returning to the Tyagarah Tea Farm over the Easter long weekend, Bluesfest is set to gumboot-stomp its well-worn spot in the Australian festival game as one of the tightest productions on the calendar. This year's lineup has generated more buzz than usual, landing one of the most awaited Australian returns of the last year — Kendrick Lamar.

Alongside the multi-Grammy-winning artist and The Blacker the Berry maestro comes Bluesfest's usual, eclectic, heavily star-studded lineup. 'The Voice' is coming. Not the Delta kind, the only kind. Living legend and eternal 'Sexbomb' Tom Jones sits at the top of the bill, alongside The National, D'Angelo, Modest Mouse, City and Colour, Eagles Of Death Metal, UB40, Haitus Kaiyote, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds and more.

Things are going to get real Byron when The Wailers perform all four of Bob Marley's albums Exodus, Survival, Uprising and Legend in their entirety. Memories will be flooding (along with Bluesfest, if it rains again) with the appearance of Jackson Browne, alongside the The Decemberists. Returning Bluesfester Steve Earle is back with The Dukes, and we'll be front and centre for The 'Original' Blues Brothers Band.

Add to this some of the best festival food in the game? You've got yourself a humdinger of a muddy, muddy weekend.

BLUESFEST 2016 LINEUP:

In alphabetical order...

Allen Stone
Archie Roach
Ash Grunwald
Backsliders
Blackberry Smoke
Blind Boy Paxton
Chain
City And Colour
Cold War Kids
Con Brio
Digging Roots
Dustin Thomas
D'Angelo And The Vanguard
Eagles Of Death Metal
East Journey
Elle King
Emdee
Emma Donovan & The Putbacks
Eugene Hideaway Bridges
Fantastic Negrito
Frazey Ford
Grace Potter
Graham Nash
Harts
Hiatus Kaiyote
Houndmouth
Hussy Hicks
Irish Mythen
Janiva Magness
Jason Isbell
Jeff Martin (The Tea Party)
Joe Bonamassa – Bluesfest exclusive
Kaleo
Kamasi Washington
Kendrick Lamar
Kim Churchill
Lord Huron
Lucky Peterson
Lukas Nelson & The Promise Of The Real
Marshall Okell
Melissa Etheridge
Mike Love
Modest Mouse
Mojo Juju
Nahko and Medicine For The People
Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
Pierce Brothers
Playing For Change Band
Raw Earth.
Rhiannon Giddens
Richard Clapton
Russell Morris
Sahara Beck
Shakey Graves
Songhoy Blues
St. Paul & The Broken Bones
Steve Earle and The Dukes
Steve Smyth
Sturgill Simpson
Tedeschi Trucks Band
Tex Perkins & The Ape
The Blind Boys Of Alabama
The Bros. Landreth
The Cat Empire
The Decemberists
The Mastersons
The Mick Fleetwood Band
The National – Bluesfest exclusive
The Selecter
The Wailers
The Word
The "Original" Blues Brothers Band
Tom Jones
Tweedy
UB40 Featuring Ali Campbell, Astro & Mickey Virtue – Bluesfest exclusive
Vintage Trouble
Wards Xpress

+ more

Bluesfest runs Thursday, March 24 – Monday, March 28 at Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm, Byron Bay. Tickets from Byron Bay Bluesfest.

Image: Andy Fraser.