Just when you thought the Splendour In The Grass lineup was at bursting point, it just got a little bigger. Organisers have now announced the winners of their Triple J Unearthed competition as Brisbane electronic songstress Airling, and of their Byron Bay local band comp as five-piece Tora.
This year, Triple J Unearthed gave one lucky underground artist from anywhere in the country the once in a lifetime opportunity to be flown to Byron Bay, put up in guest camping, and play the opening set of Splendour In The Grass 2014, joining previous comp winners like Baptism of Uzi.
The Brisbanite will now play the opening set of the festival on the Amphitheater main stage at Byron Bay, joining one of the biggest Splendour bills in recent memory. This year’s event is headlined by the newly reformed hip-hop legends Outkast, with support from the likes of Lily Allen and more.
In a statement on her official Facebook page, a very excited Airling wrote just minutes ago, “Something amazing has happened. Thanks to the babes at Triple J and Triple J Unearthed, I’m going to be playing at Splendour in the Grass this year! …Wow, my heart feels like it’s exploding xx.”
“I still feel like I might be waking up in a second,” she told Triple J’s The Doctor. Having recently played on shows with The Paper Kites and James Vincent McMorrow, Airling said that while playing the Opera House with McMorrow was a “big bucket list moment, Splendour’s up there.”
Meanwhile, the folks at Unearthed have also spent the last few months searching for a local band from the Byron Bay area to play during the event, scouring the local government areas of Byron, Ballina, Lismore, and Tweed, finally settling upon the SAFIA-like tunes of the Byron area’s Tora.
Listen: Airling – Ouroboros
Watch: Tora – Fire (Kasabian cover)
Gallery: 20 Bands We’re Looking Forward To Seeing At Splendour
thanks to @triplejunearthd & @triplej, I'm gonna be playing @SITG! chattin w @Doctortriplej soon about this shit! WOW pic.twitter.com/vHquAtGut9
— Airling (@airlingx) June 18, 2014
20 Bands We’re Looking Forward To Seeing At Splendour
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Outkast: As Music Feeds has previously reported, this will more than likely be your only chance to catch the Atlanta hip-hop legends live and in the flesh until they make their Coachella return as holograms some 50 years from now. -
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Childish Gambino: Bino earns our respect because no matter what he's doing, whether acting, standup comedy, or rapping, he does it his own way. His own way is usually unique, slightly askew, and highly entertaining, so we can't wait to see what he has in store for Splendour. -
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KLP: We did a Q&A with KLP back in December. She'd just won the Triple J Unearthed Field Day competition and we discussed her growing up in a vocal booth and collaborating with What So Not. Fast-forward just a few months and she's taking over for Nina Las Vegas' coveted Triple J House Party hosting spot. Those are some chops we gotta see. -
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Mikhael Paskalev: After experiencing his Oxford Art Factory gig back in March, where he dedicated songs to “Rihanna and Chris Brown’s loving relationship" and indulged in some smokeless tobacco on stage, we're looking forward to the return of this kooky Scandinavian. Plus, he'll almost certainly play THAT song. -
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Touch Sensitive: Even in a dance music landscape as veritably overflowing with talent as Australia's in 2014, Touch Sensitive stands out as one of its sharpest minds, constantly unveiling tunes that are infectious, funky, and glitchy, with a whole lot of retro influences. -
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Yacht Club DJs: These boys were monsters in a booth before they'd even released a collection of original material. With their new 'No. 1' EP now making the rounds, we can't wait to see how the guys go about unleashing it on a festival crowd the size of Splendour In The Grass. -
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Angus and Julia Stone: It's been a while since we heard from this brother-sister duo who were on everybody's lips back in 2010 (along with their single 'Big Jet Plane'). After spending some time focusing on solo endeavours, we're eager to hear some new album material, if they could be so kind. -
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Courtney Barnett: This girl recently made her US debut and she's poised to generate as much buzz abroad as she has back home. She's spent the last 12 month relentlessly gigging, including giving Big Scary a run for their money while opening for them on their own tour. -
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DMA's: If you rewind the tape a six months, you'll see that no one had even heard of DMA's. In that short period, they not only managed to sign to I OH YOU, unveil their debut tour and EP, but generate enough buzz to be branded the country's next big thing, and we can't say we disagree. Just submerge yourself in the glorious noise of 'Feels Like 37′ and tell us you won't be checking them out at Splendour. -
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DZ Deathrays: Having annihilated crowds at Secret Garden Festival, Big Day Out, SXSW, and with more crowds set to be eviscerated on their upcoming headline tour, we're keen to see this fuzzed-out Brisbane duo command a Splendour stage and show Byron Bay why rock is still king in Australia. -
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Future Islands: The best thing to come out of Baltimore since 'The Wire', these three recently unveiled their fourth studio album, 'Singles', and have been a hot commodity since their 2008 debut. We like them for their silky, addictive tunes as much as we like them for frontman Samuel Herring's energetic and emotional stage presence. -
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Grouplove: We just saw these guys a couple months back at Big Day Out and they provided us with one of the highlights of the day. This California group have the cardio of MMA fighters and use it to create a stage show that is bouncy, colourful, and filled with wall-to-wall sing-alongs. Plus, Splendour was the first festival the band ever played, so we're hoping they'll do something special to mark their return. -
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Jungle: Nobody really knew anything about Jungle when they first hit the scene. Their adorable 'Platoon' video amassed hundreds of thousands of views and their soulful tunes were stuck in the heads of thousands more. Since then, details have started to slip out, but the best thing about this secretive UK duo are their inescapable tunes. -
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Kelis: While you may know her for "that 'Milkshake' song," Kelis has long commanded a reputation as not only having some of the sharpest singing chops in the soul and R&B game, but as an artist that puts on a heart-pounding live show and unveils consistently critically-acclaimed albums, serving as the muse for The Neptunes, Andre 3000, and more. -
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Kingswood: Groovin The Moo, Big Day Out, Festival of the Sun, the Triple J Hottest 100, Music Feeds Studio, and venues nationwide, there's few arenas left where Kingswood haven't come in and absolutely dominated. And after their upcoming headline dates, Splendour In The Grass is their next target, and we can't wait to be there to see them neutralise it. -
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Little May: Since announcing their debut East Coast tour back in November, this Sydney three-piece have spread the unique sound they like to call "ghost folk" far and wide, and have been garnering some pretty stellar reviews in the process. This is one we'll be checking out when we feel like cooling down a bit and enjoying some moody atmospherics, spiderweb guitar playing, and airy harmonies. -
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Phantogram: Hailing from Greenwich, New York, this duo first caught our attention with the haunting 'When I'm Small' from their stylish 2009 debut, 'Eyelid Movies'. With another album under their belt, along with many an acclaimed live show, we're ready to see this pair make their soaring, cinematic, electronica-tinged rock come alive on a Splendour stage. -
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Tkay Maidza: Feel like stomping your feet like a brontosaurus? We know we do. Much as we can't wait until that mega tune is unleashed upon a Splendour crowd (mosh pit alert!), we really want to experience the live chops that saw her garner rave BIGSOUND reviews, make the Hills come alive, make the local cut for Groovin The Moo, and join Citizen Kay on his latest tour. -
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Tune-Yards: The drum-looping, Pazz & Jop poll-topping, ukelele-playing, Afro-Pop channeling Tune-Yards, aka Merrill Garbus, has a live show as unique, colourful, and energetic as her music, all the while bringing her own askew twist to the one-woman-band looping practice so prevalent nowadays.
