UPDATE 17/12/15 5.50pm: Soundwave 2016 has been officially cancelled.
In one fell swoop, or Tweet if you want to get all specific, AJ Maddah has just eradicated a stack of bands from the running for Soundwave 2016 headliner.
We can tell you definitively that it’s not going to be Metallica, System Of A Down, Deftones, Blink-182, Iron Maiden, Avenged Sevenfold, Green Day or Nine Inch Nails and here’s why. When asked if the festival headliner had played Soundwave before, Maddah answered:
@the_zing No
— AJ (@iamnotshouting) September 10, 2015
The fact that next year’s headliner has never played the festival before wipes out most of the potential possibilities. Twitter user the_zing officially just became that kid in Guess Who who wins after the first go by asking one lucky, savvy AF question.
So how many viable headliner options remain, now that we can knock all of those others down? Out of all the bands in the world who are big enough to headline Australia’s biggest metal festival, but have never played it before, there really are only a couple of options.
Black Sabbath are out because they’re doing their own headlining tour next year, Muse have told us they won’t be able make it in time for Soundwave, that Guns N’ Roses reunion rumour has been slapped down, Motorhead’s touring schedule has been plagued by health issues and Rammstein and AC/DC have also both been ruled out of contention.
Even a solo Ozzy Osbourne, appearing as “Ozzy & Friends” with his all-star lineup of Geezer Butler, Zakk Wylde, Slash and Tom Morello, wouldn’t work, because Sabbath have international tour dates that conflict with SW.
So that pretty much leaves Disturbed, who AJ Maddah previously said he’d let tell him when they’re ready to play the festival.
The metal titans have just released a brand new album, which means they’ll no doubt be touring soon anyway. And that tour could very easily coincide with Soundwave.
But are Disturbed a big enough drawcard to fulfil Maddah’s pledge that at least one leg of SW16 will sell out instantly?.
The other, perhaps more likely option for the big 2016 headlining slot is… Tool.
We know that work on their long, long, long-awaited new album has “sped up”, and Maddah has previously said that, while getting them on board Soundwave would “depend on the new album”, he’d nonetheless be “honoured to have them”.
https://twitter.com/Joshvido/status/606292033838317568
So, to sum up, if we had to put money on it, we’d hazard a bet that Tool are going to be headlining 2016, and announcing the release of their brand new album, and making all of our dreams come true.
Mystery solved!
Ok not quite, but we can dream.
So far, there have been only six bands announced for SW16: Bullet for My Valentine, Dead Letter Circus, Failure, Refused, Northlane, and the 2006 Eurovision winners, Lordi.
And there’s another lineup announcement coming from Soundwave tomorrow, so make sure you stay tuned!
In the meantime, you can try to figure out the secret identity of the Soundwave 2016 headliner yourself, by heading to our Soundwave 2016 Lineup Rumours & Info page.
Gallery: 11 Unforgettable Soundwave Festival Moments
11 Unforgettable Soundwave Festival Moments
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Gwar - Soundwave 2014
Interstellar gods of metal GWAR well and truly made their mark on Australian audiences at Soundwave 2014 when front-thing Oderus Urungus used his mighty sword to decapitate an effigy of our widely-loathed PM Tony Abbott and soak the cheering crowd in his blood. Not even Napisan Plus could remove those pink stains which, for many, would soon become a sweaty memento from one of the last performances Urungus would ever give. His human alter ego, Dave Brockie, died tragically just weeks later from a heroin overdose. -
Mike Patton - Soundwave 2010
Nothing like a bit of mid-set nudity to make Faith No More’s headlining slot at Brisbane Soundwave in 2010 even more, uh, Epic. Frontman Mike Patton proved he was Just A Man by unleashing Mike Jr. from his trousered hideaway and literally rocking out with his cock out. -
Bloodhound - Soundwave 2009
An honourable mention must go to the Bloodhound Gang, who took the stage in 2009 to effectively reduce the throng of adult metalheads into sexually frustrated 13-year-olds. They did it like they did on the Discovery Channel, with healthy dose of Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo. Nostalgia was everywhere. As were bewbs. -
Alexisonfire - Soundwave 2010
As anyone who was on the scene for Sydney Soundwave 2010 can attest, that was the hottest fucking day in the history of the earth. The festival, then-held out near Eastern Creek Raceway, was one giant dustbowl, and those who withstood the 40+ temperatures were coughing up dirt for the next three days. Alexisonfire must have pre-empted this outcome and decided: fuck it. Frontman George Pettit jumped into the crowd mid-set and gave himself a dirt-bath in the middle of the pit. Who needs sunblock when you’re covered in a 2-inch thick layer of dust anyway? Epic. -
All Time Low - Soundwave 2015
When the sky opened up and unleashed a rainstorm of hell upon Sydney Soundwave earlier this year, right in the middle of All Time Low’s set, the Baltimore pop punk’s gear got wrecked, and the band were unable to play on. However, instead of letting the storm beat them, frontman Alex Gaskarth ploughed onward, leading fans in an a cappella singalong of his band’s track Weightlessas well as some of Queen’s We Will Rock You. Many people became All Time Low fans that day. -
Dallas Green – Soundwave 2008
Dallas Green performed a musical screaming eagle in ’08 when he appeared as the frontman of both Alexisonfire and City + Colour. Crushing skulls and melting hearts. All in a day’s work. -
Fucked Up - Soundwave 2011
The spirit of punk was alive and well at SW11 when Fucked Up gave an expectedly insane performance, complete with hair-ripping, sweaty hugging, and beast frontman Damien force-feeding the mic to members of the crowd. This set will probably go down in Aussie festival history. -
Killer Be Killed – Soundwave 2015
After a hurricane of hype leading up to their global live debut at Soundwave 2015, metal supergroup Killer Be Killed – featuring Max Cavalera, Greg Puciato, Troy Sanders and Ben Koller – did not disappoint, delivering an absolutely pulverising set. -
Blink-182 – Soundwave 2013
A Travis Barker-less Blink-182 shot their love all over the crowd during their headlining set at Soundwave 2013. With Bad Religion drummer Brooks Wackerman filling in on the skins, the pop punk trio capped off their first show in Australia since 2004 by wheeling out a massive confetti canon and opening fire on a sweat-drenched mosh pit, absolutely smothering fans in the coloured stuff. Many shower drains got clogged, that fateful night. -
Slash – Soundwave 2012
Alter Bridge pulled a rabbit out of their hat during their Sydney set in 2012, and by hat we mean top hat and by rabbit we mean guitar legend Slash, who was wearing the hat. The ex-Guns N’ Roses icon wasn’t even known to be in the country at the time, but he majestically appeared to claim an unused Marshall stack and Gibson Les Paul and join his singer Myles Kennedy for a few choice AB jams. You really never can tell just when #wunterslaush is going to turn up somewhere. -
Jane’s Addiction – Soundwave 2010
Soundwave 2010 was bittersweet for Jane’s Addiction fans, marking the band’s last ever tour. As ladies danced onstage and punters tried to mask their lonely tears, Eric Avery’s words rang home: “That’s it. With equal parts regret and relief, the Jane’s Addiction experiment is at an end.”
