Homebake Goes Global With First Announcement

The first list of bands playing this year's Homebake festival have been announced, with the iconic Sydney event taking to Sydney's Domain Saturday 8 December and proudly presented byThe Drum Media. To mark the announcement today, we've run through the line up to give you a little extra information.

Blondie,  Tim Minchin, Hilltop Hoods, Kimbra, Angus Stone, Julia Stone, Birds Of Tokyo, Daniel Merriweather, Sam Sparro, The Saints, Something For Kate, Sonicanimation,  Shapeshipter, Six60, Jinja Safari, The Bamboos, Tim Rogers, San Cisco, Emma Louise, Pond, Ball Park Music, Seekae, DZ Deathrays, Diafrix, Husky, Full Tote Odds

BLONDIE:

Let's forget the fact that we were quite simply shocked to see a big international act at the top of the Homebake bill for 2012 and get right to the crux of the matter; Blondie are an amazing band. They paved the way for so many bands to push the envelope in so many ways; they are true new wave pioneers and, as well as their undeniable importance in the scheme of modern music, they have a enormous catalogue of incredible songs. From punk rock to disco to rap to straight up pop, they are versatile and awesome and, it has to be said, Deborah Harry is still pretty damn stunning. There'll be maximum dancing when they close out Homebake 2012.

THE SAINTS:

While we're talking about legends, let's not forget one of our country's greatest contributions to the history of punk rock; Brisbane's mighty The Saints. The band is still led by Chris Bailey, the formidable frontman, and while he is the only remaining original member of the group, the songs remain powerful and the spirit stays alive.

TIM MINCHIN:

Aussie musical funnyman Tim Minchin is finding a huge audience in overseas territories after absolutely dominating the world of Australian comedy in recent years. He'll be back in Australia for Homebake, and we don't think the crowd present will find him quite as offensive as the Brits.

HILLTOP HOODS:

There are only so many times we can tell you how huge Hilltop Hoods are in the world of Australian music right now, and goodness knows we've done it a fair bit lately. They dominate every festival they visit and Homebake will be no different; it's just another feather in their cap in a year in which there have been many.

KIMBRA:

With a bit of US success behind her now, Kimbra just gets more and more confident and, well, good, as a performer as the months roll on; not that she was ever really lacking. While the Gotye collaboration did not hurt her profile, she's certainly winning over hearts under her own steam and she'll deliver yet another very exciting festival set at this year's Homebake.

ANGUS STONE:

His first solo record performed very nicely indeed upon its release just a couple of weeks ago and his Splendour performance proving that Angus Stone has the pulling power with and without his sister by his side. Though, speaking of his sister…

JULIA STONE:

While Angus & Julia Stone might not be on this year's bill, Angus and Julia Stone both are. Confused? Come on, it's not that hard to grasp… Homebake comes at the tail end of big tours for both Stones and we're sure there will be plenty of people very excited to see the both of them.

BIRDS OF TOKYO:

Word on the street is these Perth natives are just putting the finishing touches on some brand new music, so you can expect that you'll be hearing a bit of that on the radio in the not too distant future. Birds Of Tokyo have managed to crossover to a massive audience in the past couple of years and you can bet there'll be a lot of people gagging to see them destroy a festival stage again.

DANIEL MERRIWEATHER:

The super slick soul man that is Daniel Merriweather has been spending a fair bit more time in Australia of late and this means we've had a number of opportunities to see him of late. We've not caught him at a festival in a long while though, so we'll interested to see if he adjusts his set for his Homebake performance.

SAM SPARRO:

Here's another guy who has become somewhat renowned for not spending much time at home. Sam Sparro was all over radio waves a few years back and he's finally gotten around to following up that initial success with a new record. He's finally returning to Australia to show us how this material is going to go down in a live setting; we're intrigued and excited.

SOMETHING FOR KATE:

Well, look who's back! It has been far too long since Something For Kate released new material, but thankfully the wait for a new LP is just about over. Now we can guarantee you that you'll be able to see the band on a hundred different occasions over the next year or so, but few will be as special as this great Aussie band's return to the quintessential great Aussie festival.

SONICANIMATION:

You remember these guys; Theophilus Thistler, Love Lies Bleeding, Get Up, Didley Squat, I'm A DJ and a whole bunch more. Well they're coming back together for a rare live performance in which they have promised to drop a pure classic hits set for those in the Domain who like to dance.

SHAPESHIPTER:

There has always been a solid New Zealand presence at Homebake and you don't get much more solid than the mighty Shapeshifter. One of the few drum'n'bass acts on the planet who can command attention from fans of all sorts of different genres, these guys play music so big that only a place like The Domain could truly handle it. This will be massive.

SIX60:

Relative unknowns in Australia until quite recently, fellow kiwis Six60 have shot to massive popularity in no time flat, now playing some of the country's biggest rooms as a headline act. Their debut record of last year sat atop the New Zealand album charts upon its release, knocking Adele off the top spot in the process, and we're quickly catching onto their smooth ways.

JINJA SAFARI:

Injecting a real sense of worldliness into their brand of indie pop, Jinja Safari's complex rhythms and quirky melodies offer something a little more than your average indie act. Their live shows are notoriously fun and they'll be well and truly in the swing of playing again by the time Homebake rolls around.

THE BAMBOOS:

Fresh from what would have to be their biggest Australian tour to date The Bamboos are ready to showcase their very danceable brand of increasingly pop oriented music to Homebake punters this year. One of the tightest, slickest and funkiest live bands this country has ever seen, they will provide yet another reason to ensure you're wearing comfortable shoes at this year's festival.

TIM ROGERS:

He has a new record out in just a few weeks and we've been promised that we'll get to see him in “full performance mode” this year; we don't know, nor care, what that means, we'll take Tim Rogers just about any way we can get him. He's still writing amazing songs and he doesn't know how to deliver a boring performance, no matter the situation, so we'll gladly put money on this being a festival highlight.

SAN CISCO:

Most likely the youngest band on this year's bill, these West Australian kids are absolutely killing it at the moment with a string of insanely infectious pop tunes and a increasingly confident live show. San Cisco have cut their teeth with a few festivals this year and while Homebake is no doubt just one more step they take on their way to the top, they're sure to nail it.  

EMMA LOUISE:

Queensland's Emma Louise clearly has very big things ahead of her and as her popularity continues to skyrocket we continue to wonder how popular she can get once she releases an album and further crosses over. But talk like that can add unneeded pressure, we're enjoying watching her grow – we have for a long time – and we're pretty sure she'll be able to pull together a pretty special set for Homebake 2012.

POND:

After a scintillating, face-melting show at Splendour In The Grass, Pond proved themselves to be able to hold the attention of a festival audience without issue, even managing to blow our minds on a few occasions. Pond's Beard, Wives, Denim record is solid, their live show is fun as fuck and we're pleased that they'll be sharing Homebake with us this year.

BALL PARK MUSIC:

Another band who had a big win on the Splendour stage at the weekend, these Brisbane pop kids seem to be pretty damn hard workers, with a big tour and a slew of new material making sure Ball Park Music fans are never left wanting. They have their live show down pat by now and you can bet they'll be looking to win over even more fans when they hit Homebake.

SEEKAE:

We imagine it won't be long before we get to hear new material from this great Sydney group, who are getting back into the swing of live performance after a little respite from the rigours of the road which came with the success of their +Dome record of last year. Seekae could well perform the most intelligent music at this year's Homebake, which kinda means you'd be dumb to miss them (in a roundabout way).

DZ DEATHRAYS:

If there was a band custom built for festivals, DZ Deathrays wouldn't really need much modification. The enormity of their sound is just jaw-dropping, considering they're a mere duo, and their dedication to delivering their shows with energy and aggression never fail to get a big crowd riled up. Let's just hope the PA is loud enough for them, the louder they are the better.

DIAFRIX:

One of the few hip hop acts in this first announcement, Diafrix are a pretty bloody awesome act to fly the flag for Australia's take on the genre; a wide variety of different genres get mashed into their brand of urban music and some of those beats are so fucking big that they are going to sound amazing bouncing around the Domain.

HUSKY

Husky are kind of perfect; when you watch them play it's just as if nothing can or ever would falter. They clearly place a lot of pride in the composition of their music and the way that they execute it live. The release of their Forever So record pulled them from obscurity and, well, now they're on fucking Sub Pop, so there you go.

FULL TOTE ODDS:

You want soulful hip hop delivered by five guys with energy and passion for the genre? Then Full Tote Odds (FTO) are going to be a must-see for you at this year's Homebake.

Tickets are available from Ticketek, OzTix and Moshtix from 9am Thursday 16 August and they will cost you $99 + bf. Homebake is an over 18s event again this year.

Check out our Homebake Festival site here for news, interviews, videos and more.

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