Aussies Radium Dolls & Spike F*ck Locked In For 2026 Edition Of SXSW

The Austin-based music festival and conference event, South By Southwest (SXSW), has announced the first 100 showcasing artists to appear at next year’s festival, as well as the first 50 Showcase Presenters locked in for the 40th edition of the event.

On the first night of SXSW 2026 – Thursday, 12 March – The All-American Rejects will perform at the event’s Music Festival Opening Party. Elsewhere, the festival has locked in performances from Brighton, England artist Milo Korbenski, LA-based experimental electropop pioneer DJ Dave, Mexico City post-punk project La Texana, Indonesian indie trio Grrrl Gang, Irish post-punks Chalk, and others.

And, there are two Australian acts to feature on the first artist announcement: Brisbane punk rockers Radium Dolls, and Melbourne’s rock/alt-country musician Spike Fuck.

In October, Radium Dolls dropped the impressive new single Golden Boy, the follow-up to another single (Scorching Heat) and their album Legal Speed, released earlier this year.

Meanwhile, Spike Fuck returned after a three-year hiatus from the music industry late last year, releasing the six-minute epic, Other Right Hand of the Lord, at 11:59 pm on 24 December 2024. The gospel-inspired folk track led to a string of national tour dates earlier this year, with Spike Fuck also in the studio back in March.

In a statement, Brian Hobbs, VP of Music at SXSW, said of the 2026 first artist announcement, “SXSW has been the premiere destination for music discovery for 40 years, helping push pioneering acts like Kendrick Lamar, The White Stripes, Wet Leg, PinkPantheress, Tyler, The Creator, and Billie Eilish, to the next level.”

Hobbs continued, “By bringing the global music industry to Austin, from labels and A&R to publicists to influential journalists and critics, SXSW is a unique opportunity for showcasing artists to build their careers, enter new markets, and learn from fellow artists and industry voices. With an extra night of showcases this year, 2026 is shaping up to be better than ever for artists, industry and audiences.”

You can check out the SXSW 2026 schedule here.

Last year, the SXSW team kicked off their announcement for the 2025 festival with twelve Aussies on the line-up, including Dune Rats, Boo Seeka, Rowena Wise, Delivery, and others. In December, seven additional Australian acts were added to the line-up, such as Sly Withers, Coldwave, Joan & The Giants, Wade Forster, and more.

In January, another artist announcement landed, with acts including Sunshine Coast’s Betty Taylor, Chris Lanzon (Sydney), Kayps (Perth), Oshua (Perth), and Gerringong, NSW-based pop-punk outfit, Pacific Avenue, added to the line-up. We expect to see plenty more homegrown talent make the journey to Texas in March 2026.

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