Grinspoon Sub In For Barnesy In This Weekend’s Summernats Lineup

3 January 2024 | 8:40 am | Mary Varvaris

"We’re absolutely stoked to be coming to the Nats, and proud to step in for Jimmy Barnes while he gets on the mend."

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Grinspoon (Credit: Jess Gleeson)

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With the beloved cars-meets-music event Summernats kicking off tomorrow, there’s something punters should know.

If you were unaware, one of the music headliners, Jimmy Barnes, will no longer make it after undergoing open heart surgery following a bacterial infection.

While he’s recovering well, Barnsey’s summer touring commitments have been cancelled, leaving a significant hole to be filled for Summernats 36. That’s where Aussie rockers Grinspoon come in, with organisers confident in the band’s abilities to put on a great show.

In a statement posted to Instagram in December, Summernats organisers wrote, “Jimmy is a Hard Act To Follow, and the Nats knew they had to lock in a Champion band who know how to play a Rock Show to replace him.”

Promising to rock “Three Times harder”, Grinspoon will join fellow Australian music royalty Daryl Braithwaite and The Screaming Jets on Friday, 5 January, on the Canberra stage.

Grinspoon’s Phil Jamieson said about their upcoming performance, “We’re absolutely stoked to be coming to the Nats, and proud to step in for Jimmy Barnes while he gets on the mend. We haven’t been to Canberra in a long time. It’ll be great to hook up with Daryl Braithwaite and the Screaming Jets in front of that mad Summernats crowd.”

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Teasing the epic line-up of cars, Summernats co-owner Andy Lopez added (per ACT News) that there will be “30 incredible new and unseen modified cars that will be unveiled, the mayhem of Skid Row, the colour and excitement of the City Cruise, the Braddon Fringe Festival, plus Mulletfest. It’s going to be mad.”

Tickets to Summernats 36 are available now via Oztix.

Punters who purchased Wednesday camping tickets will witness rockers Dragon in their glory tonight, as well as up-and-coming synth outfit VoxNeon. On Saturday (6 January), Hot Dub Time Machine will take the stage.

Summernats celebrated its 30th birthday in January 2017. The epic birthday bash featured the likes of hip-hop identity Drapht, contemporary outfit Spit Syndicate, Aussie rock veterans Thirsty Merc and hard rock/heavy metal group Airbourne. Summernats has been dubbed “Australia's Biggest Horsepower Party,” and for good reason.

The music contingent only makes up just one part of the broader Summernats program, which brings about 2000 of Australia's most outstanding cars to Canberra's Exhibition Park throughout the event, along with more than 100,000 fans of all things automotive.

Summernats 36 will take place from 4-7 January 2024.