theMusic.com.au's Epic Guide To Bluesfest

Okay, so we haven't exactly covered every band on the Bluesfest bill; have you seen how many of them there are? We simply don't have the manpower! Plus it's not as if we have the likes of Paul Simon and Robert Plant busting down our door wanting to talk to us.

But we have covered a shitload of stuff from a shitload of the acts, so we suggest scrolling through or hitting CTRL F and searching for a band you want to know more about. We'll do our best to help.

You'll need the right tunes to get you through this. Subscribe to our Bluesfest playlist!

First announcement! - (plus Peter Noble's thoughts on how it stacks up).
Second announcement!
Third announcement!
Fourth announcement!
Fifth announcement!
Sixth announcement!
Seventh announcement!
Eighth Announcement!
Ninth Announcement!

PAUL SIMON

Last year marked the 25th anniversary of the release of Graceland, can you believe it? We had a look at it again and remembered the greatness of all those hits.

ROBERT PLANT PRESENTS THE SENSATIONAL SHAPE SHIFTERS

Memories of that 2007 Led Zeppelin show are still fresh, even fresher now thanks to the release of Celebration Day.

RUFUS WAINWRIGHT

We chatted with Rufus about lightening up as he gets a little older.

It wasn't all that long ago that Rufus Wainwright was here last, here's what we thought of his Melbourne, Sydney and Perth shows about six months ago.

His Out Of The Game LP from last year was one of the more anticipated releases of the year; here's one review we ran last year.

BEN HARPER

Ben Harper has been keeping pretty busy; it was just a couple of months ago that he was last in the country for a series of shows that included this epic show The Plenary in Melbourne. He won't play for quite as long at Bluesfest…

He also released a not-so-new new album called By My Side.

As well as this, he also teamed up with his early hero Charlie Musselwhite for Get Up!, which knows when to kick, when to slide and when to sit back.

SANTANA

Last year Santana released the blazing Shape Shifter, a record that saw him really rip into his guitar again as well as continue some experimentation with “new age” themes.

IGGY & THE STOOGES

The great James Williamson talks about Raw Power on the 40th anniversary of its release.

There will be a brand new Iggy & The Stooges LP released soon as well!

The first single sounds pretty damn sweet, if you ask us.

JIMMY CLIFF

We spoke with Jimmy Cliff about his creativity, his new film and why he has been reborn.

STATUS QUO

Down Down is still a good song, but it's just wrong what has been done to it.

JOAN ARMATRADING

Joan Armatrading laid down the law about how her songwriting is not to be messed with.

BONNIE RAITT

She might be hugely successful, but the burning passion for music that Bonnie Raitt has always had remains as strong as ever, she tells us.

WILCO

Jeff Tweedy, the leader of this great band, does not want to play it safe.

RODRIGUEZ

He has to be the most humble man in music today. Rodriguez' story is truly brilliant..

XAVIER RUDD

Spirit Bird, his latest album, was both powerful and subtle.

He talked us through it, track by track (scroll to the bottom to see them all).

We loved his live show.

YOU GUYS loved watching him. A lot. This clip was our most viewed of last year.

If you see him on the weekend, don't offer him a ham sandwich.

ALLEN TOUSSAINT

He's one of our 'under the radar' picks for Bluesfest.

WANDA JACKSON

She might have been scared of Jack White, but Wanda Jackson is as relevant as ever.

BETTYE LAVETTE

Bettye LaVette is not the comeback queen; she never came in the first place.

Her Thankful N' Thoughtful record of last year is “one of her finest pieces.

LUKA BLOOM

Ireland's king of song talks to us about working with the Dalai Lama and paying his bills.

TONY JOE WHITE

Swamp master Tony Joe White has a new record and he says it's gonna be real sweaty.

THE BREAK

Aussie surf supergroup have a new LP and, while it's not all that different to their first, it's still bloody good.

ALLEN STONE

The US soul dude talks of his rapid rise in his home country thus far.

TAJ MAHAL TRIO

Connecting people with different musical cultures is something Taj Mahal has made his life work.

COUNTING CROWS

Adam Duritz took some time to talk about the band in 2013 and the things they've achieved over the years.

We reviewed their first album of covers; it's “a fun listen”.

THE LUMINEERS

The success of The Lumineers is even unbelievable to the band themselves.

Their debut LP is confident and impressive.

JASON MRAZ

The insanely popular Jason Mraz talks to us about just how damn hard he worked on his new album.

We then reviewed the record, saying it was accessible yet cautious.

DROPKICK MURPHYS

One of the Celtic punks had a chat to us about politics, festivals, Ireland, Boston and Thin Lizzy.

Their new record, Signed & Sealed In Blood, is another solid romp.

GLEN HANSARD WITH THE FRAMES

Hansard tells us how New York City was such a big part of his new solo record.

That record, Rhythm & Repose, is thoroughly endearing, we found.

FRED WESLEY & THE NEW JBS

We get the lowdown on what kind of material the funk master does in the sets with his hot band.

TEDESCHI TRUCKS BAND

This band does everything they can to showcase all of the amazing musicians who make up the ensemble.

FRANK TURNER & THE SLEEPING SOULS

Always good for a chat, Turner battles a rough hangover to have a chat about how things are going for him at present.

For those unfamiliar, Last Minutes & Lost Everythings packages up some of Turner's finest work thus far.

NEWTON FAULKNER

The adored British folk-pop came back with another cracking record last year.

KITTY DAISY & LEWIS

We recently had a chat to Kitty herself!

MARK SEYMOUR AND THE UNDERTOW

The legend himself chats about his latest direction.

MELBOURNE SKA ORCHESTRA

We had a chat to the group's Nicky Bomba when they were recording their killer debut LP.

Which we then reviewed, of course.

NICKY BOMBA'S BUSTAMENTO

Nicky also chatted to us about Bustamento!

GRACE POTTER AND THE NOCTURNALS

This young rocker tells us that, for a “young Barbie doll”, she makes a hell of a noise.

CHRIS SMITHER

His new LP Hundred Dollar Valentine is gritty, funny and proves again his brilliance as a musician and songwriter.

He takes us behind the making of it in an interview.

PLAYING FOR CHANGE

Any organization that can bring Keith Richards and Blue King Brown together needs to be respected.

THE MUSIC MAKER BLUES REVUE

We had a chat with keyboard master Ironing Board Sam, who will be a big part of this year's revue.

THE CAT EMPIRE

We premiered their new clip a few weeks ago. It's been doing the rounds since then, of course, but it's still great.

TROMBONE SHORTY & ORLEANS AVENUE

We spoke to Shorty himself, and found that it's the blend of old and new musical styles that makes this modern funk powerhouse so impressive.

JON ANDERSON

The former Yes frontman talks about getting back into it after some seriously bad illness.

BEN CAPLAN

Speaking of beards, could Caplan be one of the hidden gems of Bluesfest?

We chat to him and find out what he's all about.

BLIND BOYS OF ALABAMA

One of the Blind Boys shares his inspiring story with us.

MICHAEL KIWANUKA

This young gun with a velvet voice is feeling a bit more comfortable in the studio these days.

Of course that doesn't mean his debut Home Again wasn't absolutely gorgeous.

SOJA

The message that this pumped up reggae group are putting out there is spreading.

Their Strength To Survive LP is certainly helping the cause…

SHAUN KIRK

Read what one of Australia's most promising young blues dudes had to say to us.

KIM CHURCHILL

A Bluesfest favourite, Churchill just keeps going from strength to strength.

JD MCPHERSON

The Clash and Wu-Tang Clan have been as influential to the soul man as Little Richard and Chuck Berry.

SETH LAKEMAN

The British folk man tells us why he's not into social media.

FAT FREDDY'S DROP

We had a chat to Dobie Blaze about their new album just before they dropped it.

The kiwis blew us away at their recent Sydney Opera House show.  

THE SNOWDROPPERS

We chatted to the Sydney blues exponents.

We premiered their clip.

And we told you exactly what we thought of their new one Moving Out Of Eden and why you need to see them live.

SHUGGIE OTIS

Another of our potential under the radar heroes of the festival.

SASKWATCH

Saskwatch are one of the most happening Melbourne funk outfits right now; we've spoken to them.

We've reviewed them live.

Also, we had a good listen (and dance) to their album.

Hell, they even talk us through their crazy busy schedule.

SHAWN COLVIN

Back for the first time in forever, Colvin tells us how busy she was last year.

Her records are always good, but the latest one is nothing short of outstanding.

HAT FITZ & CARA

Their new record ain't bad, we just wish they'd hone in on what they're best at.

KING CANNONS

They have a purpose and they do it bloody well on their debut LP.

THE BAMBOOS

What did you think of their latest LP Medicine Man?

Did you hear their live EP?

CURRENT SWELL

Plenty to like about their album, but we'd like a few more risks next time.

JAKE SHIMABUKURO

We spoke to him about the recent projects he's been a part of.

DAMIEN DEMPSEY

This guy has no problems with people picking up his music slowly but surely.

ROGER HODGSON

The legendary former Supertramp leader tells us how music has always been the only thing he wants to do.

WILLIAM ELLIOT WHITMORE

He jumped at the chance to spend more time in Australia, he told us.

GREY GHOST

Grey Ghost looked to us when it came to premiering their new clip.

You need to see them live though!

We pitched a few questions at them as well.

THE MCMENAMINS

Here's a super quick chat with the great country duo.