Live Review: Against The Grain Festival 2026

Stereolab

As the music festival scene in Australia goes through a massive state of flux, it’s become more important than ever for grassroots movements to stake their claim, return festivals to the people, and give local music and art a much-needed platform.

GRAIN has been producing shows for over ten years in Brisbane, and to celebrate the decade, the group that started as a fanzine for local artists, along with Open Season, brought together local, national and international acts for a day of musical pleasure around the streets of Woolloongabba.

Taking over Clarence Corner, including an area of public footpath around Annerley and Stanley Street, gave the festival access to not only a well-sized footprint, but to the bars, restaurants and gallery in the precinct.

The carpark in the middle of the corner provided ample space for a great main stage, with the Princess Theatre, Brisbane Brewing Co. bar and community space Echo and Bounce across the road providing a variety of stage sizes and accessibility.

One might expect the second shortest day of the year (one day before Winter Solstice) to be chilly, but Brisbane delivered a 24-degree blue sky stunner as the gates opened just around 12:40 pm.

A healthy queue of people proved that the opening act was one worth catching as buzzy Adelaideans Swapmeet introduced the crowd to the Clarence Corner Carpark Stage. Could it be that the very first act could be one of the highlights of the expertly curated festival? Well, yes….but more on that later.

Swapmeet are worth the buzz. Fuzzy guitar, along with a great balance of vocals from singer-guitarists, Venus O’Broin and Maxwell Elphick, provides a delightfully interesting sound, and their music, reminiscent of Sonic Youth in their prime, drew the early crowd in like moths to a flame. Listen to 2 C U if you need any proof of this.

“We calculated we’d get seven people… maybe eight,” Elphick cheekily commented before they dove into Seeds, a soon-to-be-released track with riffs that saw us closing our eyes and floating in the warm afternoon summer sun. There were not many better ways to start a festival.

Stepping from the bright sunlight into the seriously dark Princess Theatre, the mood changed immediately with the visceral scream of Public Figures. This tug-of-war between shades of light and dark in moods and styles would become a theme of the day, and it was titillating.

For a group that started as a duo, the now double-sized four-piece from Melbourne created a huge sound. Landed In A Trap from their debut Figure It Out! EP might have only lasted less than two minutes, but it was a perfect live introduction to the group – explosive and passionate energy that evoked a huge response from the crowd in the dark of the floor of the Princess Theatre. Many new fans were made.

With news that the festival had sold out that morning, comments of “This is sick!’ and “This is groundbreaking” were heard from punters in the early afternoon crowd. The feeling of love and community was overwhelming as the ‘Welcome to Country’ was delivered to an appreciative audience along with some cheeky tales of the past.

Local legends, Good Boy, haven’t played since their ‘Good Boy Good Bye’ show at the tail end of the Covid-era in 2021. One wonders what it took for GRAIN to get them out of retirement, but the crowd were sure happy they did.

Poverty Line kicked off the passionate show. The song, also celebrating ten years, felt like a great way to start the set. If you didn’t know, you’d think they were still playing gigs every couple of weeks. Frontman, Tom Lindeman, belted out older tracks as well as songs from their last album, It Takes A Lot Of Skill To Milk A Mare, with the mic stand at waist height, screaming out the lyrics in his typical style. He’s lost nothing in his delivery, and the band were slick and tight.

As the set rounded out with Teens of the Stoned Age, the only disappointment about the show was the lack of confirmation that this might be the permanent reunion we were hoping for. In any case, if it was just to be a one-off comeback, we were happy to be there.

Way Dynamic were next up on the carpark stage, and the tone changed again. The eclectic and retro chill-wave sounds of the six-piece Melbourne collective were a much more relaxed way to enjoy the afternoon sun. Dylan Young’s project, which included violin, a distinctive recorder solo and a hypnotically warm sound, brought everyone together in a swaying motion. The eclectic tracks from Massive Shoe were received with the same joyful exuberance they were delivered with, and it was a surprise highlight set of the day.

As we stepped back into the Princess Theatre, you’d be excused for thinking it was The Strokes or Editors on the stage. Instead, it was the Montreal three-piece, Cola, that were belting out their post-punk early-2000-esque sounds. On the last show of their debut Australian tour, there was certainly a lot of love in the room for a band that had only just dropped their third album.

The bass from Ben Stidworthy propelled the songs as the vocalist, guitarist and former fellow bandmate from Ought delivered the somewhat heavy and at times political lyrics. This is supported by the fact that ‘Cola’ refers to ‘Cost Of Living Adjustment’ rather than any sort of fizzy beverage.

The first foray into the corner stage set-up in the Brisbane Brewing Co. bar was a great one as Tomorrow’s Forecast came together for a jam-packed home-town room.

“I’ve never seen Woolloongabba so packed!” exclaimed singer and guitarist, Olive McCagh. The former Gold Coasters have been making a name for themselves in Brissy, and the buzzing room showed their appeal. Jangly indie rock songs about Pocket Money and Ribbons seemed to juxtapose the mature sound they delivered. A very fun set, but how many highlights can one have?

A difficult decision had to be made at this point; we would sadly only catch a few minutes of Hatchie from the main stage before heading across Stanley Street to catch the exciting rise of Media Puzzle.

Situated behind Echo & Bounce - a great little independent record store, café and community space - was an open-air stage, which on a wet day probably wouldn’t have been, but on a beautiful, balmy winter’s late afternoon, the roofless stage let the music of this exultant band free us all.

With songs like Gold Coast Recycling Plant, More Horse, Less Code and Everything’s Fucked!, you know you’re about to hear a quirky set… and that’s exactly what we got.

After playing a couple of old cuts, including one about their favourite and least favourite street from their home town of Lismore – Keen Street, they dove into their new album, released just two months ago, New Racehorse. This means we heard the album as it was meant to be heard, from start to finish…a zippy, satirical and sometimes confusing bunch of songs that exemplify a band that are discovering themselves with every release. Pure fun!

As with any festival, you’re going to get clashes, but one that seemed unnecessarily cruel was the four-way crush of Media Puzzle, Gut Health, Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever and Selve. All four bands are high on the ‘must see’ list, but how do I split myself into four?

A quick vibe check on Gut Health in the theatre was a great choice, as they decided to play a few new tracks, and frontwoman Athina Wilson was in her usual fine, frenetic form.

“Fuck weapons and fuck AI!” announced Wilson as the band launched into another new song, the bass line high in the mix and reverberating around the room like a demon. Such is the architecture of their music, designed to be played live and to be felt, as well as heard. Gut Health are already hitting their strides, only five years into their career. There really is no ceiling to how tall this band will stand.

With Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever not having played in Brisbane for five years, it was a healthy crowd that gathered for the Melbourne five-piece, and Mainland was the perfect start to the set. What followed was a usual, tight, highly entertaining and well-rounded set that proves the band are in no way slowing down.

With a new album peeking out over the horizon after the release of Sunburned In London a few months ago, there is hope it won’t be another five years before seeing these national treasures in Brisbane again.

Ducking out just before the end of RBCF, it was possible to witness a frenetic and fiery finale to the Selve set over at the Brisbane Brewing Co. The Gold Coast band have been making a name for themselves locally and abroad following their debut record (recorded at Abbey Road, thank you very much). Breaking Into Heaven is a song that you have to see live to appreciate the intensity of the performance and the musicianship of the group.

With the dark of the longest night of the year upon us, it was time to stick around and check out Special Features, who are quickly making a name for themselves in Brissy and beyond with their grungy alt-rock sound that has taken a post-punk turn with their latest track Che Guevara T-Shirt. Whichever direction they find themselves in, there’s a huge talent in the making with this four-piece.

“What are you doing here when Protomartyr are playing at the Princess?” asked frontman Zac Carr. People peered in through the glass with the room packed full, everyone eager to appreciate the local talent.

That said, before long, we did make our way to Protomartyr, the Detroit post-punk quartet, in the Princess Theatre. Again, the floor was rumbling with the pounding drums coming from within. It was also a good chance to rest the feet and sit back and immerse yourself in their cacophony of sound.

The Devil In His Youth was an obvious favourite with the crowd, who were packed in from every angle. Lead singer Joe Casey was at his growling best, spitting lyrics like a man possessed at times and at others, like Maidenhead, he brought out his tender side. Amongst it all, the band don’t miss a beat. A solid set.

It was time to head back out to the main carpark stage for the beloved sounds of Pond. The West Australian act is edging on twenty years as a band, and their presence on stage is, as always, formidable. Their eleventh album was just one day old, so the celebratory nature of the release meant we heard a stack of new tracks, including Through The Heather, a cosmic pop track explosion that gave us no better idea of where the band are headed – case in point – we’re never quite sure.

Mind you, the band have never been afraid to keep expanding their sound and the set did just that, taking us on an exploration through the narration of a world-class act and a front man in Nick Allbrook that you can’t take your eyes off. His frequent forays in the audience were Nick Cave-esque, leaning over the front barrier using an arm from the crowd to prop him up before just giving in and diving into the bubble throng, only to be transported around as he sang.

“This song is giving real ‘War Pigs’ vibes, hey mate?” declared a fellow punter as Black Lung pounded around Woolloongabba. He was not wrong; the group have a way of evoking many great past acts whilst maintaining their own aesthetic. It was a memorable set from one of Australia’s premier acts.

So, where to from here? Watching Twine was a solid option, as were Concrete Surfers, but The Belair Lip Bombs were calling from the Princess Theatre.

The Melbourne band have delivered two sonically superb albums in their young career, and it’s great to see those perfectly constructed songs come to life on stage. Lead vocalist, guitarist and keyboardist Maisie Everett fronts the band with good measure and helps to bring to life the songs that have grown in stature with each listen. Nothing flashy on stage, but the music washing over us is exactly what we were after near the end of a long day.

But that wasn’t the end, the headliner of the festival was still to play. The inclusion of the Euro-English act, Stereolab, to wrap up the festival was a stroke of genius. ‘The Groop’ may not fit into the genre of a lot of the other acts on the bill (barring perhaps Way Dynamic), but they certainly fit into a category that all of the meticulously curated bill fell into; They are good people and very good musicians.

Politics aside, the formation of Stereolab and the progression of their musical path has always been on one less travelled. Not afraid to pursue the ever-elusive dream of originality, one could never say Stereolab are trying to sound like someone else. THEY are the someone else.

In a lovely touch, Molly Read - a resident of Brisbane and the niece of the late member Mary Hansen - joined the band for a couple of songs during the night, including the bouncy early set number, Aerial Troubles and the more introspective but joyful Vermona F Transistor. It’s a lovely tribute and sets the audience's faces to silly grins for a large portion of the set.

Even if you’re not familiar with their music, and/or their 2025 return album, you are transfixed by the effect the music has on your body and your mood. It’s hard not to enjoy transitions of sound from surfy synth pop to frenetic avant-pop climaxes. It feels like Stereolab wrote the book that.

Singer Laetitia Sadier is a joy to listen to, her voice cutting through the crowd and bringing peace to the day that added a sense of closure and calm to a full-on day of amazing music.

Against the Grain is the festival we need right now. Independent, thoughtful, big enough to feel like you’re a part of something and small enough to be manageable.

A huge congratulations must go to the organisers, the curators, and the volunteers who made the festival feel like things are moving back in the right direction for grassroots music. A hearty thanks to the city of Brisbane is also in order for approving and supporting such an ambitious venture on a busy corner of the area.

Ultimately, the music did the talking, but the people that attended were all there for the right reasons, supporting mostly homegrown music in a friendly community setting with grace, passion and appreciation. In the end, that’s what matters most.