This May 27th, hosted by Triple J, The Big Pineapple’s annual Musical Festival will be making its return. This year’s line-up is truly something with names as big as: Birds of Tokyo, Peking Duk, Northlane and The Veronicas! It is a little eclectic, with a variety of performers from genres that are considered worlds apart – ranging from metal-core, rap and pop to funk, but despite this, or possibly because of this, I’ve not been so excited for a festival in a very long time. No other festival this year promises to cater to so many diverse tastes quite so well.

There are a few names on the line up I’m particularly interested in. Firstly, Northlane. This Sydney based band has been taking the Metal-core scene by storm over their 8 year life as an outfit, and have undergone a few changes of late that seem to be setting the tone for the future of the genre as a whole. Metal-core, for the uninitiated, is a fusion genre of extreme metal and hardcore punk. Think Blackflag fused with Black Sabbath. Some refer to it under the broad brushstroke of the term ‘scream-o’ due to its harsh and emotionally intense vocal style, otherwise known as ‘screaming’ or ‘growling’ styles. In addition to this polarising vocal style, the genre is typically known for its heavy baselines, intense double-kick drum beats and ‘chuggy’ guitar riffs. The genre itself is heavily dominated by Australian bands, despite its American heritage. Northlane in recent years has introduced a more melodic ‘clean’ style vocalist into their sound, due to the replacement of the original vocalist – Adrian, who had to step down due to health reasons. This more melodic influence of new vocalist Marcus has sent a ripple effect throughout the scene. Being a big fan of the original line-up, and metal-core in general, I am very impressed with this change of direction and am definitely excited to have the opportunity to see these boys perform this May.

Harts is an artist I’ve spoken about before. This Melbourne born funk musician is known for his ‘Prince-esk’ sound, and incredible, raw musical talent. Harts gained some fame following some incredible Prince covers that he released to his YouTube channel, which exposed us all to his incredible original works. Following this, and the release of his albums, Harts began touring to an enraptured series of audiences around Australia and the world. What this brilliant young man represents is a resurgence of the funk genre in recent years, thanks to artists such as the White Stripes, and the popularity of Rage Against the Machine and the ‘rap-funk’ genre they popularised. Personally I love this young artist’s work, and will be front and centre for his performance this year at the Big Pineapple.

Two big names from the line-up have definitely peaked my curiosity. Apparently, popular Alt-Rock 5 piece band, Birds of Tokyo, as well as very popular ‘pop’ artists The Veronicas, are both making a return and will be featured this year at The Big Pineapple Musical Festival. I haven’t been following either artist’s returns, and wasn’t a fan during their initial popularity, but will definitely be interested to see how their sound and music has evolved.

For more information, as well as to book your tickets, visit the festival’s webpage and I’ll see you on the green.