It had to happen eventually. Splendour In The Grass kickstarts this Friday and after a long bout of teasing and cover-ups, it appears that the identity of the ‘MYSTERY B∆ND’ has been revealed.
While the likes of CHVRCHES, Atoms For Peace, and even the long-dormant return of The Avalanches were thrown about as possibilities, it seems that the band that’s playing between The Rubens and Passion Pit on the main stage on the final night is an act that many had suspected ever since the triangle symbol turned up in the poster artwork.
English alt-pop makers Alt-J took to Twitter last night, asking their Australian fans to help them prepare for the weather for a festival that they’re technically not on the bill for.
Anyone know what the weather is going to be like at Splendour this weekend?
— Δ (alt-J) (@alt_J) July 22, 2013
Alt-J have been the most likely candidates for the MYSTERY B∆ND since announcing they’d be playing a three-date Australian headline tour in July that mysteriously coincided with the dates for Splendour. The Mercury-winning Leeds quartet play in Perth on Saturday 27th July in Perth with their next gig not until the Tuesday 30th at Melbourne’s Festival Hall, leaving a Splendour shaped hole in their tour schedule to potentially play the Sunday night slot.
Back in April however, drummer Thom Green attempted to dispel rumours that they were Splendour’s mystery act in a single frowning response to a fan’s one-word query on the matter.
@davidwc1308 :(
— Teenage Weed™ (@ThomSonny) April 26, 2013
But after the Splendour playing times were set, the camping changes made, and locked in its extracurricular features, Green then employed a sneaky reversal, turning his frown upside down when he took part in one of reddit’s community AMA (Ask Me Anything) sessions recently, posting under the handle ‘_Winters’. When asked if the drummer had anything in common with a reddit user with the handle ‘splendourmysteryband’, Green replied with a positive:
This will be Alt-J’s third visit to Australia in less than a year, first playing Sydney and Melbourne in October 2012 off the back of their debut album An Awesome Wave, before returning in February this year as part of the Laneway Festival.
Alt-J’s last-minute addition to the lineup is yet to be confirmed by Splendour themselves, but if it isn’t the Leeds quartet that graces the stage following The Rubens’ set this Sunday, there’s still plenty to get excited about in the lineup for the Byron Bay festival. Including Exclusive headliners, Mumford & Sons, The National, and TV On The Radio, as well as the likes of Frank Ocean, Klaxons, Laura Marling,Babyshambles, The Polyphonic Spree performing Rocky Horror Picture Show, You Am I, The Drones, Empire Of The Sun, Bernard Fanning – the list goes on, so best brush up on those playing times.
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