This morning saw us receive the official announcement of the 2019 dates for Download Festival Australia, however it also seen us receive the traditional fake lineup as well.

Download Festival Australia organisers announced today that not only will the festival be returning in 2019 after a hugely successful debut earlier this year, but that it would also be expanding over to Sydney as well.

While fans are undoubtedly stoked about this news, the big question that remains is in regards to just who will be performing at the 2019 edition? While today’s announcement noted that the “corker” lineup is “imminent”, it seems that some folks have taken this as an opportunity to start toying with our music-loving emotions.

As both Music Feeds and Junkee note, a poster purporting to be the official lineup for Download Festival Australia 2019 began doing the rounds this morning, with a list of bands that would make even the most brutal of music-lovers weep tears of joy. However, it looks like it’s all a fraud.

A fake poster for Download Festival Australia 2019

While the lineup looks like exactly the sort of thing that next year’s Download Festival Australia could indeed announce – complete with huge name such as System of A Down, Avenged Sevenfold, Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie, and Jimmy Eat World – it’s all too good to be true.

As Junkee points out, there are a few main issues with this fake lineup. While the artwork and dates are all nicely done, and the listed bands don’t appear to have any already-announced dates at the time the festival is set to occur, it appears that the biggest issue is in fact the Download logo that has been used. While the poster lists the festival as ‘Download Australia 2019’, the official website happens to have the logo listed as ‘Download Sydney & Melbourne 2019’.

There’s also the fact that the bottom of the poster only lists ‘#DLMELB19’ as an official hashtag. Wouldn’t it make sense to also include a hashtag for Sydney as well, especially given the festival’s upcoming expansion?

If that isn’t enough for you, there’s also the fact that Hellyeah happen to be listed as performing. While we’re not one to speculate on the current status of the band, considering the fact that their drummer Vinnie Paul recently passed away, we’re doubting they’re getting back into the swing of things that quickly.

However, the most damming evidence comes from Download Festival Australia organisers themselves, who confirmed to Music Feeds that the lineup is indeed a hoax.

While we’re sorry to deliver this disappointing news to you, we can at least rest easy knowing that the official lineup is well and truly on its way, and considering how amazing this year’s was, we can only assume it’ll be an absolute belter.

Check out System Of A Down’s ‘Chop Suey!’:

YouTube VideoPlay

Download Festival Australia 2019

Saturday, March 9th, 2019
Parramatta Park, Sydney, NSW

Monday, March 11th, 2019 (Long weekend)
Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne, VIC

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