I’m pretty psyched about the upcoming Sydney Festival – there’s a lot of fantastic talent that I’ve been eagerly awaiting an announcement of an Australian tour, but pleasantly I don’t feel overwhelmed by there being too much goodness either. Last year was almost exhausting, especially considering the frantic rush trying to decide which acts I wanted to prioritise in the meagre 5 days they gave us before tickets went on sale.

The full lineup can be viewed over here, but here’s a quick overview of the acts that have got me particularly excited.

• Matthew Herbert + Big Band
  For reals – Herbert’s eccentric productions brought to life with a huge brass section, married with his own electronic constructions. I presume his wife and collaborator Dani Siciliano will be present to provide vocals.
• Camille
  I really liked her last album…
• Bon Iver
  The organizers have generously allowed for multiple Speigeltent performances AND a (presumably) much more elaborate City Recital Hall performance.
• St Vincent
  If you haven’t heard Marry Me yet, you owe it to yourself to check it out… this will be a show and a half.
• The Bug (headlining Hyper-dub)
  His latest album London Zoo is DECIMATING. Quite a remarkable fusion of dubstep, hip-hop, ragga and hip-hop.
• Four Tet
  Loved his set at Hyde Park Barracks a couple of years ago – am not sure if I’d do this as well as his Laneway performance, but we’ll see.
• Daedelus (fronting Mad Racket)
  Can’t wait to see his set at Laneway – and will seriously consider catching this sideshow. Really enjoying Love To Make Music To. Expect a post on it soon.
• The Bays
  All I really know about these guys is that they do entirely improvised sets, and that they feature drummer/programmer Andy Gangadeen. They’re going to be setting their performance to the movie Run Lola Run. You can download sets of their past shows from their website here.