Brisbane’s Iconic Against The Grain Festival Returns
After an eight-year layoff, the festival is back with a stacked lineup featuring Stereolab, POND, Rolling Blackout Coastal Fever and more.
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After an eight-year absence, Magandjin/Brisbane’s Against The Grain Festival returns in 2026 to help commemorate the 10th anniversary of GRAIN, a promoter, online music zine and creative incubator that has helped shape the city’s music scene.
GRAIN, in collaboration with The Tivoli Group and The Princess Theatre, are bringing Against The Grain to multiple venues across the Clarence Corner Precinct in Woolloongabba on Saturday 20 June.
The multi-stage, one-day festival has been carefully curated to bring live music, art and culture to the area, with artists from across Australia and around the world locked in to perform.
Headlining Against The Grain are Anglo-French avant-pop outfit Stereolab, performing in Brizzy for the first time in 17 years. The lineup also includes an Australian exclusive performance from psych rockers POND, playing tracks from their upcoming album, indie rock and rollers Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever and emerging indie rock outfit The Belair Lip Bombs.
Other notable acts performing include Detroit post-punk stalwarts Protomartyr, boundary-pushing Canadian punk outfit Cola (acronym for Cost-Of-Living Adjustment), making their long-awaited Australian debut, Magandjin favourites Good Boy, reuniting for a special one-off performance, and Brisbane’s own Hatchie, returning for her first performance on home soil since the release of her acclaimed third album Liquorice in 2025. Check out the full lineup below.
Tickets on sale now via ticketmaster.com.au.
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Along with live music, the Echo & Bounce carpark will be transformed into an open-air dancefloor curated by Magandjin party-starters Natural Steps, featuring sets from DJs Sacha Alexiou, Squidgenini, Deejay Hotline, Karishma and Wil Knott.
There will also be immersive installations and Visual Curation by Madeline Holt, with an official afterparty at The Princess Theatre curated by and featuring Naarm-based producer Milo Eastwood alongside boundary-pushing selector JNETT and dancefloor filler Adriana.
“With Against The Grain, we’ve wanted to build something that feels true to the community that surrounds it, something independent, intentional and a little bit unpredictable,” says Chris Langenberg. “To bring it back after eight years, and to do it at this scale with artists we’ve grown alongside as well as those shaping what comes next, feels like a real marker of where GRAIN has come from and where it’s heading.”
Against The Grain takes place across the Clarence Corner Precinct in Woolloongabba on Saturday 20 June 2026. Tickets on sale now via ticketmaster.com.au.
Against The Grain 2026 Lineup
Stereolab, Pond, Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, The Belair Lip Bombs, Protomartyr
A-z: Acopia, Cola, Concrete Surfers, Good Boy, Gut Health, Hatchie, Media Puzzle, Peachy, Pool Shop, Public Figures, Selve, Slowrip, Special Features, Swapmeet, Tomorrow’s Forecast, Twine, Way Dynamic, Xiao Xiao, 01 Thurman
Dj’s Curated By Natural Steps
A-z: Deejay Hotline, Karishma, Natural Steps, Sacha, Alexiou, Squidgenini, Wil Knot
Official Atg Afterparty Curated By Milo Eastwood
Milo Eastwood, Adriana, Jnett
more to be announced…
