The multi-city event, St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival is located in several cities in Australia, Singapore and New Zealand. The festival was founded in 2004 and featured primarily indie music acts from around the world. Since then the festival has expanded its musical tastes and includes all different kinds of genres. Each festival is held during one weekend during January and February of 2015. While some of the line-ups have less or more artists, I will be focusing on the the acts that will be playing at all of the scheduled Laneway Festival events. Here are my top five acts to see live!

5. Royal Blood

The rock duo comprising of bassist/vocalist Mike Kerr and drummer Ben Thatcher from Brighton, England are having a breakthrough year with the release of their debut album, self-titled Royal Blood. Imagine if The White Stripes and The Black Keys with the help of a wizard created a little rock and roll offspring? Well in all likelihood that offspring would be hard rock duo Royal Blood. Their self titled album was released on August 25th of this year and instantly debuted at number one on the UK rock charts, selling around 660,000 copies in its first week. As one of the fastest rising rock acts around, Royal Blood has gained a reputation for bone-crushing live shows that turn into sweaty head banging affairs. Set to take the world by storm, do not miss out on the next big thing.

Recommended Tracks: “Figure It Out”, “Come On Over”, “Out Of The Black”

4. Eagulls

English post-punk rock band Eagulls, are a new act on the scene and they are making some major waves. The controversial band is known for their brash and at times arrogant nature, but this does not hinder their live experience in any way shape or form. Fast paced and high voltage, the band showers the crowd with excellent noise rock that sends people into a frenzy, whether they want to or not. While they do not look like rockstars the band is relentless when performing and will have the most overlooked breakout set of the festival.

Recommended Tracks: “Farewell Summer”, “Possessed”, “Nerve Endings”

3. St. Vincent

Singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Annie Clark or more commonly known by her stage name St. Vincent, is headliner material and the future of indie rock. Touring her most recent self-titled album Clark is one of the fastest rising stars that has already established herself in the music industry. Having opened for bands like Arcade Fire, Death Cab For Cutie, Grizzly Bear and Andrew Bird, Clark has the experience and friends to go even further. She is a dynamic performer with an extremely versatile range of talents that never seem to stop evolving. Whether she is destroying the audience with her insane guitar shredding or serenading them with her light and whimsical vocals, Clarke is set to be the highlight of the whole entire festival.



Recommended Tracks: “Severed Cross Fingers”, “Cruel”, “Digital Witness”

2. Lykke Li

Swedish indie pop singer Lykke Li is one of the most anticipated performers of the whole entire event. Mixing elements of pop, alternative and electronica, Li is a very experimental artist that enjoys pushing the boundaries of her art. With three albums to choose from the stylish songstress will be a perfect set to see when the night falls on the festival grounds. Her beautiful uplifting vocals and lyrical genius makes her a must see act. Not only that but with a cascade of classical instruments and electronica as support, there is very little to not enjoy about the Swedish phenomenon. With Laneway festival being one of her few stops in Australia it would be a very good idea to catch her show before she disappears to record her next masterpiece.

Recommended Tracks: “No Rest For The Wicked”, “Little Bit”, “I Follow Rivers”

1. Flying Lotus (3 Layers) American multi-genre music producer Flying Lotus, has finished recording and mixing his newest album titled You’re Dead and it is set for release on October 7th of this year. One of the most popular indie electronic artists on the scene, over the years Flylo has managed to gather a strong following that includes heavyweight artists like Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke, Earl Sweatshirt and Kendrick Lamar. Blending electronic music with hip-hop, Flylo is a double threat that deserves the honor of co-headlining this diverse festival. To give you even more reason to see him is the added bonus of his very special 3 Layer live show.

An intense visual experience that gives you the feeling of drugs without having to take them… this may be a little dramatic but it will most certainly be a fantastic performance that will be filled with heavy dance beats. As soon as Flylo hits the stage the audience will be drawn into the biggest dance party of the festival.

Recommended Tracks: “See Thru To U”, “Zodiac Shit”, “Never Catch Me”