Musical icons
Beck and
Grace Jones sit atop
the lineup released today for the 2018
AUCKLAND
CITY LIMITS music festival.
The festival is back to Western Springs Stadium and Park on
3 March 2018 and
headliners also include French acts with incredible festival pedigree in the
form of house duo
Justice and synth-pop stars
Phoenix.
Auckland City Limits today released a first announce line-up featuring:
BECK – JUSTICE – GRACE
JONES – PHOENIX – PEKING DUK – TASH SULTANA— GEORGE EZRA — THE LIBERTINES –
THUNDERCAT – THE HEAD AND THE HEART – THE AVALANCHES – OH WONDER – THE D4 – CAR
SEAT HEADREST – THE STAVES – SIGRID – AARADHNA – HEAD LIKE A HOLE – KATCHAFIRE
– SWIDT – DRAX PROJECT AND THE RETURN OF THE GOLDEN DAWN @ ACL WITH
FABULOUS/ARABIA, DISASTERADIO, SCOTT MANION (TOKEY TONES), MAGIC FACTORY, THE
BETHS, JON LEMMON, HEAVY, TOURETTES AKA DOMINIC HOEY, DJ TINA TURNTABLES, DJ
LINDA T AND MC PAUL AMOS & THE TALK SHOW AND TELL COMEDY GANG
Auckland City Limits will announce additional performers as well as details
about Auckland Eats, local artworks, an artisanal market, Auckland Kiddie
Limits and more soon.
A limited number of
Earlybird tickets at $179.90 go on sale to the general public via Ticketmaster
at 9am on 1 November, preceded by an exclusive pre-sale for Spark customers commencing
on 30 October. Inspired by and aligned with the world-class Austin City Limits Music Festival
in Austin, Texas, Auckland City Limits fuses the best elements of Austin’s
premier festival with a New Zealand flavour and spirit, creating an event that
celebrates the spirit and heritage of Auckland.
ABOUT THE LINE-UP: Musical maverick
Beck arrives in New Zealand for the first time in more than two decades, fresh off
the back of the release of his brand new and critically lauded album “Colors”.
Beck’s transformative influence on the musical landscape extends back to his
hip-hop folk debut ‘Loser’ and classic albums of the 1990s like
Odelay and
Mellow Gold while his
latest albums continue Beck’s brilliantly eccentric path between troubadour pop
persona and wild funk fun. As US publication
Journal
Sentinel noted of a recent show, “from hip-hop prankster to
futuristic funk master to sensitive folkie, Beck's chameleonic career, well
represented across 90 minutes, has a consistent throughline. His strongest
songs are imaginatively created, impeccably executed, incredibly catchy and as
alive as music can be.”
Grace Jones needs little introduction. The Jamaican born star is one of the most
unforgettable artists to emerge from the 1970's New York disco scene, going on
to become one of the biggest acts of the 80's as, aided by Sly & Robbie, she
created a string of reggaefied rock hits. Her stage shows are legendary –
expect to see costume changes (or just plain old body painting!) and – yes –
hula hooping along with all her classic songs. As the UK
Telegraph noted of her
recent headline performance at the Wilderness festival, the 69 year-old
superstar has “become one of the most consistently entertaining festival
headliners in recent years”.
Justice come to Auckland having played mind-melting sets at Coachella, Lollapalooza and
Glastonbury this year packed with their spectacular visual effects and massive
production. The duo manage to carve out a show encompassing elements with
everything from rock to disco into a show at Coachella that
Dancing Astronaut claimed
showed they “aren’t simply good DJs – they’re the best dance-rock band in the
f**king world”.
The '1901' and 'Lisztomania' hitmakers
Phoenix have returned in 2017 with an acclaimed sixth album and an international tour
showcasing old songs and new with breathtaking visuals packed with striking
optical illusions that
NME’s review of Shaky Knees festival in Atlanta said “had the power to
turn a dusty park into a futuristic disco utopia”.
Heading deeper into the festival bill takes in acts as diverse as Los Angeles
cosmic funkateer
Thundercat,
whose album
Drunk featuring
Kendrick Lamar, Wiz Khalifa and Kamasi Washington is one of many critics’
outstanding albums of 2017. Flying out from Seattle are indie folksters
The Head and The Heart and lo-fi artisans
Car
Seat Headrest, the latter coming back on the heels of an
inspired performance at Laneway 2017.
Its UK contingent boasts the ever-controversial indie guitar legends
The Libertines making
their first ever appearance here
,blues-pop balladeer
George
Ezra, electronic pop duo
Oh
Wonder and Bon Iver-endorsed folk siblings
The Staves.
Norwegian electronic pop sensation
Sigrid promises not to kill our vibe and
Auckland City Limits also
brings out the most alluring Australian contingent to head over the Tasman in
memory.
Peking Duk have delivered a string of huge pop electronic hits in recent times, while few
acts of the past decade can match the influence of
The Avalanches. The
wave of worldwide excitement for the phenomenon that is
Tash Sultana is
something very special and the multi-instrumental solo genius has sold out
every show she has played this year including an incendiary NZ tour in May.
Highlights of the local lineup include the thrilling return of sweat-soaked
rock’n’rollers
The D4 after a decade away from the stage
,r’n’b soul diva
Aaradhna, thundering veterans
Head Like A Hole, globe-trotting reggae
act
Katchafire,
Onehunga’s finest representatives
SWIDT and
Drax Project, the Wellington youngsters many pick as the most
exciting new live act in the country.
Plus there is the return of a packed line-up of indie fun and comedy frolics in
The Golden Dawn @ ACL,
bringing Ponsonby Rd’s most legendary venue since the Gluepot back to pop up at
the festival with musical highlights like Mike Fabulous of The Black Seeds and
Lawrence Arabia’s joint offering and more.
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