Bluesfest has today made its fifth artist announcement for this year’s festival, revealing that Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals, Infectious Grooves, Katie Melua, and The Waifs will join the Easter weekend event.
‘For our fifth artist announcement, we are proud to present the artist who has done more to bring Bluesfest to the masses, Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals, for their first performance in Australia in five years,’ Mr Noble said.
‘No other artist who has played Bluesfest has had such an influence on the Australian music industry outside of B.B. King. We wouldn’t have John Butler Trio, Xavier Rudd, The Beautiful Girls, Angus and Julia Stone as they are today if it wasn’t for his influence.’
‘Ben and his band’s performances at Bluesfest are legendary. This is an experience not to be missed on Easter Sunday.’
Joining Harper will be Infectious Groove, a supergroup that includes Robert Trujillo on bass (Metallica), Mike Muir on vocals (Suicidal Tendencies), Jay Weinberg on drums (Slipknot), Dave Kushner on guitar (Velvet Revolver), and Dean Pleasants on guitar (Suicidal Tendencies).
‘They are a true funk punk supergroup,’ Mr Noble said.
‘Again, Bluesfest has featured, in the past, great genre-bending funk bands such as Fishbone and Funkadelic. And here’s another one to funk your mind up.’
The best-selling British and European female artist in the 2000s, Katie Melua, returns to Australia for the first time in almost 20 years, and will ne joined by one of Australia’s most iconic folk-pop bands, The Waifs.
The main artists listed in today’s announcement are: Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals,
Infectious Grooves, Katie Melua, The Waifs, Brad Cox, Yirrimal, Dirty Honey, Jerome Williams, Ben Swissa, eMDee, Perry Street Park, and Da Manager.
For more information and tickets, go to www.bluesfest.com.au
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