Wanstock 2026 is bringing Canadian Music Hall of Fame arena rockers Loverboy to Australia for the very first time ever.
If you’ve ever air-guitared to Working for the Weekend in your car, sung Turn Me Loose at karaoke, or simply wondered why a band this massive has never toured Down Under, your moment has arrived. Wanstock 2026 is rolling into Melbourne and Sydney with a lineup that reads like a who’s who of 80s and 90s rock royalty, headlined by Canadian arena rock icons Loverboy making their long-awaited Australian debut alongside local legends 1927, Dragon, Pseudo Echo, Bachelor Girl and more.
The festival will take over Shoppingtown Hotel in Doncaster for two massive nights on 20 and 21 March, while Sydney’s Selina’s in Coogee hosts its own show on 20 March. Melbourne punters get the pick of the litter, with Friday’s lineup featuring 1927 and Dragon, while Saturday brings Loverboy alongside Pseudo Echo and Taxiride featuring Jason Singh. Sydney’s single-night affair pairs Loverboy with Choirboys and Ventura.
Wanstock 2026
- Shoppingtown Hotel, Doncaster – 20 and 21 March 2026
- Selina’s, Coogee – 20 March 2026
- Tickets on sale now from wanstock.com.au and selinas.com.au
Stay up to date with what’s happening in and around Melbourne here.
Loverboy finally cross the Pacific
For a band that’s shifted more than 10 million albums worldwide, won a record-setting six Juno Awards in a single night, and was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2009, it’s genuinely wild that Loverboy have never set foot on Australian soil. The Calgary-formed outfit emerged in 1979 when vocalist Mike Reno met guitarist Paul Dean at the Refinery Night Club, and by 1981 their second album Get Lucky had spawned the ubiquitous Working for the Weekend. That track, along with Turn Me Loose, Lovin’ Every Minute of It and Hot Girls in Love, became arena rock staples that still pack dance floors at retro nights across the globe.
The band’s success was so enormous in the early 80s that they were one of the top five grossing touring acts in the world, playing alongside Journey, ZZ Top, Cheap Trick and Def Leppard. Their self-titled 1980 debut sold four million copies worldwide, while Get Lucky moved another four million in the US alone. VH1 named Working for the Weekend one of the 100 Greatest Songs of the 80s, and the track has popped up everywhere from Saturday Night Live (in that legendary Chris Farley and Patrick Swayze Chippendales skit) to Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.
Friday night belongs to 1927 and Dragon
Headlining Wanstock’s Friday night is 1927, the Melbourne-formed band whose 1988 debut …ish remains one of the highest-selling debut albums by an Australian artist. The record spent 46 weeks in the ARIA Top 50, peaking at number one for four weeks, and spawned six charting singles including That’s When I Think of You, If I Could and Compulsory Hero. The album earned five platinum certifications and won multiple ARIA Awards, cementing the band’s place in Australian rock history.
Also gracing Friday’s stage are Dragon, the New Zealand-born, Australia-adopted rock institution who’ve been cranking out hits since forming in Auckland in 1973. Led by bassist Todd Hunter (brother of the late frontman Marc Hunter), the band built their reputation on tracks like April Sun in Cuba (which hit number two in Australia in 1977), Are You Old Enough? (a number one hit in 1978) and Rain (another number two in 1983). Dragon were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2008, and their music continues to resonate across generations.
Saturday’s synth-pop meets arena rock extravaganza
Saturday’s Melbourne show pairs Loverboy with Pseudo Echo, the Melbourne synth-pop pioneers who made history as the first unsigned band to appear on Countdown in 1983. Their 1986 cover of Funky Town spent seven weeks at number one in Australia and cracked the top 10 in the US, UK, Canada and Sweden. The band racked up 15 gold and platinum certifications, won Australia’s Most Popular Band at the Countdown Awards, and remain one of the country’s most enduring acts from the new wave era.
Taxiride featuring Jason Singh round out the Melbourne bills across both nights, while Bachelor Girl, Stonetrip and Strait Shooters fill out Friday’s supporting slots. Standing Room Only and Daydreamers complete Saturday’s lineup.
Wanstock itself has grown from humble beginnings. Organiser Geoff Wansbrough started the festival as a birthday celebration a few years back, booking some favourite bands to play at his party. Inspired by the original Woodstock Music Festival and his love of the classic Australian pub rock scene of the 80s and 90s, Wansbrough launched the first Wanstock at the Burvale Hotel in 2018 before relocating to Shoppingtown Hotel in 2019.
Tickets for all Wanstock 2026 shows are on sale now.
For more information, head here.
