Some of the world’s biggest DJs and live acts that are well overdue for a visit will hit Melbourne’s finest amphitheatre in April.
Arts Centre Melbourne’s Live At The Bowl series has already had a huge year so far, but the party ramps up another gear throughout April with four massive events that cater to a range of tastes. We have some of the world’s biggest DJs, live bands that haven’t visited our shores in many years, and some local legends to boot.
We’ve taken a deeper dive into the four big events at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl this April, which include Piknic Électronik #10, Ultra Australia, Daydream (featuring Modest Mouse, Slowdive and more) and Fatboy Slim’s headline stop for his Australian tour, plus a huge gig right at the end of March from King Stingray, Gretta Ray and George Alice.
King Stingray, Gretta Ray, George Alice
March 31
This cracking gig from three Aussie favourites sneaks into our April guide. In 2022, King Stingray took out the ARIA Breakthrough Artist Award and finished things up by playing to over 18,000 people at Falls Festival, one of Live at the Bowl’s first events. They’re kicking 2023 off with a bang, returning for a huge all-ages gig with support from fellow future superstars Gretta Ray and George Alice. King Stingray play on March 31. Buy tickets here.
Piknic Électronik #10: Ben Klock, Trym, Shlømo, Taahliah
2 April 2023
The Piknic Électronik program has run all summer, running a once-a-month Sunday event that comes to its culmination at the start of April. Piknic Électronik kicks April at the ‘Bowl off with the highly anticipated season finale, featuring an incredible lineup of four international artists. Hailing from Germany, Ben Klock is a fixture in Resident Advisor’s top 10 DJs and needs little introduction. Joining him for their Australian debut is France’s Trym, known for his unique and constantly evolving musical universe.
The lineup also includes France’s Shlømo and the UK’s Taahliah, making this a send-off party that won’t be forgotten. Head to the Bowl for the final Piknic party on Sunday April 2 from 2pm. Grab tickets here.
Ultra Australia
15 April 2023
Lovers of electronic music can hit the world’s largest electronic music festival in April to experience a multi-stage production that will take place across four separate areas at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl and Kings Domain. Along with the Main Stage, there will be the Resistance Stage for the underground sounds, the UMF Radio Stage, which will feature Australia’s top regional DJs, and for the first time, a fourth stage dedicated entirely to hardstyle.
Headliners include Hardwell, Deborah de Luca, Timmy Trumpet, Sub Zero Project and Darren Styles, with a lineup filled with a range of favourites and up-and-comers like Ferry Corsten, Acraze, Ben Gold, Jonas Blue, Juliet Fox, Solarstone and more.
This is the perfect way to say goodbye to the summer months with 50 different DJs across the four stages on Saturday, April 15th from 3pm – 11pm. Grab tickets here.
Daydream
22 April 2023
Indie rock fans are well and truly catered for this April at the Bowl thanks to Daydream, a mini-festival that brings headliners Modest Mouse back down under for the first time since 2016! The band will float on down to Melbourne to celebrate last year’s 25th anniversary of The Lonesome Crowded West and share tracks from their seventh studio album, The Golden Casket.
Just as gob-smackingly exciting is the announcement of Slowdive as the main support, who reformed in 2014 and released a self-titled album in 2017, their first album in 22 years. The legendary shoe-gazers were last in town in 2018 for Laneway festival and some headline sideshows, a rare glimpse that many lifelong fans thought might be their last; luckily, Daydream offers another!
This already awesome line-up is made more so with local heroes Tropical Fuck Storm, Brooklyn’s Beach Fossils, Ohio’s Cloud Nothings and local surf-psych five-piece Majak Door. All corners of the indie-rock genre are covered with this impressive line-up on Saturday, April 22nd from 3:45pm. Grab tickets here.
Fatboy Slim
28 April 2023
The legend himself, Fatboy Slim (aka Norman Cook), will make his return to Australia with his Y’all are the music; we’re just the DJs 2023 tour to round out this run of events at the Bowl in April.
Anyone that has been to a Fatboy Slim show knows they are much more than your average DJ set, and as this will be the British producer’s first Australian tour since his headline shows in early 2020 (where he also played Sidney Myer), we can likely expect something very special.
As a regular visitor to our shores, the three-year gap has been an unusually large one for Norman. As a result, we expect the energy levels to be high for his iconic EDM tunes like Praise You, Right Here, Right Now, Weapon Of Choice and more. Catch the ultimate dance party at the Bowl on Friday, April 28th at 6pm. Grab tickets here.
To check out the entire Live at the Bowl program for yourself, visit the Arts Centre Melbourne website here.
Beat is an official media partner of Live at the Bowl.
