Artists
Drop the needle on our Official 2026 Playlist while you get to know the lineup.
In alphabetical order…
Singular. Fearless. Aldous Harding. For more than a decade this eccentric New Zealander has redefined the boundaries of folk music. Boldly instinctive and strangely magnetic, she’s the one you can’t look away from. If you’ve ever found yourself completely entranced listening to Aldous’ music, you are not alone. The hushed intimacy, sly humour and shape-shifting vocal theatrics, always both unsettling and gut-wrenchingly beautiful. This year’s album Train on the Island is no exception. Unilaterally praised for its spectral and minimalist beauty, the album marks another exquisite chapter in a now legendary career. Take a deep breath before this one, Town Folks. We’re in for a spellbinding sunset experience on the Sunken Oval with one of the greats. Living the classics.
Reviews of Train on the Island…
“her career-best album” – Pitchfork – 9.0
“lucid, surreal songs” — The Guardian – ★★★★☆
“a colorful triumph” — Paste – 8.8/10
“mercurial, masterful” — NME – ★★★★☆
The Times — ★★★★☆
“some of the most genuinely original music of the twenty-first century” – Rough Trade
Is it a dream or a diary entry? New Yorker Allegra Krieger’s work is a masterclass in the understated. Her songs are dripping softness and longing. In a world of devices and deadlines, it disarms. Just try listening through the track ‘Lingering’ without slipping into your own self-reflective sinkhole. Go on, we dare you. Allegra’s four studio albums are warm friends who drop in for tea with profound and comforting thoughts on the world from all angles. Through lovingly picked guitars and stream-of-consciousness lyrics, her places, feelings and human connections are ours to share too. Who knows what we might learn about this life.
You might find Bud Rokesky walking down a long road. His music moves you forward, but not without deep reflection on the past. Queensland based and alt-country focused, Bud’s sound is one of an uneasy, dark intimacy that mixes both devotion and exhaustion. He’s just released his second album ‘Dusk’, a moody and brooding exploration of being an outsider and finding beauty in your troubles. We can’t seem to take it off the turntable and are giddy in anticipation of his tall frame and baritone voice filling the space at Town Folk.
Darren Hanlon truly is the fun uncle of Australian music. Having chalked up no fewer than eight albums of cheeky, jangly brilliance, he remains one of the country’s most quietly beloved songwriters. His lyrics read like love letters to the human experience, making him Australia’s answer to the millennial optimism of 2000s indie-folk. Hanlon has a gift for taking the commonplace and revealing something profound within it, with songs that hone in on the politics of love, relationships, and everyday life. Think Jeff Tweedy meets The Go-Betweens — but with a little more nylon-string guitar. If you’ve never had the pleasure, now’s the time.
A bush band who combine reggae rhythms with desert soul, Docker River Band was a tip sent to us by our friend Jack. We dropped the needle on their album WA Border and that was that. This band is the real deal. Singing in their native Pitjantjatjara and English, Docker River Band is led by a unique and powerful vocalist Roy Jugadai, the band around him as tight as anything you’d hear in the Caribbean. Not only do they know how to play but the songwriting is also pure magic. Relating everyday life in Kaltukatjara (Docker River), drawing inspiration from the red earth, cliffs, waterholes, and bush life around them. It’s a big sound and an even bigger spirit. Kaltukatjara is a tiny station on the border of WA and NT. Middle of nowhere. And we are absolutely delighted to host their Victorian debut at Town Folk. Put your dancing boots on.
There’s something striking about Emily Lubitz. Her long-awaited debut album released in 2025, Two Black Horses, feels like a call to another time, and you just can’t help following it through. There’s an emotional directness in her lyrics – she is clearly not here to fuck spiders – while a tender, reflective tone puts you right at ease. Emily and her all-star band are bringing their signature blend of lushly-arranged country folk and sweeeeet vocal harmonies (with a pinch of Swiss yodel) to the Town Folk stage.
Flyte is English songwriters Will Taylor and Nick Hill. Travelling with a rhythm section, this will be their debut tour of Australia and it would be fair to say that the fanbase is waiting with open arms. Their sound moves effortlessly between tender acoustic ballads, shimmering indie pop and cinematic slow-builders. They possess asylum levels of restraint — the kind of music that rewards close listening. At this point in their career, the catalogue is impressive; one might even say important to the British contemporary folk scene. They enlisted legendary producer Ethan Johns on their most recent album Between You And Me and it has been a breakout success in Europe. Australia will be next. Welcome Flyte.
The three words on everyone’s lips. Folk Bitch Trio. What started as an informal musical hang between three friends has taken the world by clattering, thunderous storm. With daring arrangements of three part harmony, their honest, direct and stuuuuuunningly beautiful songwriting has found its way into the hearts of everyone we know. And probably everyone you know. From sharing stages with Mumford & Sons to all our favourite festivals around the world, this is the story of a band who cannot be denied. Step up to the main stage mantle, FBT.
Acclaimed Melbourne multi-instrumentalist Hannah Cameron is a songwriter of rare depth — a poetic voice with the musicianship to match. With three remarkable studio albums behind her and years embedded in the Australian folk community, Hannah has built a catalogue defined by emotional honesty, powerful storytelling and striking musicality. Catch her in blisteringly-tight trio mode as they weave through songs new and old.
Described as “the very definition of culture clash”, Immy Owusu has created his own perfect storm. Throwing Psychedelia, Zamrock and Highlife into the mixing pot, the finished product is a distinctive Afrodelik sound. Immy explores his West African musical heritage through the lens of the coastal rock scene he grew up in. It’s groovy, it’s synthy, and it makes you want to dance.
Jordie Lane is the real bloody deal. A staple in any Australian folk-country lovers collection, he brings warm guitars and honest vocals to a very old but sturdy table. Like his career, it’s a long journey of highs and lows which he shares with disarming candour and eccentric cheekiness. Recorded live in Nashville on analogue tape, Jordie’s new album Habitual is arriving in 2026 and the sneak preview we’ve heard suggests this will be his more unfiltered and powerful one to date. With band in tow this will be a massive homecoming appearance.
Yep, you read that right. Kevin Morby is coming to Castlemaine. In The Valley Below! He’s written eight unstoppable albums. His newest, Little Wide Open has just dropped and… j’adore. Getting reflective on life in the American Midwest and working with The National’s Aaron Dessner on production, this is Morby in his prime. Previous visits to Australia have been joyous, raucous, almost biblical experiences, so we can’t wait to hear Kevin and band in full southern soulful flight on the Town Folk main stage.
Originally from the Scottish Borders, London-based Minna grew up immersed in a household of musicians and songwriters. She developed a profound connection to folk music from an early age and has turned that passion into a fully fledged troubadour life. With very little on her back, she explores the hiking trails of the world in search of human connection and creative inspiration. These long walks are the emotional and visual basis for her writing on EPs Camino (2025) and Colorado (2026). It feels like the music just seeps out, effortlessly. Her restrained vocal delivery is heartbreaking and hopeful at the same time. There’s an old soul here and she’s coming to discover Australia for the very first time. 100% do not miss.
Nat Pavlovic has been around the block. She’s an artist, label owner and international touring musician, and she’s just released an instant classic debut album Big Heart. Her work is a shimmering statement of authenticity, truth and making good on the promises we make to ourselves. Nat’s music feels like an intimate conversation in a big room. Think Big Thief meets Caroline Polachek. It’s introspective but extroverted, and we love her vibe dearly.
Appearances by Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever are rare these days so we’re mighty glad they agreed to head up M79 for the occasion. A (Brunswick) household name, these five talented musicians produce a cinematic jangly rock which somehow ties Australia’s sprawling landscapes together with its urban romance resulting in a lively experience full of passion and character. It’s bloody good stuff and the streetscape of Castlemaine will be possibly the perfect setting for it. RBCF recently released their first single since album #3 in 2022, and their comeback shows both sold out in under 5 minutes. Absolute sunsetting scenes await.
Romy Vager, formerly of the acclaimed and multi-award winning RVG, returns with a new band and a new chapter of heavy-on-the-emotions material. Long-time fans needn’t be concerned, the visceral energy we know and love is ever present. Murmurs about town suggest a new album looming which is laden with heartfelt, anthemic bangers and even a twist of manic country in the mix. You better believe our post-punk queen is back and we are absolutely here for it.
You might recognise Snowy as Melbourne’s busiest musician. When he’s not playing in everyone else’s band, he has perfected his own brand of indie pop with a throughline that feels both introspective and fundamentally Melbourne. With a band made up of musical friends and a couple of albums to show for it, Snowy Band’s music feels road-worn and familiar in a way that calls back to the indie classics of the 2010s. Oh yeah.
Sunny Morris is a fucking revelation. A trans songwriter and poet based in Melbourne, she meanders through themes of gender, family and love with maturity many years beyond. Her two albums are understated masterpieces. You’ll hear early Big Thief and Angel Olsen. There’s nostalgia, fear, vulnerability and a complicated portrait of life as a trans woman. Honesty doesn’t do it justice. It’s moving, it’s grooving and it’s going to be something really special at Town Folk.
If you haven’t yet heard of Way Dynamic, we’d be honoured to welcome you out from underneath the rock. The solo project of Melbourne songwriter Dylan Young, Way Dynamic is a refreshing look into minimalist folk-pop, art-rock and baroque-pop. The big three. His third album Massive Shoe gained widespread appreciation of heads all over the world, including Waxahatchee, MJ Lenderman and even Sir Elton John. The songwriting is top notch. Quality control dialled right in. From sentiment to silliness with the ease of an industry veteran. Not one to miss.
Close your eyes and let the sound wash over you. Winter McQuinn is bringing the 70s to Castlemaine. With three acclaimed albums and a spate of notable musical friends, Melbourne based songwriter Winter McQuinn explores country and folk, imbued by psychedelia with a contemporary edge. His music has been described as “pollinated with dashes of 21st Century environmental and political awareness”, but ripples with the free-ness of the good old days. Cool as.
Fans of the pentatonic scale unite. Yin Yin are a Dutch outfit embracing the intersection of West Coast Psychedelia and South East Asian Funk. Their music is an instrumental journey full of vintage synths, traditional asian instruments and funky as hell drum grooves. They’ve made four epic albums, the most recent Yatta! released in January this year, and we can’t wait to dance in cosmic, joyous fashion to this wonderful party band for the ages.
