Celtic Thunder will return to Australia in March 2026 with An Intimate Evening With Celtic Thunder, a new production designed to bring fans closer to the heart of the group's remarkable journey. The tour will unite current members Emmet, Damian, Neil and Ronan with former members who helped shape the group's sound, creating an event that blends nostalgia with a refreshed artistic vision.

Pragmatico, the dance-centred project from Melbourne songwriter and producer Jacob Butler, has entered a significant new phase with confirmation of a global distribution partnership with UK powerhouse Perfect Havoc. The London label has become a major tastemaker in commercial dance, with hits from artists including Joel Corry and MNEK. For Butler, this moment formalises years of evolution, experiment and ambition under the Pragmatico banner.

Detroit turned its annual NFL Thanksgiving Day Classic into a once-in-a-generation music moment when Jack White and Eminem shared a stage for the first time, transforming the Detroit Lions vs Green Bay Packers halftime slot into an arena-level event that immediately lit up the internet.

It is with total sadness that I have to tell you that Skyhooks legend Bob ‘Bongo’ Starkie has passed away at the age of 73.

The City of Port Phillip has officially opened Seekers Way in St Kilda. The new street name honours The Seekers, the Melbourne group that started more than sixty years ago and went on to win fans around the world. Patrick Donovan and founding member Bruce Woodley spoke at the ceremony, reflecting on the band's roots in the area.

Newton Faulkner will return to Australia in April 2026 for a national headline tour aligned with the release of his new album Octopus, set for 6 March 2026 via Cooking Vinyl Records. Faulkner unveils the new single Gravitational as the latest preview of the album, which continues the experimental production approach that has shaped his current creative period.

Confidence Man have supercharged the rollout of their upcoming EP, Active Scenes Vol One, with the release of Gossip (Chris Lake Remix), a high-voltage rework by one of the most prolific figures in global dance music. Chris Lake brings a refined and explosive club energy to the single, a move that underscores the growing international reach of the Australian group. The remix arrives as a centrepiece moment for the EP campaign, a significant endorsement from a producer known for shaping modern electronic music with precision and intent.

The Temper Trap have joined forces with one of electronic music's most influential figures, Solomun, for a pulsating rework of their current single Giving Up Air, a track that has already become a key release in their long-awaited comeback. The collaboration links two artists who have shaped audiences in different worlds, with Solomun's global club presence now wrapped around the sound of one of Australia's most successful indie exports of the past two decades.

Queen's A Night At The Opera marks its 50th anniversary with the same impact it carried on release in November 1975. The album arrived during a crisis for the band, who were close to collapse due to a punishing contract and limited funds. They had earned hits with Sheer Heart Attack yet lived on tight weekly payments. Brian May lived in a bedsit. Freddie Mercury lived in a damp flat in Kensington. John Deacon was denied a modest loan to buy a house. The frustration led to the band parting ways with Trident and moving to EMI, a decision that would change their future.

For the first time since 2013, the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra will revive its long-loved tradition of free outdoor concerts at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl, with four major events planned for 10 to 14 February 2026. The series, presented by the MSO with ABC Classic, The University of Melbourne and Arts Centre Melbourne, promises a week of symphonic music supported by Australian composers, celebrated soloists and rising talent.

Netflix will present Sean Combs: The Reckoning on 2 December, a four-part documentary series chronicling the rise and fall of Sean “Diddy” Combs, a figure whose influence shaped mainstream hip-hop for more than three decades. The series arrives during a period in which Combs is serving a federal sentence following his conviction for two counts of transportation for purposes of prostitution, a ruling delivered in July and followed by a sentence of 50 months and a fine of $500,000.

Commuters at London's St Pancras International witnessed a rare lunchtime spectacle when The Darkness arrived unannounced for a stripped back performance that marked a milestone week for the band. The British rock favourites, led by the Hawkins brothers Justin and Dan, performed beside the station's famed piano as crowds gathered in the main Arcade, a location that has grown into one of London's busiest cultural hubs. The performance aligned with the twentieth anniversary of One Way Ticket To Hell… And Back, the band's 2005 album that featured a steam train on its memorable cover, a fitting link to one of the country's most iconic rail stations.

Oasis have closed the chapter on their long-anticipated Live ‘25 Tour, finishing in Sao Paulo after 41 shows across 142 days that reignited one of the most influential partnerships in British rock. The tour marked the first time Liam and Noel Gallagher had shared a stage in 16 years, a break defined by personal tension, separate solo careers, and persistent speculation about the fate of the Britpop giants.

Victorian Opera will launch its 2025 season with a fresh staging of Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates Of Penzance. The production will run at the Palais Theatre from 31 January to 6 February, with tickets ranging from $39 to $165. The company will open its twenty-first anniversary season with one of the most recognisable operettas in the English canon, a work that has remained a fixture of theatre programming since its 1879 premiere.

Augie March will honour the twentieth anniversary of Moo, You Bloody Choir in April 2026 with a national tour that will feature the full album performed live for the first time. The band will also add a selection of long-loved favourites. The album, released in 2006, became an instant Australian classic and elevated the Shepparton-born group from cult acclaim to major national recognition.

For more than two decades, The Used have pushed the boundaries of post-hardcore and emo, shaping a global movement through melodic volatility and emotional candour. In 2026, the Utah-formed band will reach a milestone few in their genre have achieved, with an exclusive orchestral performance inside the Sydney Opera House on Sunday 29 March 2026, a black tie event presented as A Mid Summer Night's Symphony.

Newcastle's Maple's Pet Dinosaur has released her new single Chorus, marking the next step in one of the most rapid rises for a young Australian artist in recent memory. At just 15 years old, Maple has moved from backyard DIY experimentation to major-festival stages in the space of months, fuelled almost entirely by a homemade video that took the global internet by storm.

British metal force Sylosis will enter 2026 with their seventh studio album, The New Flesh, set for release on 20 February 2026 through Nuclear Blast Records. The announcement arrives with the title track, a fierce lead single that captures the band's renewed sense of intent.

Nearly half a century after KISS marched through the streets of Manhattan in borrowed business suits, the band's third studio album Dressed To Kill has returned in a lavish 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition. Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley have produced an unboxing video of new set, revisiting the frantic early years that forged the record and ultimately launched KISS toward global domination.

WOMADelaide has expanded its 2026 program with the addition of 20 new artists, reinforcing its long reputation as one of Australia's most adventurous global music gatherings. The festival returns to Botanic Park, Tainmuntilla across the March long weekend, 6 to 9 March 2026, with a lineup that blends iconic names with vital new voices.

Guns N' Roses will extend their ongoing resurgence with a major 2026 world tour, following an extensive 2025 schedule that returned the group to Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America. The new run will begin in Mexico in March, continue through Brazil with a full sweep of major cities, then move into Europe, before reaching stadiums and arenas across the United States and Canada. The tour will culminate in a significant homecoming at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, marking the band's first performance at the historic venue in more than three decades.

“Murder On The Dancefloor,” a track that first stormed charts more than twenty years ago, has once again proven its rare cultural stamina. Across one London weekend, two major UK shows brought the song back to centre stage when Sombr and Royel Otis each delivered surprise moments anchored by the Sophie Ellis-Bextor hit. The song's original cowriter, New Radicals leader Gregg Alexander, witnessed part of the resurgence first-hand in Brixton, creating a potent link between its past and present.

Ella Hooper will open 2026 with a return to the road, as the acclaimed singer releases her new single Growing Up Is Hard To Do and confirms dates for her Australian Summer Tour '26. The tour starts on Saturday 10 January in Mansfield, then moves through Tamworth, Sale, Archies Creek, Newcastle, Mangrove Mountain, Bathurst, Boyup Brook, Ocean Grove and Balnarring Beach, with each show designed to showcase her current creative phase, shaped by country influences and personal reflection.

Extreme have marked the completion of their ambitious visual cycle for their 2023 album Six with the release of the twelfth and final clip, Here's To The Losers. The project began with the intention of giving every track on the album its own visual identity, and the band have now delivered on that commitment with a final release timed to coincide with the Thanksgiving week in the United States. The new video acts as a gift of appreciation to fans, who have supported the Boston band since their emergence in the late 1980s.

Conrad Sewell will return to Australian stages in June 2026 with the Bloodline Tour, a national run that brings his powerful vocal presence together with his family story. The tour marks the first time Conrad will perform alongside his sister Grace Sewell, known internationally as SAYGRACE, who has passed a billion global streams and reached Grammy nomination status.

A mass of John Farnham fans will unite at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl on 13 March 2026 for We Are The Voice, a one night only celebration aiming to set a new world record for the largest crowd singing Farnham songs. Led by long-time Farnham music director Chong Lim and the classic Farnham Band, the event invites thousands of voices to form a single colossal choir, raising funds for Head And Neck Cancer Australia.

Airbourne have unwrapped a loud and cheerfully indecent present for fans with their new Christmas single Christmas Bonus, a raucous blast of holiday mischief delivered with the band's trademark volume. Produced by Brian Howes, recorded by Karl Dicaire, mixed by Zakk Cervini and mastered by Ted Jensen, the track arrives with a high-energy animated video created by director and animator Ryan Ortgiesen.

Spin Doctors will return to Australia in May 2026, marking their first visit in more than thirty years, as they celebrate the 35th anniversary of their landmark debut album Pocket Full Of Kryptonite. The tour will also include the band's first ever New Zealand performance, extending the anniversary celebrations across an eleven-date run through capital cities and key regional centres.

Lenny Kravitz performance at John Cain Arena was one of those unforgettable moments in live music. Real musicians performing real songs by a real rock star. For any young musician watching in the audience last night, this was a benchmark ‘How To Do It’ performance.

The Black Sorrows returned to Melbourne Recital Centre on 22 November 2025 with a show that honoured more than four decades of music. Close to 50 musicians have been part of the group since the early years, yet founder Joe Camilleri remains the steady force at the front. His voice still rings clear and strong, and his energy has not faded.