4ZZZ's ZED50 Lineup Brings Brisbane Pioneers And New Voices Together For A Huge 50th Birthday Bash

Brisbane’s people powered radio station 4ZZZ turns 50 this year, and the party is shaping up to be a city-sized celebration of the weird, the wild and the wonderfully loud. ZED50 will take over Roma Street Parklands on Saturday, 25 October 2025, with two stages, no crossovers, and a line up that reads like a who’s who of Queensland music history, plus a few sharp newcomers.

4ZZZ first hit the air on 8 December 1975, a month after the tumult of the Whitlam dismissal, with announcer John Woods playing The Who’s Won’t Get Fooled Again as the transmitter came alive. From those early community radio days, Triple Zed helped amplify local bands and scenes that mainstream outlets ignored, and ZED50 is billed as a reminder of how influential a single, grassroots station can be.

Headlining the AMPITHEATRE are Brisbane punk originators The Saints 73-78, who actually predate the station by two years. Emerging in the early 1970s, The Saints carved out a place in punk lore with their urgent, three-chord attack and songs that pointedly disassembled the comforts of suburban life, they remain a touchstone for Australian punk and a living link to the city’s musical beginnings. Sharing the late evening bill are electronica, rock and hip hop chameleons Regurgitator, a band that formed eighteen years after 4ZZZ went to air, who carved their own path with irreverent genre-mashing and a knack for hooks that found mainstream and underground audiences alike.

Between those pillars sit a roster that maps the last four decades of Brisbane music.

Tropical Fuck Storm bring their dissonant, literate post-punk intensity, while Full Flower Moon Band add a different flavour with expansive, psych-leaning arrangements. Local stalwarts Big Noter and alt-hip hop favourites Butterfingers will both have their moments, and Screamfeeder represent the enduring power of Brisbane indie rock, their songs steeped in melody and grit.

Newer names and emerging scenes are well represented too. Nice Biscuit, Party Dozen, Dancingwater, Flangipanis, Platonic Sex and Velociraptor bring a mixture of punk, pop, experimental and dance sensibilities to the two-stage setup, reflecting how 4ZZZ’s influence spread across genres and generations.

ZED50 is designed as a day festival, with a tight schedule so punters can see a string of artists without clashes. The AMPITHEATRE timetable runs from midday right through to headliners, while the UPPER SECOND STAGE keeps the action flowing with shorter, sharp sets. The full playtimes are listed below, so you can plan your day.

Sat 25 Oct 2025, Roma St Parklands, Albert St, Spring Hill, Brisbane

AMPITHEATRE Playtimes
Nice Biscuit, 12.30 – 1.00pm
Butterfingers, 1.35 – 2.15pm
Big Noter, 2.50 – 3.30pm
Full Flower Moon Band, 4.05 – 4.55pm
Tropical Fuck Storm, 5.30 – 6.20pm
Regurgitator, 6.55 – 7.45pm
The Saints 73-78, 8.20 – 9.10pm

UPPER SECOND STAGE Playtimes
Velociraptor, 1.00 – 1.30pm
Platonic Sex, 2.15 – 2.45pm
Flangipanis, 3.30 – 4.00pm
Dancingwater, 4.55 – 5.25pm
Party Dozen, 6.20 – 6.50pm
Screamfeeder, 7.45 – 8.15pm

ZED50 promises to be more than nostalgia, it’s a statement about continuity and adaptation. 4ZZZ helped incubate DIY scenes, kept live music ecosystems alive, and offered an alternative to commercial radio that often overlooked local creativity. The line up nods to that legacy, pairing the bands who built Brisbane’s musical identity, with the new acts who are pushing it forward.

Whether you came up listening to late-night shows on Triple Zed, or you’re part of a newer crowd who caught a band via the station’s playlist, ZED50 is a communal milestone. Expect music that ranges from blunt punk and indie rock, to experimental and hip hop informed pop, all staged under the city sky at Roma Street Parklands.