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Press Release - Dallas Does PR | Friday 10th February 2022

KNOTFEST, the music and counterculture experience destination festival created by the multi-platinum sonic phenomenon SLIPKNOT will be making its Australian debut in March 2023. The festival has already sold out in Melbourne with Brisbane and Sydney not far behind. 

KNOTFEST AUSTRALIA is thrilled to announce the headline sideshows from some of the artists on the jaw-dropping festival line up. This is the first and only sideshow announcement and there will be no more sideshows announced. 

Without further adieu, we present to you KNOTFEST Australia 2023 sideshows...

MEGADETH
w/ special guests IN FLAMES

Tuesday 21st March - Entertainment Centre Theatre, Adelaide
Wednesday 22nd March - Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne
 

Few can match the power and complexity that LA metal lords MEGADETHbring in a live setting. Spanning over four decades of existence, MEGADETH’s legacy pioneering the thrash metal genre into the global zeitgeist has garnered multiple platinum albums, with over 38 million units sold worldwide, as well as a sea of Grammy Award-nominations, including a win in 2017 for Best Metal Performance for their track Dystopia.
 
The group’s 1986 album Peace Sells…but Who’s Buying remains a metal masterpiece, while 2022 delivered record #16 for the Californian quartet with The Sick, the dying…and the Dead!. Actively still one of the most successful underground metal bands in history to achieve commercial success.
 
Also joining MEGADETH will be Sweden’s IN FLAMES. Formed in the early 90s and playing a key role in the development of melodic death metal and metalcore, IN FLAMES elegantly cleave melodies and brutality in scintillating fashion. In command of 13 studio albums, with a brand-new record Foregone due out this year, IN FLAMES continue to captivate a broad range of ages, genders and music fans. The group have also previously won Metalhammer Golden Gods’ Best International Band and snagged multiple Grammis award wins (the Swedish equivalent of the Grammys).

AMON AMARTH + TRIVIUM
w/ special guests MALEVOLENCE

Thursday 23rd March - The Forum, Melbourne
Tuesday 28th March - Eatons Hill Hotel, Brisbane

The metal gods have smiled upon us, bringing together Viking metal kings AMON AARTH and Florida heavies TRIVIUM together for a special co-headline event.
 
Formed in Sweden in 1992, AMON AMARTH have amassed an eye-watering legacy for over three decades, armed with explosive and anthemic metal mixed with the rich imagery of Viking history, folklore and culture. AMON AMARTH have consistently forged their sonic wares, with the group now heavily regarded as one of the most fundamental and commanding heavy acts in the metal world. Bringing the adventurous ethos of their Viking forebearers to stages, including headlining festivals across Europe and joining SLAYER on their final tour of the US in 2019.
 
Renowned for their hulking grooves, thunderous rhythms, blistering guitarwork and stadium-ready choruses, Trivium have tirelessly and effortlessly chased evolution and musical brilliance throughout their 22+ year career. With over 1 million units moved worldwide, hundreds of sold out shows in their wake, half a billion streams and a Grammy Award nomination for their hit single Betrayer, TRIVIUM hit double figures in album release territory in 2021, unveiling album #10 In the Court of the Dragon to resounding acclaim.
 
Joining them are special guests, MALEVOLENCE hailing from Sheffield in the north of England.

SPIRITBOX
w/ special guests MAKE THEM SUFFER + RELIQA

Tuesday 24th March
The Forum, Melbourne

Canadian metal four-piece SPIRITBOX amassed 66 million streams before they’d dropped a debut album, growing that number to 155 million following the release of first LP Eternal Blue. The elements that make SPIRITBOX so unique is their fierce intensity, unwavering emotion and technical splendour. It’s their love of experimentation and flamboyant song writing that makes them stand-out from the crowd.
 
Eternal Blue topped the rock charts in the United States and Canada, broken the top 10 in Australia and the top 20 in the U.K, Germany. They have a laundry list of accolades including gracing the cover of esteemed rock outlet Kerrang!, Revolver, Poll Star, Metal Hammer and Rock Sound, and garnering support from the likes of Loudwire, Forbes, Billboard, AltPress and Spin.
 
Joining them are Perth metalcore outfit MAKE THEM SUFFER fresh off their huge sold out North American tour supporting BAD OMENS and Sydney quartet RELIQA.

BAD OMENS

Tuesday 21st March - The Triffid, Brisbane
Wednesday 22nd March - The Factory Theatre, Sydney

BAD OMENS slither through boundaries, only to ultimately choke convention in the process. The quartet materialize with ghostly atmospherics, striking hooks, and the tingles of sensual high-register harmonies uplifted by cinematic production. Racking up tens of millions of streams and earning acclaim. Along the way, they toured with numerous marquee acts and received tastemaker praise and most recently sold out a North America headline tour.

KNOCKED LOOSE

Thursday 23rd March - Colonial Hotel, Melbourne
Monday 27th March - Princess Theatre, Brisbane

Bruised and bloodied, KNOCKED LOOSE open the pit with a brutal sound that falls between hardcore punk and metalcore. The Kentucky quartet released their stunning and visionary conceptual six-song EP A Tear in the Fabric of Life in 2021 about grief and isolation that was accompanied by a short, animated film created by Swedish filmmaker Magnus Jonsson. It’s their most dynamic and contained offering to date, and a balancing act: a mid-length EP with grand ambitions and scope, one full of new sonic elements and a cohesive aesthetic that hangs onto KNOCKED LOOSE’s trademark anthemic delivery and have toured consistently since it’s release. After their Australian visit, they’ll be hitting the stages of prestigious festivals such as Coachella, Bonnaroo, Welcome To Rockville and Bloodstock to name a few.

STORY OF THE YEAR

Wednesday 22nd March - Stay Gold, Melbourne
Monday 27th March - The Brightside, Brisbane
Tuesday 28th March, The Crowbar, Sydney

STORY OF THE YEAR’s debut album, Page Avenue, was one of the first of its kind to sell a million copies. Until the Day I Die endures as both an anthem and mission statement. Tours with LINKIN PARK, MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE, DEFTONES and THE USED cemented STORY OF THE YEAR’s reputation as a stunning and engaging live act. The connection between the band and audience transformed STORY OF THE YEAR from teenagers working in a St. Louis pizza chain franchise into hard rock headliners. They specialize in intense, passionate, confessional compositions that inspire and empower.

KNOTFEST AUSTRALIA 2023

 
Tickets on sale now for Sydney and Brisbane