In May 2017, we invited Laneway's Travis Banko to attend the Great Escape in Brighton. UK three piece Dream Wife was Banko's pick of the festival, and he decided he had to bring the band over to Australia for St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival 2018.
Hailed by the Guardian as a 'three-piece with the attitude of New York punks and pizazz of disco queens', Dream Wife consists of Rakel Mjöll (lead vocals), Alice Go (guitar and vocals) and Bella Podpadec (bass and vocals).
The band formed in 2014 at Brighton University Art School, where they were studying a mix of sculpture, painting and performance art. Their reputation as one of the best new live bands in London is already cemented following tours with Sleigh Bells, The Kills and their recent US triumphant stateside debut on tour at SXSW which earned them praise from NPR, DIY, Stereogum, Nylon, Entertainment Weekly etc.
The band’s empowering attitude brings their world to life, embracing the strength of femininity. Armed with razor sharp pop tunes and a take no prisoners punk attitude they are known to elicit pure chaos at their raucous live shows.
Oozing girl power, their music juxtaposes simple pop hooks, cutting riffs and screamy-dreamy vocals, nodding to Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Blondie, but in a grittier and contemporary way. With singles ‘Somebody’, ‘Fire’ and ‘FUU’, Dream Wife promise to be one of the most fierce - and most fun - artists on the Laneway tour.
About St Jerome’s Laneway Festival
What started as a series of weekly shows at a tiny Melbourne bar has bloomed into one of Australia’s most beloved festival institutions. Across a decade of expansion that has seen the St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival become an international signifier of essential music, the event continues to showcase its original set of values: championing community, fostering collaboration, encouraging self-expression, and finding ongoing excuses to have fun.
St Jerome's Laneway Festival has a long history of supporting emerging female talent, with 36% of the 2017 lineup being female and strong female acts such as Grimes and Lorde performing on previous years of the festival in headlining slots. Over the past two years, St Jerome’s Laneway Festival lineups have been 37% female, comparatively higher than many other Australian festivals.
The festival took place in Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Fremantle.
About the Great Escape Festival showcase
Sometimes referred to as the UK's South by Southwest, The Great Escape has firmly established itself as the place to be to listen to new bands emerging onto the British music scene. Each year, our UK-based music team invites festival producers and industry experts from around the world to attend the Great Escape to see new British music for themselves with the aim of promoting future collaborations and overseas opportunities.
As part of The Great Escape conference 2016, our team presented the results of research commissioned by the British Council to investigate the opportunities available overseas for UK musicians and UK music industry. You can read the full Going International report here, which is still relevant for anyone looking to get an idea of the various funding bodies and opportunities out there for musicians, bands and industry around the UK.