Line-up The Secret Best Kept Secret 2024

Though Katy Kirby's sprawling indie folk explores her confusion, they somehow feel illuminating and inviting. Kirby's coming-of-age songs interrogate her relationship with faith and her heady romantic encounters with a tongue-in-cheek wit that makes you want to root for her. So find yourself a cool dry place and let the timeless melodies wash over you.

Sparked by Lily Fontaine's quizzical and piercing lyrics, English Teacher mold catchy indie pop and acidic post-punk into something uniquely theirs. These brilliant newcomers stand on the outside looking in on current fads in music, which often fuels the original angle of their songwriting and arrangements. Bands this much fun and noteworthy from the starting gun, you gotta cherish 'em.

Truth be told, the world could use a bit more 'unhinged' to blast skin-deep formalities to tiny smithereens. Mannequin Pussy are more than obliged to hit Best Kept Secret with a slab of realness, churning out mascara-tears inducing, chandelier-swinging punk anthems by the dozen. Mannequin Pussy tell you it's perfectly okay to sometimes be a little messed up.

The name Minyo Crusaders isn’t just something that sounds cool. It embodies the overarching mission of this Japanese collective. You see, “minyo” is a collective term for forgotten Japanese folk songs, which the Crusaders splice with traditional styles that haven’t been forgotten: reggae, cumbia, and ska for example. Makes sense when you think about it, right? Never mind the music itself being as infectious as it is original.

As the son of a legendary Blockhead, Baxter Dury's life as been anything but ordinary, which luckily translates into some extra-ordinary records. Dury's bone-dry character sketches often find him at odds with the world around him, a fertile chasm for his wonky wave pop spiels to grow. Whether Dury depicts himself as Mr Maserati or the Prince Of Tears, the hats he wears often never quite match, with often hilarious results.

Indeed, Ratboys make noise for the ones they love with alt-country tunes that sound both tender and crunchy. Julia Steiner's voice makes you want to jump out of bed and start your day with carpe diem-fervor: bright and artless, yet beneath it an emotional depth that reveals the larger stakes in life. A potent band that cover a whole range of feelings within each note sung and played. Happy tears guaranteed!

Once upon a time Grace Cummings recorded an album called 'Storm Queen', which is quite an apt description of her overall artistry. The Australian songsmith owns a remarkable, expressive voice that makes you go 'good grief!': deep, bellowing, resonant, seemingly worn by time far beyond Cummings' own existence on earth. Truly something to behold.

Etran de L'Aïr ('stars of the Aïr region') bring joy in constant motion. Their brand of desert blues never stagnates, holding down a swaying pulse that accelerates and abates with the flick of the wrist, as guitar melodies flutter about like a dense flock of birds. Etran de L'Aïr are a balm for the brain and a beacon for the body, and before your know it, you find yourself aligning to their hypnotic heartbeat.

Want to feel as if you are cruising on Rainbow Road without the fear of toppling over the edge? The easy option is to catch Mildlife doing that thing they do best. The Melbourne quartet have made retrofuturistic neosoul and psych funk jams their calling card since their very beginnings. If you need a break from boring old space-and-time, Mildlife is your chosen remedy... and that's putting it mildly!

The brothers Charles and Andrew Hendy, along with Seán McKenna, together form The Mary Wallopers, the most fun, rousing Irish folk band of the moment. This trio has its roots in punk, only to arrive at the subversive, political power of folk. The Mary Wallopers are, above all, doggedly DIY, not afraid of a bold political statement, sung with an unmistakable Irish lilt.

The immensely popular Mula B rolls off raps with a blend of raw emotion and flash. Mula jumps between hook-heavy club anthems and deeply personal stories that explore themes of family, broken friendships, and street life. Notable for his aggressive Agga kick and melodic flow, Mula B offers a candid glimpse into his troubled past and current struggles, revealing a damaged yet resilient spirit.

Who cares if they change the spelling of their name every few years or so: OSEES – led by indefatigable John Dwyer – remain one of the greatest live spectacles on this blue space rock. Louder and more intense than their peers, not to mention more pioneering, the band shapeshifts faster on a record-by-record basis than we can keep up. OSEES will pound Best Kept Secret into submission like it's just another day at the office.

Following in the footsteps of other techno greats, Tjade transformed from wide-eyed student to authority behind the decks in light-speed velocity. Having voyaged each and every corner of Dutch nightlife with his ear-catching blend of trance, electro, and (neo)italo, Tjade’s sets are an expert exercise in tension-and-release. Just as impressive is his innate curiosity for other forms such as Bollywood hits, indie and hip-hop.

With songs like 'Follow My Voice' Julie Byrne gives pretty sound advice on how to listen to Julie Byrne. As emotionally arresting as Byrne's alternative folk is, you can always trust her hushed, maroon-toned voice to offer comfort and generosity. Byrne courts heavy emotions like pain and grief with curiosity and care; potent modern hymns for clear days and moonless nights.

Water From Your Eyes may appear like wandering spirits jumped straight out of a Harmony Korine movie, in reality, their brand of bizarro pop is manifested from a keen ear of how the most iconic records are bred and birthed. Musical mad scientists-in-arms Rachel Brown and Nate Amos have cultivated their own mutant strand, a hex zone where industrial and chamber pop can somehow coexist.

There's a romance and danger to The Mysterines' blistering rock anthems, like bloody wolves chasing us through some blue inferno. With her bellowing voice and biting lyrics, Lia Metcalfe is a complete natural at commanding a stage; one reckons an early childhood encounter with Nick Cave helped sparked that path. Life can be a bitch, but when The Mysterines come storming through, life can feel pretty damn blissful too.

Just two albums in and Slow Pulp have already mastered the happy melody-downer lyrics dynamic better than most young rock bands. But that, however, would be an oversimplification of their appeal: their fuzzy indie pop just gushes with emotional flavors, from the early romantic jitters to the rip-roaring friendships of youth. Songs that hit like cool breezes outside of the car window on a warm summer day.

Who says you can't learn a thing or two when blithely freaking out to a bunch of electro pop bangers? On records like 'Flamboyant', 'My Agenda' and 'Fanfare', rising star Dorian Electra untangles issues like gender politics and online fandom with crisp, hummable hooks, essentially using pop music as a Trojan Horse to communicate something bigger.

Billy Woods's observant lyricism and multi-dimensional, sample-based productions, as both solo-artist and as one half of Armand Hammer with E L U C I D, earned him a reputation as one of hip-hop's leading lights. Finally gaining recognition from the mainstream after years of pushing sonic boundaries, woods cherrypicks creativity from all walks of human existence, from pop culture to sports to the communities he visits.