LOUD WOMEN Fest Australia is getting louder and bigger. The trans-inclusive, intersectional feminist festival returns for its third year this November, bringing 23 bands from Australia and the UK to Sydney, Melbourne and, for the first time, Brisbane. Backseat Mafia covered the event last year.
Built around putting women and non-binary artists at the centre of the bill, LOUD WOMEN moves between punk, post-punk, hardcore, grunge and the scrappier corners of independent music. UK acts IRKED and I, Doris make the trip alongside Australian names including Second Idol, The Maggie Pills, Vipersnatch, Boudicca, Operation Karma and Whoroboros, with each city getting its own lineup.
The expansion to Brisbane marks another step for a festival that started its Australian chapter in Melbourne in 2024 before adding Sydney last year. Rather than simply replicating the same bill from city to city, LOUD WOMEN continues to build around local artists and organisers, connecting DIY scenes while keeping each stop distinct.
Australia also gets the job of bringing an ambitious international run home. The three dates are the final stops on LOUD WOMEN’s around-the-world-in-58-days tour, encompassing eight festivals across five countries and four continents, with Wales, Canada, the USA and Japan all coming before Australia.
Three years in, LOUD WOMEN Fest Australia is no longer confined to one corner of the country. Twenty-three bands, three cities and a rapidly expanding network of DIY communities make November its biggest Australian outing yet.
Saturday 21 November 2026: Gadigal/Sydney
Waywards Ballroom, Newtown
Anna & The Morphics + Blood Thinners + Boudicca + Dvrkworld + I, Doris + IRKED + Kitty of the Valley + Ponzi Scheme + Sage + Second Idol + The Cunning Linguists + The Maggie Pills + Vipersnatch
Sunday 22 November 2026: Naarm/Melbourne
Bergy Bandroom
Bitch Eyes + Eris and the Disciples + funkytown fish + I, Doris + IRKED + Operation Karma + smallways. + Second Idol + Terra Rouge + The Maggie Pills + Vipersnatch + Whoroboros
Sunday 29 November 2026: Meanjin/Brisbane
The Brightside
Anna & The Morphics + Dirty Linen + I, Doris + IRKED + Lavender Threat + Sage + Second Idol + smallways. + The Maggie Pills + Vipersnatch + Whoroboros + Whose Party
