The start of a new year means that Bluesfest is not too far off. Celebrating its 30th year this Easter weekend with a stellar line-up that includes Iggy Pop, Ben Harper, Paul Kelly, Norah Jones, Mavis Staples, George Clinton and so many more, it truly is an experience not be missed for any serious music fan.

Here are the 5 artists we’re most looking forward to catching at Australia's most diverse and credible music festival. 

Gary Clark Jr.

One of the most popular Bluesfest artists of the past decade is this young Texan who has taken the blues world by storm with his scorching guitar and deep blues feeling. The most acclaimed bluesman to come out of the Lone Star State since Stevie Ray Vaughan, Gary has worked with Eric Clapton, B. B. King and the Rolling Stones as well as Sheryl Crow and the Foo Fighters  - and has won one Grammy (so far). Gary’s new album This Land will be out March 1, and he’s just premiered the title track – check out the powerful song and video. 

The Saboteurs

Known elsewhere as the Raconteurs – they had to change their name for Australia due to another group registering it here first – the Saboteurs are our favourite of Jack White’s bands. Their first Australian visit is cause for much excitement, especially as a new album has also been announced. The band, which features Jack sharing the writing, singing, and guitar playing with Detroit power popper Brendon Benson – mixes powerful garage rock with great tunes. They also have immaculate taste in covers, as this killer version of Terry Reid’s “Rich Kid Blues” attests.

Arlo Guthrie

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the original Woodstock festival, Bluesfest presents an artist whose name is synonymous with Woodstock, and who has been a perennial favorite with folk and rock audiences since he first appeared with the classic Alice’s Restaurant in 1967. Arlo, of course, is also the son of American folk icon Woody Guthrie. Let’s hope he’ll have time at Bluesfest for some of his great stories, like the one that prefaces this great Bob Dylan cover from a fairly recent Chicago performance.

Richard Clapton

It’s great to see Sydney’s laureate singer-songwriter playing some many shows lately, and it’s especially great to see him prominently billed at Australia’s premier roots and rock festival. One of Richard’s greatest early songs “Blue Bay Blues,” which appeared on his breakthrough 1975 album Girls on the Avenue, mentions Byron Bay in its opening line, so he’ll no doubt give this one a spin at Byron.

Larkin Poe

All set to be one of the breakout artists of this year’s Bluesfest, Larkin Poe is a sister act out of Georgia who plays a unique and hypnotic style of blues is seems both modern and arcane at the sometime. The sisters Rebecca and Megan Lovell, who are descendants of the great Southern Gothic writer Edgar Allan Poe and who took their name from another relative, have worked with the likes of Elvis Costello and Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes, and performed at all the major festivals around the world including Glastonbury, Bonnaroo, and Lollapalooza.

Get your tickets and all info for Bluesfest, here.

Here's a handy playlist if you're planning a road trip up to Byron, featuring our face tracks from the artists on the 2019 line up plus several hours worth of the best of Bluesfest from years gone by.