All The Heavy Acts Heading To Tasmania For Dark Mofo 2023

Dark Mofo, Tasmania’s delightfully spooky music and arts festival, has just dropped an epic line-up featuring a who’s who in electronic, metal, punk and alternative music. 

Dark Mofo will return to Nipaluna/Hobart for a delightfully spooky two weeks from 8 to 22 June.

Heavy music is showcased from week one, with stoner metal pioneers Witch bringing the fuzzy riffs. They’re joined by alternative gothic singer Ethel Cain, whose music isn’t exactly metal, but it feels heavier the more you listen to it.

Punk-rock icons Black Flag will perform a one-off exclusive Australian show—their first time here since 2013. Drab Majesty’s exclusive performance will mix darkwave synth with dreams, supported by locals Bitumen’s edgy industrial sounds.

Most exciting for black gaze fans, Deafheaven will make their highly-anticipated return to Dark Mofo after Covid infections throughout the touring camp prevented them from performing at the festival last year. Best of all, the US band will perform their post-metal album Sunbather exclusively for Dark Mofo, in conjunction with its tenth anniversary.

On week two, King Woman will bring their ethereal doom rock to Australia for the first time, delivering weighty songwriting with wistful, brooding and hypnotic beats.

Meanwhile, the program Hymns To The Dead returns with a brutal multi-band metal lineup, featuring Norwegian outfit Dødheimsgard, US acts Uada and Haunter and China’s Zuriaake.

Belarusian viral music stars Molchat Doma (BLR) also make their Dark Mofo debut, bringing their post-punk and dark synthwave to Australia for the first time. 

HEALTH, whose most recent collaborative album, DISCO4 :: PART II features Lamb Of God, Poppy, Nine Inch Nails, The Body and more, will showcase their blend of new wave music, metal and heavy waves of trap music.

Closing the metal side of Dark Mofo is Australia’s own Drowning Horse, Extortion and Ironhawk, filling a stacked heavy lineup with sludge metal, blackened doom, hardcore, and raw punk rock.

Celebrating its tenth year running and its final for visionary founder and Creative Director Leigh Carmichael at the helm, the pagan-influenced festival that rejoices in the southern winter solstice has continually pushed the boundaries of what a music festival can or should be.

The theme for this year’s Dark Mofo is reflection. “We’re excited to announce our tenth Dark Mofo lineup today. The last few years have been challenging and heavily impacted by Covid, so to finally be in a position to again release a full two-week festival program feels overwhelming,” Carmichael revealed in a statement.

The festival’s Creative Director added, “The tenth edition will include the return of Dark Park, a large-scale art program, eight nights of Winter Feast and a massive music program. 

"Night Mass will be expanded to five nights and will be Dark Mofo’s wildest party in our ten-year history. While visitors can expect old favourites, we also have a few new surprises to unfurl.

“This year's festival will be a reflection of the past decade, and while much has changed, our desire to celebrate the longest nights and embrace winter in Tasmania hasn’t wavered. We can’t wait to light the fires again this June.”

Subscriber tickets go on sale at midday next Wednesday, 5 April (AEST) - punters can access general sale tickets from 2 pm that day. Find tickets via the Dark Mofo website.