Following its entirely sold out inaugural Australian run in 2023, KNOTFEST, the destination festival brand, will officially make its monumental return down under in 2024.

The music and counterculture experience that is KNOTFEST will hit the East coast of Australia starting on Thursday, March 21st at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, before heading to Sydney on Saturday, March 23rd at Centennial Park before closing out in Brisbane on Sunday, March 24th at RNA Showgrounds.

Headlined by PANTERA and DISTURBED, the sweltering 2024 festival line-up also includes LAMB OF GOD, HALESTORM, THE HU, ASKING ALEXANDRIA, WAGE WAR, ESCAPE THE FATE, THY ART IS MURDER, SKINDRED, SPEED, WINDWAKER, BRAND OF SACRIFICE and KING PARROT.

One of the most enduring and influential acts to emerge from the second thrash metal wave in the late 80s and early 90s, heavy groove behemoths PANTERA have eternally remained a force to be reckoned with. Offering a long-awaited bucket list moment for generations of Australian fans in 2024, PANTERA’s KNOTFEST headline appearance will mark the band’s first performances down under since 1996 – finally, the wait is over. Regarded as one of the greatest metal bands of all time, PANTERA rose to massive global success in the 1990s, with multiple gold and platinum albums, sold out tours, ferocious live performances and four Grammy nominations. From the release of their game-demolishing 1990 album Cowboys from Hell through to the 2023 reunion of Rex Brown and Phil Anselmo for their first tour in over two decades, the PANTERA name lives on with a new visage and continues to grow their legacy while spreading everlasting metal madness to the masses.

And you’ll want to get Down with the Sickness next March when Chicago hard rockers DISTURBED head to Australia for the first time in eight years as part of KNOTFEST in 2024, with the band also set to arrive armed with their latest album Divisive. Insidious, infectious and a band without comparison, DISTURBED have quietly claimed a place at the forefront of modern rock along with record-breaking success since first emerging out of Chicago at the turn of the century. With two Grammy nominations, millions of record sales and five consecutive #1 debuts on the Billboard Top 200, the latter of which places the quartet in the same rarefied air as Metallica, DISTURBED also wield a bulletproof catalogue that ranges from 2000’s The Sickness through to 2018’s Asylum, 2018’s Evolution and the triumph that was Divisive in 2022. A group hardwired to incite mosh pits while also stirring you to hold on tighter, fight harder and persevere forever, DISTURBED are, quite simply, not to be missed.

Also appearing at KNOTFEST in 2024 will be none other than American heavy metal merchants LAMB OF GOD, aka one of the key figures behind the new wave of American heavy metal, and a band who have permanently retained their influential status for over two decades, most recently in the form of their ferocious 2022 full length Omens. Also set to storm the KNOTFEST stages in 2024, the absolute charisma rock powerhouse that is HALESTORM will also arrive down under as part of KNOTFEST. One of the most successful hard rock groups of the early 21st century, HALESTORM have extensively toured the globe, taken home a Grammy Award for their single Love Bites (So Do I), and continued to wow with their muscular rock stylings laced with hooks, pop and beyond.

Wielding the screaming guitars of heavy metal with traditional Mongolian elements, THE HU are one of the most unique and compelling acts on the modern heavy scene. Blending Mongolian instrumentation and throat singing with Western rock, THE HU continue to turn heads across the planet, with their most recent album, 2022’s Rumble of Thunder, repeatedly listed as one of the most anticipated metal albums of the year. Also joining KNOTFEST festivities next March will be dynamic English rockers ASKING ALEXANDRIA. Boasting billions of combined streams and over 113 million YouTube views, ASKING ALEXANDRIA have journeyed from metalcore beginnings through to evolving classic rock and metal nods, with their 2023 release Where Do We Go from Here? balancing emotional fare with stadium-ready moments.

And if metalcore is up your alley, prepare yourself for the explosive experience that is Florida mainstays WAGE WAR, with the group set to dazzle via their sharpened pit-inducing prowess. Brandishing sonic dexterity alongside fan favourite singles, many of which boast millions of streams online, WAGE WAR are set to add an indelible spark to 2024 and the KNOTFEST experience. Hailing from Las Vegas, Nevada and set to ignite Aussie stages in 2024, ESCAPE THE FATE will return once again down under to whip up a frenzy of punk, hooks and post hardcore delights. Fresh off releasing their latest album, Out of the Shadows, earlier this year, ESCAPE THE FATE are primed to once again share their memorable live moments that has seen them tour with Papa Roach, Fozzy, Story of the Year and countless others.

Closer to home, Sydney deathcore outfit THY ART IS MURDER will be dialling up the noise at KNOTFEST in 2024, with the band’s delectably punishing latest album Godlike ready to roar onstage next year, along with Welsh heavy metal fusion masters SKINDRED who will be bringing their heavy metal, reggae, punk, hip hop and electronic technicolour musical dreamcoat to Australia in the new year. Sydney-based hardcore group SPEED will also lend some fast-paced punk to proceedings, while Melbourne metalcore mavericks WINDWAKER are also set to bring their beautiful ferocity to the KNOFEST party. And in keeping with KNOTFEST’s theme of pushing the envelope, Canadian deathcore group BRAND OF SACRIFICE are set to showcase their riveting mix of musical barbarity, cinematic twists and nods to the anime series Berserk, while Melbourne grindcore experts KING PARROT will arrive ready to swing their insidious sonic wrecking ball to KNOTFEST audiences in 2024 with lashings of angst, absurdity and antics.