Music

Splendour In The Grass 2019’s Best (And Not-So Best) Collabs And Covers

Come for Allday and The Veronicas' trap version of 'Untouched', leave when Trophy Eyes invites Chris Lilley on-stage.

by Joseph Earp  22 July 2019
Trophy Eyes -- Splendour In The Grass

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Every year Splendour In The Grass gets more action-packed and the FOMO gets a little rougher. For all of those of you who missed out on tickets, fair warning: this article is going to make that already stinging burn that much harder to take.

While the rest of us were sitting at home, twiddling our thumbs and waiting for someone to drop a grainy video of SZA’s performance onto their Twitter timeline, the lucky thousands at one of the Australia’s most exciting festivals were soaking up sets from some of the most talented acts in the world.

This year, more than any other, the focus of Splendour was on collaboration. Acts paid tribute to the musicians who directed their own careers, invited their friends up onto the stage, and generally honoured all of the things that happen when talented people get together and do talented things.

And in the process, they produced some of the most exciting collabs and covers in Splendour history.

SZA, Secret Wheatus Fan, Covered ‘Teenage Dirtbag’

If you’d have asked me a few months ago, I’d have told you that R&B pioneer SZA and early-thousands scuzz rock gods Wheatus go together like chalk and uh, arsenic. But hey, there’s nothing quite as beautiful as having your mind changed, and SZA’s cover of ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ was one of Splendour’s most elegant, bizarre pleasures.

The Veronics and Allday Teamed Up For ‘Untouched’

Allday and The Veronicas have become something of a power trio as of late. After releasing ‘Restless’ together, they celebrated with an extraordinary ‘Like A Version’ of Joni Mitchell’s ‘Big Yellow Taxi’, updating the song’s environmental message for our rapidly warming planet. Now, they’ve turned their hands to a subtly changed version of The Veronicas’ unofficial queer national anthem, ‘Untouched’. And hey, guess what: shit slaps.

Trophy Eyes Combined Forces With… Chris Lilley…

Question: what do pop giants The Jonas Brothers and Newcastle-based punk-rockers Trophy Eyes have in common? Answer: notorious flog Chris Lilley.

Yep, while The Jonas Brothers did a shoot with the controversial Australian comic, Trophy Eyes went one step further, inviting him onstage during their Splendour set for a few minutes of swearing and thrashing. Sure.

Ruby Fields Unleashed A Crust-Punk Cover Of ‘Toxic’

We already covered this incredible Splendour moment, but it’s so enthralling that it deserves to be seen again, in full. Lap it up:

Matt Corby Covered A Tina Arena Classic, Aided By Tina Arena

Back in 2016, golden-voiced Matt Corby made triple j history with his ridiculously popular cover of Tina Arena’s ‘Chains’. Three years later and he’s taken the song out of retirement for his ecstatic Splendour set, aided this time by Arena herself. Look upon their works, ye almighty, and despair.

What So Not Brought Out Old Mate Daniel Johns For A Silverchair Classic

Silverchair might be long retired, but last night, for one shimmering moment, What So Not provided a glimpse of what the band might sound like if they were still circulating now. Daniel Johns strode out onstage to rapturous applause, bashed out a version of ‘Freak’, and melted the faces of every last punter in attendance. Beautiful stuff.

Feature image of Trophy Eyes by Mikki Gomez