In March 2025, Australia will witness the return of an artist whose very name conjures both reverence and rebellion. PJ Harvey, the high priestess of avant-garde rock, is set to paint the sky with her signature stormy blues and brooding reds, embarking on her first tour Down Under in eight years.
PJ Harvey’s accolades are as numerous as the stars themselves. She holds the distinction of being the only artist to win the Mercury Prize twice—once for Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea and again for Let England Shake. And yet, these achievements are mere mile markers on the road she continues to pave, a path that winds through the halls of rock history, theatre, and even poetry. Whether collaborating with Thom Yorke, Nick Cave, or Josh Homme, Harvey has always been a chameleon—shifting form but never losing her essence.
Her music, much like her career, is a journey across turbulent seas—at times serene, at others roaring with intensity. With her guitar as her compass and her voice as the North Star, she navigates between moments of vulnerability and fierce defiance, each song a shipwreck or a lifeboat, depending on where you stand. She’s not just an artist; she’s a force of nature, untamed and unstoppable.
And speaking of poetry, Harvey’s two collections, The Hollow of the Hand and Orlam, remind us that her creative fire burns brightly in more than just music. Her words, whether sung or written, are like leaves caught in a whirlwind—scattered, but somehow always finding their way back to the root of something deeper.
The journey kicks off at the Perth Festival on March 4, before winding its way through the vast landscape of Womadelaide, Golden Plains, and on to the musical meccas of Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane. It’s been a long wait, but like the rarest of celestial events, PJ Harvey’s return is set to be both breathtaking and transformative—an eclipse of the mundane by the extraordinary.
A Theatrical Spectacle, Where Music Meets Myth
PJ Harvey’s live shows aren’t just concerts; they’re immersive rituals, rich with symbolism and spectacle. The stage becomes a theatre of sound, shadow, and light, where each note echoes like a whispered secret, and each lyric reverberates like an ancient incantation.
Her latest live show—crafted in collaboration with theatre director Ian Rickson and visionary set designer Rae Smith—is a fusion of the visceral and the poetic, where music becomes myth and the ordinary dissolves into the extraordinary.
Imagine a stage bathed in moonlight and shadow, where Harvey stands as a modern-day oracle, conjuring songs from her Grammy-nominated album I Inside the Old Year Dying and weaving them together with her legendary back catalogue. It’s as though the songs themselves are living, breathing creatures—unleashed from the deep wells of her imagination, wild and untamed. With every chord, she beckons you deeper into the labyrinth of her mind, where heartbreak is both the wound and the cure, and love is as elusive as the horizon.
Harvey’s long-time collaborators—John Parish, James Johnston, Jean-Marc Butty, and Giovanni Ferrario—are more than a band; they are her companions on this journey through soundscapes both familiar and alien. Together, they create something ethereal, almost alchemical, turning raw emotion into sonic gold.
A Supporting Act of Rare Gems: Mick Turner
In a delightful twist, the opening act for her Perth, Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane shows is none other than Mick Turner, guitarist and founding member of the legendary Dirty Three. Turner’s rare solo performances are like stumbling upon a hidden cove, where the ocean sighs softly against the shore and the wind tells stories in a language only the heart can understand. His minimalist, instrumental pieces evoke the quiet beauty of the Australian landscape—vast, wild, and always on the edge of something profound.
The Clock Strikes: A Race for Tickets
As with any rare gem, timing is everything. Tickets for Harvey’s headline shows are expected to vanish faster than a fleeting memory, and artist presales begin on Thursday, October 17. If ever there was a time to channel your inner hunter, it’s now—ready your fingers to refresh those screens as though your life depends on it, because for the true fans, this is a pilgrimage that simply cannot be missed.
Here’s where the stars will align for PJ Harvey’s 2025 Australian tour:
Tuesday 04 March | Perth: Kings Park & Botanic Garden with Mick Turner
Friday 07 March | Adelaide: WOMADelaide
Sunday 09 March | Meredith: Golden Plains
Tuesday 11 March | Melbourne: Plenary, MCEC with Mick Turner
Thursday 13 March | Sydney: Sydney Opera House Forecourt with Mick Turner
Saturday 15 March | Brisbane: Great Hall, BCEC with Mick Turner
For tickets and presale information, head to pjharvey.net/live. You’ve been warned—these tickets will fly faster than time itself.
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Words by AW.