Entertainment
17 May, 2026
Playlunch sex-ed ‘talks’
AUSSIE bogan-funk outfit Playlunch will bring its ‘sex ed’ regional tour to Cairns in May, following a breakout run in this year’s triple j Hottest 100 and strong demand for the band’s expanding regional shows.
The Melbourne group has added a performance at the Tanks Arts Centre on Friday 22 May as part of its extended 30-plus date tour across Australia and New Zealand.
The announcement follows the band’s double debut in the triple j Hottest 100, with ‘Keith’ reaching No.4 and their ‘Like A Version’ cover of ‘It’s Raining Men’ placing at No.73.
Lead singer and guitarist Liam Bell said the band was still adjusting to its rapid rise in popularity.
“It’s all very surreal,” he said.
“We’ve all been doing it for a very long time, like we all had a long career of playing gigs in other bands where nobody’s rocking up to see you play, no one knows your songs or anything like that. We’ve been used to toiling away in obscurity.”
Mr Bell said the band’s music drew heavily from shared Australian experiences and nostalgia.
“A lot of our songs are about Aussie culture we’ve grown up with that we feel very inspired by and sort of grateful to have grown up around,” he said.
“What we’re sort of trying to do is paint a portrait of this shared memory that we sort of have as Aussies, or Aussies of our specific generation, of what it was like growing up.”
Known for energetic live performances, Mr Bell said Cairns audiences could expect “the full Playlunch experience”.
“Expect some silly costumes and some pool noodles and some zinc and a lot of crowd interaction,” he said.
Mr Bell said regional touring was especially important to the band because audiences outside major cities often brought a different atmosphere to live music.
“People are so grateful and so excited that you’ve come out to their town because they get so much less stuff coming through,” he said.
“Often the best shows we ever get to play are in these regional towns.”
Released through ABC Music, the band’s second album Sex Ed debuted at No.7 on the ARIA Australian Artist Charts and reached the Top 5 for physical sales.
Tickets are on sale now online at: www./bit.ly/4fek4Mh.
