- Iconic Kiwi band Split Enz will reunite for a historic show at Electric Avenue
- Australian DJ Dom Dolla joins a massive lineup of international and local acts
- Festival expands for 2026 with bigger site and up to 90,000 expected attendees
Legendary New Zealand band Split Enz will reunite for the first time in nearly two decades, headlining next year’s Electric Avenue music festival in Christchurch. The performance will also mark the group’s 50th anniversary, adding extra significance to the occasion.
Festival director Callam Mitchell called the booking “the most historic” the event has ever made, describing it as “a cultural landmark event of epic proportions.” Split Enz, which includes celebrated brothers Tim and Neil Finn, last played together in 2009 at Melbourne’s Sound Relief concert.
Split Enz will headline the opening night of the two-day festival, held at Christchurch’s Hagley Park on 27 and 28 February 2026. Sharing the bill as the second night’s headliner is Grammy-nominated Australian house music producer Dom Dolla, who has recently played major global festivals including Coachella, Creamfields and Lollapalooza.
“On the numbers, Dom Dolla is arguably the hottest DJ on the planet at the moment,” Mitchell said. “He’s now a stadium artist in many territories around the world.”
The full lineup also features major international names such as US pop star Kesha, electronic groups Pendulum and Röyksopp, UK acts The Streets, Basement Jaxx, and Leftfield, plus Becky Hill, Sudan Archives, Disco Lines, Sammy Virji, and Peking Duk.
The local lineup includes some of Aotearoa’s most popular acts, including L.A.B, Supergroove, Kora, Fazerdaze, Drax Project, Leisure, Greg Churchill, and Frank Booker.
The festival site is set to grow significantly, with the addition of another main outdoor stage. Organisers expect the event to draw around 90,000 attendees over the two days.
This year’s sold-out edition of Electric Avenue generated approximately $10.5 million in visitor spending, according to Christchurch’s economic development agency.
The return of Split Enz adds to the festival’s recent focus on nostalgic Kiwi acts, following a revival set from Th’ Dudes earlier this year. Mitchell revealed that the idea to approach the band started when Neil Finn performed at a Cyclone Gabrielle relief concert in Christchurch in 2023.
“I don’t know how seriously it was taken, but I think this year is a big year for the band,” he said. “Maybe we just got lucky on the timing, found the right people to talk to, asked nicely, paid a respectable fee and here we are.”
Dom Dolla, who wasn’t born when Split Enz last performed their reunion shows in the early 2000s, brings a modern contrast to the classic Kiwi icons. Known for club hits like San Frandisco, the ARIA award-winning DJ has built a global reputation for his energetic sets and popular remixes, including a Grammy-nominated remix of New Gold by Gorillaz and Tame Impala.
Electric Avenue will continue to cater to both young and older fans, with legacy electronic acts like Leftfield and Basement Jaxx offering something for long-time clubgoers.
“Well, I sit in that demographic, so it's a bit of a personal one for me,” said Mitchell. “But you know it's really worked and it's helped broaden the age and demographic of our audience.”
Pre-sale tickets will be available from 10 September via the festival’s website