Dirty Three

The Australian cult trio creates moments of beauty, ecstasy and intense devotion. 

"You are never alone with Dirty Three", Warren Ellis said to a London concert crowd in December 2025. The wait was over – many years after their last visit to Europe, the inimitable instrumental cult trio was back, following the release of their 2024 album Love Changes Everything. This year, Warren Ellis, Mick Turner and Jim White will visit Oslo World. 

There’s really nothing like them. Dirty Three was formed in Melbourne in 1992 and built a devoted international following with their instrumental rock, which blends post-rock, folk, and free-jazz influences. 90s records like Horse Stories and Ocean Songs got many accolades – but their most recent releases show a band digging even deeper. Through improvisation and interplay, they seek the emotional, raw core of this music, creating a truly special bond with their devoted audience. 

Through his inimitable presence in Nick Cave's band, Ellis will surely be the most well known member, but both Turner and White are essential figures of the Australian underground scene, with a global reach (White visited Oslo World a while ago, as part of the duo Xylouris White). 

And in the Dirty Three, the search for musical truth and ecstasy is egalitarian, and without theatrics. “When I watch them, they ignite something, I start having grand plans and hundreds of lyrics leap into my head,” Nick Cave has said of them. Their music can be huge, sometimes almost monumental - but it still leaves room for the listener's imagination. The best live bands in the world do just that - and we are proud to welcome one of them to our festival this year. 

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