A long time favourite of the cardigan and Converse crowd, beloved indie event St Jerome’s Laneway Festival is back again, and from the looks of it, in better form than ever.

Undoubtedly one of the most exciting line-up announcements that St Jerome’s Laneway Festival has made in its five-year history, not only does the 2010 bill feature at least five artists that have never toured Australia, the Melbourne and Sydney events have two amazing new locations and the festival has added a New Zealand date.

Heading up the 2010 Laneway parade is influential UK post-punk legends Echo & The Bunnymen and as well as enigmatic troubadour Daniel Johnston. The lineup also features a host of new blood in the form of buzzed about indie acts like Florence & The Machine, The xx and Wild Beasts.

Keeping with previous years’ tradition of casting a fairly wide stylistic net, dance fans will be catered to with the appearance of mind bending hip hoppers N.A.S.A. as well as production outfit Radioclit who’ll also be bringing their Afro-pop project The Very Best along for the ride.

The St Jerome’s Laneway Festival line-up for 2010 looks like this. Tickets on sale Friday 30 October.

Echo & The Bunnymen
Florence & The Machine
Black Lips
The xx
Daniel Johnston – No Adelaide
Sarah Blasko
N.A.S.A
Eddy Current Suppression Ring
Hockey
Dappled Cities
Mumford & Sons – No Adelaide
The Very Best
Radioclit
Wild Beasts – No Adelaide
Whitley
The Middle East
Kid Sam
Dirty Three – Melbourne only

In other news, organizers will next year take the festival away from its habitual laneways and into new venues for the first time. The Melbourne event will take place at the luscious Footscray Community Arts Centre whilst Sydney also receives an upgrade, with the event moving to the Sydney College of The Arts, which is set amongst scenic Parklands and boasts views of the Harbour.

St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival:

Friday 29 January Brisbane Alexandria St off St Paul’s Terrace, Fortitude Valley (Twilight event)
Saturday 30 January Melbourne Footscray Community Arts Centre (FCAC)
Sunday 31 January Sydney Sydney College of the Arts (SCA)
Monday 1 February Auckland Britomart Station
Friday 5 February Adelaide Fowler’s Live, North Terrace
(Twilight event)
Saturday 6 February Perth Cultural Centre, Northbridge