Private Function is breaking up? Wtf?!

It feels fake to even write this.

Private Function, one of our very own most unpredictable and chaotic punk bands, have announced that they are breaking up and will play their final show this March. There was no slow fade out, no long goodbye tour rollout, no warning signs. One minute they were still doing what they do best and the next the words final show were suddenly very real.

The last ever performance will take place at LuliePalooza in Melbourne, marking the end of a band that turned every gig into a spectacle and every room into something that barely resembled a normal concert venue. For years they have existed somewhere between punk band and performance art experiment, blurring the line between what a live show even is.

Here’s the info! We’ve got some other fantastic artists on the bill as well so come witness PF last ever show as a group. I’ll bring the tissues and squishmallows.

What makes this hit harder is how out of the blue it was. There has been no public drama (that I know of), no obvious fractures (that I know of), no big story leading up to it (I’m quite chronically online with this job. None! That. I. Know. Of). Just an announcement that landed like a ding dong ditch…but like forever :(

Seriously though, at the time of writing, there are no official reasons on the table. We do not have insider information and even if we did, it is not our place to speculate or share anything until the band themselves choose to speak on it. For now all we can say is that it is confirmed. Private Function are calling it. We need to respect it and let it happen. You don’t know what it’ll lead to. Neither do they?

Before the final Melbourne show, the band will be doing a short run around the country, this will be your one last chance to experience the amazing band that will forever be, Private Function.

Here’s what they shared on their IG

If you have ever walked out of a Private Function show sweaty, confused, missing a sock…somehow but euphoric all at once, then you already know what this means. These shows are not just gigs. They are moments people talk about for years. Trust me, I experienced it.

The end of Private Function is the end of a very specific era in Australian punk. A band that never played it safe, never did things the normal way and never felt like they were following a rulebook.

We do not have answers yet. Only the date of the final show and the quiet realisation that something iconic is about to disappear.

Private Function, we love you! Thankyou for blessing our ears. Best of luck and well wishes to all of you on your next adventures!