With two decades of bangers in their repertoire, the Presets are Australian electronic music royalty. And the party is far from done.
Founding members Kim Moyes and Julian Hamilton met in the mid-1990s at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, released their debut studio album in the mid-2000s, moved the goalposts with 2008’s Apocalypto and they’re still getting it done.
It’s a heatwave in much of Australia right now, and the duo will push the mercury in the days ahead. Following a spot at Ocean Sounds Festival, they’ll serve up a sold-out performance for AO Live Opening Week at the Australian Open 2026 next Friday, Jan. 16 in Melbourne, presented for the first time by Live Nation Australia.
Will new Presets music hit our ears and airwaves anytime soon? “I mean, there’s always the possibility,” Moyes tells Billboard.com, as he bursts into laughter. “There’s been a few attempts at music in the last couple of years, and there’s been us bridging out and doing other things.”
Achieving greatness in the studio requires a heaping of art, science and a touch of magic. “The thing with being in a band for such a long time, you sort of think, oh, I could just turn up to the studio and just start making stuff, and to a certain extent you can,” he admits, “but in order to make something that feels visible and alive, you need to just collect a bunch of different life experiences.”
Moyes and Hamilton have been doing just that. Last year, Moyes served as music director for the Brisbane Festival’s 2025 production of Gatsby at the Green Light, and Hamilton has been musical director for the annual APRA Music Awards since 2024. Both have worked extensively as producers, remixers and DJs.
The Presets dropped their first full-length album in 2005 with Beams. What came next was a monster, as 2008’s Apocalypso rampaged to No. 1, driven by the certified hits “My People,” “This Boy’s In Love” and more. The collection snaffled six ARIA Awards, including album and band of the year — marking the first time an electronic act had won either of those two major prizes.
A third album, Pacifica, represented a creative shift and peaked at No. 3 in Australia. Their most recent album, 2018’s Hi Viz, hit No. 5 on the ARIA Chart.
“Working with different artists and producing bands and DJing, doing it separately or working as musical directors in different circumstances or in different capacities, it really adds a bit more depth and dimension to our own individual personalities,” says Moyes to the question of potential new Presets music.
“There aren’t any immediate plans. But there’s always the desire and there’s always the potential.”
For AO Live Opening Week, the fan-favorite precinct TOPCOURT on Birrarung Marr’s middle terrace will be transformed into an open-air stage for four nights of electronic music, from Tuesday, Jan. 13.
The Presets will perform live with support from RONA., Harvey Sutherland (DJ Set) and Post Percy. Other headliners throughout the week will include Hot Chip, Elderbrook and Cassian.
