2012 Splendour in the Grass Rumours: Radiohead, Stone Roses

With 2011's festival featuring two of the biggest names in the festivals history, Splendour in the Grass may be aiming to outdo Kanye West and Coldplay with rumoured appearances by Radiohead and The Stone Roses. 

Radiohead haven't appeared in Australia since the 2004 'Hail to the Thief' tour, but a recent announcement of a July date in Asia has nudged suggestions of a possible appearance at 2012's Splendour in the Grass festival.

Splendour's July date has traditionally seen its international touring artists arrive during a broader Australiasian tour through South-East Asia and Japan. With Radiohead's date in Taipei on July 25th confirmed on their official website , the odds of another Australian appearance by the band aren't as slim as has been suggested in the past by front-man Thom Yorke, who has previously blamed air travel emissions for their limited touring to the Southern Hemisphere.

Meanwhile, Japan's Fuji Rock Festival (traditionally held on the same weekend as Splendour) recently saw a line-up leak for Brit-Pop pioneers The Stone Roses, announcing their appearance on the July festival's bill on their official website. While front-man Ian Brown most recently appeared in Australia for 2008's Playground Weekender and Bluesfest festivals, it's a reformed Stone Roses which would give Splendour the international credentials it began to seek with last year's headlining pair of Coldplay and Kanye West.

Dates for 2012's Splendour in the Grass festival are set to be announced in March, with the official line-up announcement due some time after that. So for now, these names are pure speculation, but if recent years are anything to go by, it's Splendour who are most likely to bring names of that calibre back to our shores.

UPDATE: New Zealand website Under the Radar has just stoked the flame of the Radiohead rumour, quoting a tweet by British pop muso Connan Mockasin wherein he claimed to be touring New Zealand alongside Radiohead.