Review and photo by Sam Tancred
The quintessential Australian music festival experience, for ardent festival goers such as myself, can often be identified through a few things. But one thing seems to be a true constant: fluctuating and excruciating weather patterns.
And, on the 9th December, 2023, Rolling Sets Festival on the Central Coast was no exception.
With the brolly projecting sweltering heat throughout the day, Coasties had prepared for the heat. And so had the festival. With sunscreen stations and water fountains and even a mist walkway included to help attendees cool off in the blistering summer sun. However; we weren’t fully prepared for what the weather had in store for us that day.
Just as the sun was beginning to take its toll on the masses, clouds soon rolled over from the west and before we could comprehend what was happening, it started pissing down. I mean just bucketing with rain, with a small spattering of lightning accompanying the sky water. This unexpected weather anomaly occurring just as The Terry’s had started as well. Cutting them short a full 3 songs into their set, disappointing many of us.
The sky did clear for the remaining moments of the festival, only to return and cut the headlining Spacey Jane short as well; serving as the cherry on top of the shit weather hand that we had been dealt that day.
However, this does not mean that the festival itself was in any shape a ‘failure’. As there was something else that was a consistent through line for the entire festival: joy.
For every pocket of torrential rain, there was dancing and singing to accompany it. People spinning around with beaming smiles and clenched eyes while getting peppered from above. Crowds serenading acapella renditions of DJ OTZI’s smash dance hit Hey Baby (Oh Ah), to a screen with The Terry’s logo on it on an otherwise empty stage. Lightning was the accompanying force to people in huddled masses, dancing as one all encompassing amalgamation of laughter and smiles.
There was a marriage proposal (there was a yes), there was crowd-artist banter, there was mosh pits and mud. There was chanting, and screaming, and towers of people on shoulders.
The coast has always loved and welcomed music in any form to the region and this was no exception. From the artists to the people who bought tickets to the organisers. It was an incredible experience be able to see and feel the warmth and chill vibes radiate from the ground to the vacillating sky above.
I had the chance to talk to some of the acts about the day, the coast, and above all, the joy.
“It’s good man. I love the coast. I love seeing the younger bands like Deadshowws. My principal in primary school, his name was Mr. Drennan: it’s Mike Drennan from The Moving Stills’ dad. And when I was in year 6, Mike Drennan was me and my mates (kindergarten) buddy…they’re killing it. Because they’re touring. They’re doing what I did in my twenties…I just see these young dudes, like Deadshowws and Soda Simulator and stuff absolutely killing it and I’m like, ‘I love that. I support that.’” Jake Dobson, Stupid Baby
“It’s interesting. It’s sad that a lot of the bands that we started with they kinda gave up and stuff like that. But I feel like we are slowly starting to become a scene on our own.” Bryce Neal, Soda Simulator
“Usually there are no fucking shows on the coast. So, for something like this to be a thing: it’s fucking awesome.” Connor Dean, Deadshowws
“It’s really refreshing actually. It’s nice to see your friends from all different areas of your life in one place. And I think regional areas have that thing…it’s nice to see people of all ages coming out…It’s nice to see a very diverse range of people, and you see a lot of people from school here and stuff which is really nice. They all come out you know?! Sometimes, it’s not until an event like this that you see a lot of those people. And so it’s a very community based event.” Tom Mahler, The Moving Stills
“We just went out before to grab some food before out in the crowd, and everyone that we came across: everyone was so respectful, everyone was so happy… We’ve had a lot of chats with a lot of people out there, and like, there’s no risk of fights, there’s no risk of anything. I think everyone is just happy to be here, which is…it’s great man! It’s beautiful and I love it.” Zane Harris, The Dreggs
Some of my personal highlights were as follows:
- Dulcie had prepared and choreographed a dance number to accompany one of their songs and they CRUSHED IT! They were slated a little earlier in the day and the crowd wasn’t as big as it would become later, yet; they still performed their beautiful brand of indie-pop as if there was approximately 12,000 people in front of them.
- Deadshowws’s drummer, Darcey Greco, is an infectiously positive artist. Her drumming was chaperoned by a cheshire grin and sense of elation that one usually reserves for watching dogs play in a park, or watching someone do what they were born to do (which was quite apt) *side note: Deadshowws themselves brought so much charisma and fun to an early set and was such a good time*
- DICE was a saucy time and was paired with belting heat that made their mix of velvety surf-rock and indie so wonderfully delicious.
- Butterknife (Newy based band (so basically coasties)) had a fucking keytar. Sorry, let me rephrase. A MOTHERFUCKING KEYTAR. And they brought such a raw energy to the day.
- Stupid Baby had a hype-guy with them in a baby mask and a cloth diaper, who jumped into the pit with the crowd and swung some limbs with the commoners. All while their signature noise machine-style tunes invaded our ear drums.
- Hope D was just…sick. Her set was sick. Her band was sick. At least two other bands in the line-up were in the mosh with the rest of us scream-singing her songs back at her. Sick.
- Sycco was electric. There was a reference to denim jorts and people who are wearing them. I appreciate the Millennial revival of things that we considered very eww. It’s a great new perspective. Thanks, Sycco!
- Jungle Giants were, of course, fantastic. *side note: I was interviewing while some of their set was on and struggled mightily to try and tune out the fun that they were having with the Coastie crowd*
- Ocean Alley…they’re Ocean Alley. In a region that is predominantly beach towns. Of course they were fantastic and brought some electricity to the crowd.
- I didn’t find this out until much later in the festival, but the DJ tent was accessed through a port-a-loo. Love it, no notes.
