Messed!Up
Under the backdrop of grey skies and a deceptively harsh sun in Melbourne, eager festival-goers embarked on the journey down the entryway of Flemington Racecourse. The venue, typically reserved for the glitz and glamour of the city’s elite, took on a different persona. Instead of the usual scene of posh formal attire, suits, and elegant, elaborately decorated hats mingling with the rubble of inebriated racegoers, it was replaced with a sea of black comprised of ripped jeans, fishnets, and an abundance of band merch, as hordes of metalheads flooded the grounds for the highly anticipated annual Good Things Festival, which kicked off the first day of the festivals three city run.
Coming off the back of Good Things 2022 event, 2023’s edition was highly anticipated, with many hoping it’d live up to the expectations set by the previous year, and while delivering in many ways, the festival fell prey and was marred by many of the same pitfalls which plagued its predecessor, and much like all festivals the event came with its positives and negatives, so let’s recap what went down!
From the beginning things were chaotic. Traffic proved challenging as trams to the venue were halted, a fallen powerline at a nearby railway station wreaked havoc as a roadblock was set up by police causing further delays. Unfortunately, this led to many missing PVRIS who despite the early time slot drew large crowds, delivering a stellar performance although hampered by illness. Frontwoman, Lynn Gunn, admitted during the set that she had been struggling through the set as she began to lose her voice; the flu later led to the cancellation of their appearance at the Sydney show.
However, that marked the beginning of Good Things 2023! The scheduling of UK mega-rockers Enter Shikari early in the day caused a mad rush into the festival regardless of the delays, as the odd timing of their set pushed crowds through the gates earlier than usual as they tried to catch the UK icons, whose set time came much to the dismay and confusion of many in the crowd. As per usual though the St Albans four-piece delivered the goods, with the band’s singer, Rou Reynolds, preaching a message of love, kindness, and respect to the crowd before capping off the set with the band’s hit track, ‘Sorry You’re Not A Winner’, which was met with adulation.
Meanwhile, on stage 4, Aussie up-and-comers, Stand Atlantic, were cementing themselves as certified crowd pleases. Having competing set times with Enter Shikari proved no challenge for them as they pulled waves of people to their set, offering high energy and an incredible vocal performance from lead vocalist, Bonnie Fraser, who recently featured in Mike Shinoda’s (Linkin Park) Sydney performance of his bands 2008 single, ‘Bleed It Out’, which brought newfound attention to Stand Atlantic, who had just previously come off a regional tour with Good Things alum, Slowly Slowly, who would also perform later in the day.
Back on the main stage, Aussie icons Eskimo Joe guided the audience through a captivating musical experience, delivering a set that connected seamlessly with the crowd. Their performance, marked by enduring classics and a relaxed ambiance served as a refreshing counterpoint to the chaotic excitement taking place on the other stages; where bands like Tapestry, invoked memories of Warp Tours’ past, delivering a high-energy performance that transported the crowd to the heart of the punk and the alternative scene and Make Them Suffer, who’s killer performance was filled with anticipation, as a noticeable shift in the crowd was seen as the band took the stage to deliver deathcore blast beats and piercing fry screams. The contrasting of subgenres showcase the festival’s commitment to offering a diverse palette of rock and metal music that would appeal to different demographics within the scene.
As mentioned earlier, while the festival had many positives, this year’s edition fell prey to many of its predecessor’s biggest issues, one of those coming in the form of stage 5, which once again was hammered with technical issues. In the past, the stage has notably been plagued with technical faults leading to set delays. UK pop-rock duo, Nova Twins, fell victim to the stage at the prior year’s event; now, pop-rock sensation, Hanabie, also succumbing to the same fate. Although this was eventually fixed, allowing for the Japanese idols to show their skills, it highlighted the issue of poor scheduling, a complaint which is all too common at festivals but noticeably more so at Good Things Festival, as constant set clashes and a rigorous schedule left little to no breathing room for both fan or staff alike, as fans rushed between stages trying to catch what amounted to half sets of their favourite bands and soundtechs clamoured to fix technical issues on stages, meaning that any fault would disrupt the flow for everyone, leaving the festival attendees exhausted, something later noted during, Fall Out Boys, headline set and something that I myself, personally, felt as I dashed from Hanabie’s set through the swarms of people to catch Slowly Slowly.
Hitting the main stage, Slowly Slowly, took off both metaphorically and physically as in typical fashion singer, Ben Stewart, leaped from the podium onto the stage floor, the band, as usual, brought huge energy to the festival while maintaining a level of calm and hometown fun. Their set featured stand-out moments including a rendition of Blink 182’s – I Miss You, which the band had previously covered on their Triple J: Like A Version performance earlier this year. The cover left the audience hooked, as the crowd joined in with the track, following the cover with a performance of their track, Safety Switch, with the help of Stand Atlantics, Bonnie Fraser on vocals.
Off the back of Slowly Slowly, the one and only Corey Taylor of Slipknot fame took to the stage, and just as you would expect he brought the heat, the singer breathing new life into the crowd with both original solo tracks and songs taken from the band’s discography. This marked a shift on the main stage, leaving festivalgoers thirsting for heavier tunes, which they’d receive in the form of Bullet For My Valentine and I Prevail, who brought an explosive set, filled with theatrics and stage presence as they sang through flames that enveloped and engulfed the stage around them. This energy continued to the smaller stage 4, where Behemoth stole mass amounts of the crowd, as fans of a heavier taste sorted out that of which the main stage had provided but was now not providing.
Not before long we headed into the final sets of the festival, the moments people had been waiting for. Many by this point were exhausted but that was soon quashed as that iconic D sharp, tri-tone riff ripped across the flooded field. Security bustled through the pit, forming a wall, as they prepared for what was to come. That riff acted like a war horn for the masses as Limp Bizkit’s guitarist, Wes Borland walked onto the stage, regaled in one of his staple costumes which has become a centrepiece of the band. The crowd braced, security braced, and Fred Durst voice came over the speakers, with two words echoing through the audience, “Break Stuff”. With that, the iconic song broke out and the moshpit went mental, flocks of people swimming across the barrier like hordes of zombies as security ferried them out of the pit. The excitement of the crowd was raised to a whole new level, as Durst brought back the nostalgia, frequently sighting the year 1999, a year that is infamous in the band’s history, as it saw the events of Woodstock ’99. Despite this the crowd kept composed, keeping things safe and fun, while also raveling in the craziness of pit activity. Durst, kept things fun and lighthearted, bringing joy to the crowd as he messed around on stage, however also provided a sense of calm and level-headedness as the performance halted due to a medical incident in the crowd. The singer paused the show to check on the fan and make sure they received medical attention before proceeding.
The set left the crowd in love, with many talking about how it was the highlight of their day. Something about the band just brought some much-needed levity to the crowd, which really was a good thing.
Soon it was time for Fall Out Boy to close out the show and with that would mark the end of another year of Good Things Festival for Melbourne City. The four-piece took to the stage in a burst of fire (quite literally) as pyrotechnics filled the dark night sky with light and the band brought back the memories we thank them for with smash hits that defined the emo era of music! A mixture of old and new tracks filled the air as many took a more laid back to their set, enjoying just sitting, enjoying the show, and singing along to the hits, with much of the crowd beginning to leave, exhausted from the long day of back-to-back sets and high energy performances, it was time to say goodbye to another year of Good Things Festival.
Despite facing some challenges, Good Things 2023 demonstrated it can deliver once again, solidifying its position as a significant fixture in the Aussie music scene. The festival filled the void left behind by 00s festivals like Big Day Out and Soundwave, events that once held a dominant presence in Australian culture, something noted by, Ben Stewart of Slowly Slowly, who reflected on those past festivals during his band’s set, drawing on the parallels he saw between the events, leaving Good Things as potentially a fitting successor to those iconic shows that had once captured Aussie hearts. While there are still some aspects to refine, Good Things is undeniably shaping up to cement itself in the history books as one of Australia’s great festivals and we hope to see it continue to grow!
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Photos by Andrew Faram
