Bass Coast Music Festival knocked our socks off with their 2023 edition! Between the festival breaking it’s record of interactive art installations present, and a lineup of world class artists – both local and international – the festival is becoming a force to be reckoned with. As if that weren’t enough, the massive Harm Reduction team present at this event made their presence known everywhere with their peachy pink shirts.
The contrast of the art installations as day transitioned to night was a sight to behold. As mentioned previously, there were a record breaking sixty-two art installations present. Some notable art installations include: the solar powered bike from the playa dubbed “Daisy the Solar Powered Tricycle”; “The Cube 2.0”; “The Sandbox Lounge”; “Parts Unknown” and “Be Seen” – many of which are pictured below.
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Artist DJ Shub brought rapper Boogat onstage to live-rap Killa Soundboy at the Cantina Stage. The Cantina Stage closed out at 11 PM with the crowd chanting “one more song” at T.Williams, the international legend. Host Crystal Precious talked about the fact that it was only Thursday and thus the first night of programming at the festival. There were still three more days and nights of music left – emphasizing that self care is really important when attending events like these.
On Friday, French artist CLoZee made her Bass Coast debut on Main Stage and shared some new music with the crowd. The Funk Hunters took the stage afterwards, which coincided with the 10th anniversary of their label WestWood Recordings.
Late Saturday afternoon, The Librarian performed at the Cantina Stage with a massive crowd. Saturday evening, we checked out Fort Knox Five perform at another stage, dubbed Slay Bay. At the end of Mat the Alien and The Librarian’s set – played at Main Stage – all the women that have been responsible for running Bass Coast through its 15 years were called to the stage and celebrated with the the present audience. Check out the Instagram post that thanks the attendees of 2023’s edition of Bass Coast, featuring Liz Thomson, Andrea Graham and the iconic tree.
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Sunday, the last day of programming, featured a variety of local and international talents. We checked out JPod’s epic set at The Cabin and he ended his set with a massive group hug with him in the centre – which if you’ve attended the festival in years past, you would know the classic way he ends his sets there. Interestingly enough, we also spotted a squad of people in the crowd who were sharing strawberry rhubarb pie with each other and whomever noticed that they had pie.
We could think of no better way to cap off the last night of Bass Coast than checking out Stickybuds close out Main Stage on the final night. The last time the internationally acclaimed tastemaker performed at Bass Coast was back in 2019. Check out an interview we did with Stickybuds here.
All in all, the 15th edition of Bass Coast Music Festival had so many things to celebrate. Not only was this year a milestone for the beautique festival, but the massive Harm Reduction team; delightful amount of interactive art installations and diverse lineup should make the founders proud of what they have accomplished over the years. We cannot wait to come back next year for the festival’s 16th edition and see how else the festival grows.
Did you attend Bass Coast Festival’s 15th anniversary celebrations? If so, what was your favourite musical act? How about your favorite art installation? Let us know in the comments, on Twitter and Facebook.
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