THE HIGHS & EXTREME HIGHS OF GONG CRAWL ‘25

Just a few Saturdays ago, the day dawned on another Gong Crawl. And yeah, you could say I’m a seasoned crawler—this was my third year hitting the pavement, and each year I’ve been more excited than the last. A few things had changed since last time, for instance, the sad closure of 130 Art Studios (RIP) and the exciting addition of Aftermath Tattoo Gallery where pure hardcore chaos was set to go down. One thing for sure is that a somewhat bleak day will not stop us. Not even close. Making a grand arrival at La’s at 3pm to the tune of Shakamoto and then Cool Jumper, it was time for an Emu Export, a hot dog and a planning session. We had heaps of important questions to ask people.

For additional context, Amber had dreamed of her outfit the night before, but I wasn’t so lucky and had to make a quick trip home to change my outfit (put on my journalist skirt), rejoining the crew on time (almost) for the group art exhibition at VanQ. Spread out through the bank vaults beneath the store were works from about a dozen local visual artists, including ceramicists, photographers, painters and even some art on a small tv screen. It was there we ran into Heather of Pookie Ceramics & Sesame Girl who talked us through her designs—some of which you can see in progress in our In Your Space video with Heather.

Now here’s the fortunate unfortunate thing about a crawl… As hard as you try, you just can’t see everything. If only it was possible to divide yourself into 15 mini-selves, one for each of the 14 venues and another that could lag from time to time to talk shit in the Dicey’s beer garden. We were lucky enough to catch Wollongong’s Pictures with Yuki back at VanQ. Led by Hamish Laverack, this group FUCKS. They’re so cool, and they’re going to be super famous one day. Straight after them was Twelve Point Buck, a group highlighted to us by event organisers Speed Drive Inc. themselves (and as we found out—for a good reason)

It was at this point that Amber and I split up, for I had to dash to La La La’s to witness Sesame Girl (after a stroll home to get my forgotten I.D). Usually I’m the silliest girl at the Sesame Girl show but this time I was cool and collected and hoping to take good photos and not bad ones. If you haven’t seen them play, what are you doing? Their live shows are so fun and Heather cracks jokes that WILL make you laugh, as well as their music is good too. They’re super inspired by acts like Slow Pulp, Momma and Beabadoobee, and lead guitarist Josh drives the guitar heavy melodies, but you should already know that. 

A quick breather on the balcony was required, and then Finn—who’d recently arrived— and I loitered around Humber as Lucy Lu was mixing while waiting for Crocodylus to get started. The line at La’s had tripled in length by the time we got back, and luckily people had umbrellas because things were getting wet. Mostly from rain. Crocodylus did their thing and they did it well, and the crowd was INTO it. Close to the end of their set, Josh crowd surfed to the bar, somehow making his way back to the stage, now with a can of Emu in his hand. There’s something about this band. They’re really awesome. You can tell them I said that.

It was time for me to crawl to Diceys to witness the marvel that is Mudrat, who grips the crowd with his hip-hop/rap fusion, and his track I Hate Rich Cunts. Mudrat’s music is extremely refreshing, and he’s totally a voice for the people, written as a form of activism and action. At this time of night, Dicey's was absolutely bustling with punters of all musical backgrounds, which we always love to see. A quick intermission led me to Halfway, the funk capital of the crawl, and I was on time to catch a bit of Suppress the Grump as my buddy Lu caught up on posting Instagram stories. Never off the clock, that girl. We trekked it BACK to Dicey’s once more for Private Wives, who were a highlight of the evening. Phoebe, Zoe and Lucy are angry, and they’ve got a good reason to be. “Be nice to all your bar staff,” Phoebe declares, and as a casual bartender myself I agree. I’m also the kind of person who hates staying in one place for too long, which does make the crawl a perfect evening for me. At this point, I made my way all the way back to La’s to see some of The Lazy Eyes. Why not? They were playing to an even more packed room than before. Of course, I Sorry-ed my way through to the front to grab a few photos. Sorry.

NOW was the time for the ultimate crawlers to take the stage. Hoon were starting so I made my way back to the motherland (Dicey’s) to join in the fun. And they’re Hoon, so of course they put on a show, and were having a blast while doing it. Breda’s moves were too hot to handle, and of course a few lightshades were knocked around just a tiny little bit. Of course, after the show, it was time to debrief in the beer garden, which I’d barely ever seen so packed out. The guy of the moment (aforementioned Breda) was there, stoked with the day’s result. 

All in all, it was such a fantastic day. Speed Drive worked so hard to put it all together, as a fellow music lover you can just tell how intentional each element of their work was. They curated all the venues in such a perfect way, down to the timing so you could catch certain acts if you’re into certain genres. Safe to say there was not one quiet venue in Wollongong on that night, and we’re so happy to see Wollongong turn up in that way. Speed Drive got so many local creatives involved, playing music, taking photos, writing articles. It’s really awesome to see how much they give back to the community. Follow along with what Speed Drive does, and make sure you turn up next year—we’ll see you there.