Heavy Congress To Host Australia's First-Ever Regional Sound System Festival

Later this month, Heavy Congress will be the first-ever sound system-based event to host a music festival in regional Victoria.

The festival will take place at Rochford Winery in the Yarra Valley on Saturday, 29 March, and will be a day of unity and community. Music will run for ten hours, and punters will be able to enjoy food and wine.

Heavy Congress has locked in twelve incredible crews made up of DJs, MCs and live performing artists to take over the Yarra Valley: D.I.Y. HiFi, Dub Divination, Echo Chamber, El Gran Mono, Goody’s HiFi, Heartical Hi Powa, Housewife’s Choice, Solidarity, System Unknown, Tribe Sound System, Tuff Tone, and Virus.

While reggae and dub music entered the Australian consciousness in the 1970s, sound system culture arrived in Australia in the 1990s and early 2000s. As punters’ appreciation for bass-heavy music with electronic production grew, so did the ethos of sound systems.

“Whether it’s reggae and protest music, classic dub, electro and techno, or champeta Africana pumping from the intricately designed speaker stacks, one thing’s for certain: bass is coming and it’s gonna be big at Heavy Congress,” event organiser Stick Mareebo said.

Mareebo added, “The only good system is a sound system and Melbourne is the undisputed capital of sound system in Australia - so this is why we are bringing the first ever Sound System Regional Festival to Victoria’s Yarra Valley on Saturday March 29, 2025.”

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Tickets to Heavy Congress cost $50, or punters can shell out $100 to secure a ticket and bus transport to and from the event. You can lock in your tickets via Eventbrite.

Discussing why the festival team chose the Yarra Valley as their location for this year’s event, Mareebo said:

“Melbourne has become the undisputed capital of sound system culture in Australia and our city’s international reputation for embracing diverse subcultures has made it a natural incubator for this amazing movement - Australia boasts more than 50 active sound systems, with Melbourne alone housing more than half of them - that is why we have chosen Victoria for the first ever Regional Festival.

“In the age of digital music streaming and corporate controlled radio - the sound system represents a fresh and dynamic alternative to the mainstream - it’s all about taking control of how the music is made, shared and consumed.”