Groovin’ The Moo Denies Misconduct Reports

The festival, which was first staged in 2005, this year took in six regional cities starting April 23, and wraps May 7 at the sold-out Bunbury Showground in front of 15,000 concertgoers.

Two attendees suffered reported overdoses at the April 23 show in Maitland, New South Wales. One was a 15-year-old girl who reportedly had stopped breathing.

Complaints were made of alleged security and medical misbehaviour at the April 24 stop on the grounds of the University of Canberra.

Joana Perkins, who attended with her 15-year-old son and 9-year-old daughter, described security’s attitude as “patronising” and “inadequate” when handling a male patron who she says urinated on her. She said that when she asked a security man why the male had not been removed from the site, he “looked at me extremely aggressively and said ‘if you don’t shut up you’ll be chucked out,’” according to Australia’s ABC News.

The Canberra Times reported more complaints. One patron claimed security and medical teams stood around “having a laugh and a banter” when young girls struggled to carry an unconscious friend to the medical tent. Another alleged that when he asked a security man to get medical attention for a girl being trampled in the mosh pit after she fainted, he was told it “wasn’t (my) problem.”

Two males were arrested, one for intoxication, and the other who faced the ACT Magistrates Court the next day on charges of choking and assaulting a security man who tried to eject him from the grounds. Despite the incidents, a police report released April 25 called the overall behaviour of the 15,000-strong crowd as “satisfactory,” and said event organisers were “well-prepared, making the event a safe and enjoyable one.”

Groovin’ The Moo issued a statement, “We acknowledge several media reports with regards to the welfare of patrons and conduct of security and emergency service providers at both GTM Maitland and Canberra. Groovin the Moo believes all actions taken by service providers were delivered in the best interest of GTM patrons.” It added that police, security, local medical suppliers, state ambulance, mental illness association Headspace and Red Frogs – whose volunteers keep an eye out for patrons in distress – were part of the preparation before each show. Each also provided a report after the event.

The 25-strong Groovin’ The Moo bill included Danny Brown, Twenty One Pilots, Ms Mr, Ratatat, Odesza, and Mutemath alongside Australia’s MC Remi, Alison Wonderland, Jarryd James, Boy & Bear, British India, In Hearts Wake, The Rubens, and Ngaiire.