Down South Festival organiser 'rapt' with turn out at inaugural Port Fairy pub rock festival

Organiser Max Donohue, who is originally from Port Fairy, said it was an incredible event that "couldn't have ran smoother".

The one-day festival was held at The Star of the West Hotel and headlined by Melbourne punk band Amyl and The Sniffers.

"We've received great feedback from all the artists and lots of local people from the area are saying it's definitely a first for that sort of genre - more punk and indie rock," Mr Donohue said.

"It was just fantastic. I'm actually still trying to process everything at the moment."

Mr Donohue said it had been a big couple of weeks leading up to the event, which saw up to 700 punters in attendance.

The inaugural event sold out in a week in late 2021 and was held just days after the state government reopened indoor dancefloors.

Entertainment venues were previously forced to stop people from dancing for about a month due to COVID-19 restrictions.

READ MORE: Amyl and the Sniffers' Amy Taylor 'excited' about Down South Fest headline show

Mr Donohue said he was rapt with the changes to regulations just days before Down South Festival.

"I was a bit concerned (in the weeks leading up to the event) but I got so lucky," he said.

"There were a lot of other events and festivals cancelled and there were times where I thought 'do I call it? Postpone it?"

But Mr Donohue decided to wing it and hope for the best.

"It obviously worked out alright," he joked.

Excited music fans cradled Stiff Richards lead singer Wolfgang Buckley as he crowd surfed during his set later in the evening.

Mr Donohue said he was stoked to see such a lively crowd and a good team of security guards ensuring everyone was safe.

"You want to have that perfect balance of crowd participation without putting anyone at risk," he said.

"We had a good team of security guards briefed on crowd surfing as we were expecting all of that.

"We also had an industrial-strength barrier at the front which had a world of difference for punter safety."

When asked if Down South would return to the south-west next year, Mr Donohue said "you'd be crazy not to".

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