Event permit denied by Buloke council officers for Esoteric Music Festival after councillors gave green light

Esoteric music festival in country Victoria has been canned by the council in a last-minute decision the festival organiser labelled “bureaucracy and politics gone mad”.

Popular psychedelic music festival Esoteric has been cancelled the night before it was due to begin after it was denied an event permit by council officers, leaving organisers “utterly devastated”.

The event permit, which required a site inspection before it was granted, was denied by the Buloke Shire Council’s municipal building surveyor despite councillors voting on Monday to approve a planning permit for the 2025 event.

2025 Esoteric Music Festival organiser Sam Goldsmith said he was “utterly devastated” to announce the cancellation of the festival.

“To say we are disappointed is an understatement, we are gutted,” he said.

“This is a devastating blow for all involved, from our patrons to the local businesses that have been planning for this all year.

“It is bureaucracy and politics gone mad.”

The festival was cancelled on Thursday night. Picture: Esoteric Festival

Mr Goldsmith said there was “overwhelming evidence” the festival was safe and complaint to run.

“We have been left stunned by the decision of the Municipal Building Surveyor not to grant a POPE permit and will now have to postpone the festival until 2026,” he said.

“Since 2017 this event has been a lifeline for Victoria’s regional tourism and live music scene, injecting more than $15 million into the local economy and supporting thousands of jobs in the Wimmera Mallee Region.

“We implore all of our patrons, please hold onto your ticket for next year so that we can continue running this event and supporting Victoria’s northwest region as we have for the past eight years and will come back even stronger in 2026.”

The festival was set to run for four days over Labor day weekend. Picture: Supplied

Mr Goldsmith said ticket holders would be contacted directly about the cancellation and will be offered a full refund.

A Buloke Shire spokesman said the permit was refused based on 33 ongoing safety and compliance concerns and the “lack of adherence” to the event permit granted for last year’s event.

“Ticket holders are advised to not attend the event as the event does not have the required approvals and to contact the event organisers for more information,” the spokesman said.

Buloke Shire Councillors voted to approve a one year planning permit — separate to the event permit which was denied — at a council meeting on Monday night against advice from council officers.

Thousands of fans waited in the heat for more than 9 hours, only to be told the event wasn’t going ahead. Picture: Supplied

Council officers cited health and safety concerns as well as a major gastro outbreak — which affected more than 250 festival goers — as grounds for opposition to the permit.

Tickets were almost sold out for the Labour Day Weekend festival which was scheduled to begin on Friday.

One disappointed festivalgoer said: “We’re gutted, for ourselves, for our friends who worked for months designing and building the stages, for the DJs who were waiting to shine. Goers like us were caught in the middle, waiting in the hot sun for 9 hours while the powers that be played their games. I didn’t feel safer for their work, that’s for sure.”