Local artist and rock band on BASSINTHEGRASS 2025

As hundreds of people started to trickle through the gates of BASSINTHEGRASS, it was a Territorian dad carving up on a DJ set - in front of his kids - who greeted the masses.

It was Territorian dad, Jacksen, who brought the energy early at BASSINTHEGRASS.

As hundreds of people started to trickle through the gates of BASSINTHEGRASS, it was a Territorian dad carving on up a DJ set - in front of his young kids - who greeted the masses.

Centralian DJ, Jacksen Dulvarie, was the man setting the benchmark for the mammoth festival, with his family front and centre to see him in action.

Accustomed to radio and small venues, the Alice Springs man said the Top End’s biggest festival was a fun change.

“It’s a great experience being up on the stage with a big sound system like that - you feel the floor shake under your feet which is pretty awesome,” he grinned.

“Watching people come in and kind of get sucked into the dance floor is good too.”

No shoes, no problem for Jacksen.

With his gig done and dusted, Jacksen said he was keen to enjoy the festivities with his loved ones in tow.

“My two kids are here which is awesome,” he said.

“We drove up to have a little bit of a holiday before the festival - it’s really lucky that I had this opportunity.”

Jacksen wasn’t the only dad snaking through the crowd with his kids, with dozens of parents seen snaking through the crowd.

The Centralian said he welcomed the diverse scene.

“I like it - it’ll be nice to do a little bit of exploring and spend some quality time with the family.”

For southern state artists, the gig was seen as a pleasant change of temperature.

Noah Blockley of rock band The Rions cooling down backstage.

Backstage, lead singer of rock band The Rions, Noah Blockley, told the NT News he was “loving” Darwin’s warm sun.

“It’s a great turnout and it’s very hot compared to Sydney,” he laughed.

“When we left it was like 19 degrees and raining, so it’s definitely been a switch.”

Despite having played earlier in the day, Blockley said he was impressed with the festival’s numbers.

“It’s been a great turnout so far, definitely for when we played,” he said.

“There were even people singing a couple of our new songs which is awesome - we only just released them.”

As for the night ahead, Blockley said he and the band would make the most of their tropical stay.

“I think we’ll be in and out of the festival and probably go treat ourselves to a beer by the pool,” he said.

“But we definitely want to check out some of the acts here because everyone that’s playing is awesome.”

Originally published as Local artist and rock band on BASSINTHEGRASS 2025