Another Major Australian Music Festival Canceled: ‘We’re Gutted’

The much-hyped heavy metal Park Waves music festival has been cancelled.

Scheduled to kick off in Perth in February for an 11-show Australian tour featuring metalcore band Parkway Drive, the event appears to have fallen victim to rising costs.

Announcing the news on social media with a lengthy post on Tuesday, organisers told fans that the outdoor festival was not going ahead because the ‘numbers’ did not ‘stack up’.

Concertgoers for the tour, which was meant to take in gigs in regional centres including Bendigo, Wollongong, and Byron Bay, have already been informed that the cost of their tickets will be refunded.

‘We’re devastated to confirm the Park Waves Festival Australian tour will not go ahead,’ organisers wrote in their announcement on Instagram.

They continued: ‘The cancellation is due to a combination of challenges, and ultimately, the numbers no longer stack up. With a heavy heart, we’ve had to make a difficult decision. We’ve tried everything. We’re gutted.

‘We know everyone will be understandably disappointed.

‘The ticket price and booking fees will be refunded, and more information will be sent to ticketholders via email.

To anyone who bought tickets, and to everyone who keeps showing up for live music – thank you.’

Meanwhile, tour headliners, Byron Bay’s metalcore band Parkway Drive, delivered their own apology to fans in a separate Instagram post – and confirmed that it was money issues that sank the tour.

‘This is a message we never imagined we’d have to write, and it weighs heavily on us – Park Waves Australia has been cancelled,’ the band members announced, confirming that money issues were at the centre of the decision.

They also referred to the many Australian music festivals that have been cancelled in the last two years, including Groovin’ the Moo, Changing Tides and Splendour in the Grass.

Parkway Drive continued: ‘Just writing this feels like a kick in the guts, but here we are – another festival being crushed by the rising costs across our entertainment industry.

‘It hurts to be another casualty in this chapter of the Australian music scene.

‘We’ve tried every possible option to keep this dream alive, but the reality of the circumstances won’t allow for it.

‘To everyone who bought tickets, and to everyone who continues to support live music in this country; thank you.

‘Please know that your support is what keeps this culture alive and standing strong through the worst of times. 

‘All tickets will be fully refunded, and ticketholders have been contacted via email.’  

Fans shared their disappointment on the band’s post.

‘Crushed by the fist of COSTS,’ wrote one music enthusiast, while another fan said: ‘Standard Australian festival post.’

A third wrote: ‘These promotional and ticketing companies are killing the Australian music scene.’

It comes after the Park Waves festival was first announced in July, trumpeting a tour between February and March 2026.

The heavy metal music gig was originally set for shows in Perth, then Adelaide, with several locations in Victoria and NSW, Byron Bay, and Sandstone Point, Queensland to follow.

Headliners Parkway Drive, who recently played a special ‘black tie’ event at the Sydney Opera House, tested the waters with their festival format in Europe last year, taking bands Fit For A King and Thy Art Is Murder to Germany.

Popular music festivals have been dropping like flies over the past year, with Listen Out being the latest casualty of Australia’s dwindling music scene.