Local heavy rock band SOULSLEEP has beaten out around 200 hopefuls in a band comp to play major music festival Good Things on Friday, 5 December.

Jesse O’Brien (drums) and Bert Morris (bass) hailing from Wangaratta, and Jake Wiffen (vocals) and Jayden Zago (guitar) from Wodonga, travelled to Melbourne’s Stay Gold venue twice in November, first to play the qualifying ‘heat’ of the band comp which they won, and again to play the finals.

Members Jesse and Bert used to be part of Wangaratta band 'Affiliate', who they played with in local Battle of the Bands competition some 10 years ago.

Three judges scored them based on crowd pull and engagement, singing and songwriting, instrumental skills and overall performance.

Bringing their signature energy and good vibes to an excited crowd, SOULSLEEP successfully impressed the judges who awarded them the major prize for Victoria.

Vocalist Jake said they were blown away by the support they received throughout the competition.

"It was truly mind-boggling to see so many people from our home towns of Wodonga and Wangaratta come down to Melbourne for both our heat show and the competition finals," he said.

"A huge shoutout to our Melbourne fans too, we truly could not have done this without your help and support.”

In addition to opening a main stage of the festival, this includes Stay Gold venue hire for a single or album launch in 2026, and consultations with industry experts including PR, social media and record labels.

Guitarist Jayden said this opportunity has only made them more hungry to break into the industry.

"We have so much planned for 2026 and can't wait to show fans what we've been up to behind the scenes," he said.

"Keep your eyes peeled!"

Good Things band comps also took place in New South Wales and Queensland, with local acts T-Rex Autopsy (Sydney) and Boof Head (Brisbane) winning their respective competitions to play Good things in their major cities.

The competition was organised by Destroy All Lines, the Australian concert promoter and artist agency behind Good Things Festival which will host rock, punk, metal and emo acts from around the world.

Headliners include Tool, Garbage, Weezer, All Time Low, Machine Head, The All American Rejects, Knocked Loose, Lorna Shore, Make Them Suffer, Dayseeker and Kublai Khan.