Bizarre, Awkward, and Hilarious Festivals Moments That Show Music Lovers for Who They Really Are

This article was originally published on For What It’s Earth and has been republished on Hype Galore with permission.

You don’t have to be a regular festival-goer to know that it gets messy. Festivals are a haven for all kinds of people looking to get out of their homes and daily routines. Some people go for relaxed vibes under the sun, some go for the live music and community, and others go to get out-of-their-mind inebriated.

For what is officially termed an organized concert, it often gets pretty chaotic. And while many music festivals were put on pause during the height of the pandemic, many revelers have come back with a vengeance. These laughable Kodak moments are especially unique to festivals and prove that at these outdoor events, anything can happen.

When You Can’t Blame Motion Sickness

Whenever Coachella season rolls around, we’re bombarded with social media posts from celebrities showing us their glamorous outfits, spectacular performances, and all-around outdoor party vibes. What we don’t really see are the consequences of drinking all that alcohol, or the journey to and from the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California.

But this photo shows us what the post-Coachella experience really is – puking out of a friend’s car in the middle of a gridlocked highway. Hilariously, these festival-goers wrote the words “Happy Coachella! #OverN’Out” on the rearview window, which seems as though it was almost prophetic considering the projectile puking.

Bottom’s Up

Considering how festivals tend to produce a huge amount of waste, we’re happy to see that these plastic red cups were at least given a second life. They were turned into a pop-up art installation using a live human model, albeit, an unconscious one. We love how close the artist got to the sleeping subject matter, making an effort to cover all the space between their legs.

We can’t help but wonder what this guy’s reaction was when he woke up to this, or even how he ended up there in the first place. Did he forget where he pitched his tent, and have to make do with sleeping in the middle of a field? Or did he simply pass out from drinking? Something about the clear plastic cup laying near his right hand tells us it’s the latter

The Morning After

Some friend groups take pranks too far. When this guy drank his weight in alcohol at a forest-based festival, his friends decided to duct tape him to a tree and leave him hanging there for the night. They didn’t even allow him the privilege of facing the rest of the camp – he was taped facing the other direction!

That’s probably also why no other festival-goers went to help him down – from the other side of the tree you wouldn’t know that there was a person there at all. Presumably, this guy woke up pretty confused, and not just because he’s been taped to a tree. He’s probably got an awful headache from the previous night’s antics to boot.

Sleeping Under the Stars

To be fair to this guy, we haven’t ever tried to pitch a tent in the middle of the night whilst inebriated. And judging by the wine bottle lying super close to his left hand, this man found himself in that exact predicament. Which is why he decided to forgo pitching the tent entirely and resorted to using the tent canvas cover as some kind of padding.

But we can’t ignore the fact that this guy is also lying on top of all the metal poles. We’re not judging – sometimes the strangest things can seem like a good idea. Especially when you’ve been drinking all day and night like people often do at festivals. Luckily, he seems at peace with his decision.

Tell Me You’re Drunk Without Telling Me You’re Drunk

Before you head off to a festival, you’re gonna want to have some dependable shoes with you. You’ll have to put up with mud, rain puddles, standing for hours, walking, and going into those public toilets. But one thing this person appears to have overlooked is the strength of their shoe sole.

This guy’s foot has gone straight through the bottom of his shoe, so much so that he’s actually wearing it like a calf guard. And presumably, this guy is so drunk that he hasn’t even noticed that his sneaker is halfway up his leg, and the only thing separating his foot from the ground is his sock. Better than nothing, right?

Literally Caught With His Pants Down

Famously, the restrooms at festivals are one of the grossest places on earth. You’ll find all kinds of horrors at the porta potties – it’s definitely the kind of place where you want to touch as little as possible. But this guy certainly wasn’t in the right state of mind to be mindful of what he was touching.

He literally stumbled and fell out of the toilet with his pants around his knees. We’re just happy that he managed to get his underwear on before bursting through the door, even if he didn’t quite manage to save his dignity. Luckily for him, he was covering his face with his hands, so rest assured his identity remains anonymous online.

Stubborn Stains

Our heart goes out to this poor guy who fell face-first into a mud puddle. Judging from his reaction, he really wasn’t expecting his day to turn out this way despite the bad weather. But in all honesty, it could be worse – he should be thankful that he had his sunglasses on to protect his eyes!

Impressively, he did manage to keep his hat on his head, although we’re sure that was the least of his concerns at this point. This guy had to skip the next few shows, go back to his tent, grab a change of clothes, and head immediately to the public showers. Here’s hoping he brought a change of shoes, too.

Law Enforcement Lads

This photo really proves to us that everyone at a festival is there to have fun. For some reason or another, the police had been called to the scene. Often, cops show up to these events to check and search people for recreational substances. But these law enforcement officers wanted to join in the fun themselves and took a funny selfie with a guy who definitely took something.

It’s nice to see the human side of these police officers who appear to be lads at heart. They simply can’t walk past someone sleeping in a public place (or passed out after getting day-wasted) without posing for a quick photo with them. And the best part is, the sleeping guy has no idea that they came and took this photo with him.

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

There are all kinds of stereotypes about the types of people you find at festivals. There are hippie types of people looking to express their peace and love ideals, loud and bad-mannered lads, and angry-looking metalheads… but this guy felt like he needed to make a point about women at festivals as a whole.

According to this guy, the girls he sees at festivals all appear to dress like neon ravers. He’s got on the glittery bralette, tutu skirt, and furry leg warmers, not to mention hundreds of bracelets and wristbands. We wonder if he brought those clothes with him to the festival, or stole them from a friend…

TomorrowWorld Becomes SorrowWorld

Electronic music festival TomorrowWorld promised an unforgettable five-day experience in Chattahoochee Hills, Georgia, but they delivered their promise in the worst way imaginable. In 2015 the festival organizers were horribly unprepared for the rain, leading to thousands of festival-goers sleeping on the side of roads when public transport never arrived.

On top of that, the on-site campgrounds were horrendously flooded and described as looking like a “refugee camp” by the people who paid hundreds of dollars to be there. In the end, the people you see squatting in the photo above had to wait until the next morning for high-priced taxis and Ubers… if they were lucky.

It’s All About Perspective

If you’re unlucky enough to experience a flood while you’re at a festival, everything you brought with you would be soaked through. It would be hard to stay positive during such challenging weather conditions, but not everyone has such a pessimistic outlook. This guy, for instance, likes to look for the silver lining in life.

Despite the heavy rainfall that flooded the festival campsite, this festival-goer has found a way to enjoy the moment regardless. He’s just reclining on an inflatable camping mattress with a beer in his hand, paddling his feet in the water. It’s hardly any different from floating around in a pool on vacation on an inflatable lounge chair.

Spoke Too Soon

You can probably guess what was written on this guy’s shirt. According to him, recreational substances are responsible for having saved his life. But we must admit, this photo really proves otherwise. This festival-goer has found himself knocked unconscious on the ground surrounded by noodles, with a ford still in his hand.

On top of it, someone’s clearly messed with him by putting noodles on his crotch and knees, chest, and probably his face as well. The most impressive thing of all is that despite all the food resting on his body, this guy managed to stay sleeping throughout all the heavy footfall and blaring music.

FarmVille Comes First

The gaming industry is currently worth over $200 billion today. So it can’t come as a surprise that some festival-goers would want to log into their favorite smartphone game during a weekend away. But we have to admit, this person seems especially strange for choosing to catch up on his FarmVille skills during an actual music concert.

From far away, he looks like he’s just taking a video of the live performance. But close up, we can see that he’s actually not paying attention to the music at all. It just goes to show that some of these games are so addictive you can’t tear your eyes away, even during an event that you spent good money to see.

Winosaurus Rex

We respect the approach this festival-goer has taken when it comes to festival fashion. Rather than worrying about what to wear, looking cool, and dressing for the weather, this person has chosen just to throw an inflatable dinosaur costume on top instead. It has the added benefit of being waterproof, or at least, water resistant.

If they were to, say, embarrass themselves by throwing up in a public garbage bin due to excessive drinking, they’d be able to do that more or less anonymously. You can’t see their face, body, or anything identifying about them. That is if they manage to slip in and out of the inflatable costume without being recognized.

Acro-Officer

Not everyone goes to festivals to indulge in a drinking excess – some attendees are of a more healthy and therapeutic persuasion. For example, it’s not uncommon to see many acro yoga enthusiasts at an outdoor event, either showing off their acrobatic skills or encouraging others to join in.

In this case, these acroyogis actually convinced a policeman to join in on their antics. We’re not sure if it’s a comfort to see a cop participating in the interests of the festival-goers, or if it actually less comforting to see that they’re not really on the job. Whatever the case, the policeman in the background watching on appears to be having as good a time as the attendees.

Don’t Save Your Appetite

If you’ve seen the documentary or read the articles about it, you’ll know that 2017’s Fyre Festival was one of the biggest festival flops in history. From celebrity advertising to the alleged A-list line-up, a lot was promised that the organizers certainly couldn’t provide. And the food was just as much of an issue at the festival as everything else was.

Take a look at this photo of a meal that the Fyre Festival attendees actually paid for, if you can call it that. They threw a spoonful of salad in a takeaway burger box with two slices of bread and cheese and called it a day! They didn’t even bother making the simple sandwich… it certainly is a festival fail that’s gonna be hard to forget.

When Life Gives You Lemons

These guys could have reacted far differently to the night before’s weather storm. They could have been furious and tried to take what little they’d have left before leaving in a huff. They could have tried to get a refund for their festival ticket, or even go so far as to sue the organizers for this disaster.

But instead of looking at the negatives of having your campsite heavily flooded, they decided to keep positive about the whole thing. We don’t know where or how, but these guys got a hold of a canoe, grabbed a can of beer, and decided to paddle through the overnight lake. Nothing’s gonna get in the way of them enjoying the time off work.

Leaving Your Dignity at the Door

This festival fail is almost too difficult to process. One guy, who almost definitely wasn’t of sound mind, had had enough partying for one night and wanted to tuck himself into bed. But he somehow stumbled into the men’s urinals instead and crawled into the urinal basin. Yep, he’d totally lost it.

We’re shocked that this guy hasn’t realized his mistake at this point in time. It’s one thing to mistake a brightly lit public toilet for your small sleeping tent. But no matter how much you’ve been drinking, surely you wouldn’t mistake the cold steel for a padded sleeping bag? Probably, the less questions asked, the better.

Recyclable Fancy Dress

We don’t know what came first in this instance – did this guy lose his clothes and gather his friends to come up with a creative solution, or did he take his clothes off to wear his friends’ cardboard creations? Whatever the reason behind this festival costume, this guy looks happy to be donning it.

This is just a taste of the kind of antics people get up to festivals when they’ve been drinking too much. But honestly, what they’ve done here is kind of imaginative. It’s bringing to mind a bootleg version of Iron Man’s suit, but only the kind that Tony Stark created in forced captivity by salvaging pieces of rubbish and scrap metal.

Camping on a Budget

We don’t know if this is a genius idea or if it’s an idiotic one. Instead of sleeping in a normal tent, he’s found a tiny head-sized tent to rest his eyes for a moment. At least, we hope it was only a moment. He could have been sleeping like that all night for all we know.

It’s like a tiny tent for the rats and mice that are sure to flock to the festival campgrounds. But it does have its uses for a guy trying to sleep off a hangover. It can shield his eyes from the bright morning sun, or shelter his head from the rain. The rest of his body would get soaked through, of course, but his hair will remain more or less how he left it the night before.

Taking No Chances

We’ve all heard horror stories about the things people have seen at a festival’s public restrooms. Which is why this particular person decided not to risk themselves at all. They’ve rolled up to the toilet queue wearing an actual gas mask, presumably, to shield them from the toxic atmosphere that they’re sure to find once they enter.

Wisely, they’ve decided to put on the mask before actually entering the cubicle. Judging from the empty plastic cups and energy cans littered around the toilet site, anything near this public facility is probably a biohazard. Let’s hope they burned everything within a 5-mile radius once this festival was over.

Playing Fast and Loose With the Term “Valet Service”

Fyre Festival didn’t just drop the ball when it came to food. It was an unimaginable mess for the attendees when it came to retrieving their luggage from the airport, and one that they could hardly believe at the time. Instead of receiving their luggage in an orderly fashion, they were met with a shipping container full of everyone’s stuff.

To make matters worse, this shipping container only arrived in the middle of the night, and there wasn’t adequate lighting for people to sift out which suitcase was even theirs. The festival-goers had been promised a five-star experience and a valet service but, as we can see, they were very much lied to.

Let’s Shrug It Out

Signs are a common sighting at music festivals, but even this one caught us off guard. Rather than dishing out the time-honored offering of “free hugs” at this festival, this guy decided to offer the attendees “free shrugs” instead. We’re not sure what kind of service that’s providing people, but then again it’s a festival. Things don’t have to make sense!

We can think of situations where it’s helpful just to shrug. Maybe you’ve been overreacting about a certain issue, and you need just to cool your jet. But why someone would feel the need to go to another person to receive a shrug, it’s hard to say.

Beauty Sleep

You’ve been warned. TomorrowWorld can be so much fun that you sleep outside on a broken table. These two festival-goers might have had too much to drink, as rather than make their way back to their campsite to sleep, they decided to just rest on a plank of wood.

To make matters worse, they’re surrounded by all kinds of garbage. Plastic bags, empty bottles, and fast food packets are littered all around, not to mention some wanton cardboard in the distance. And judging by their sleeping positions, it’s pretty cold to be sleeping under the stars.

Hosing Down

Anyone who’s been to a festival will know that showering can be one of the biggest pains. Mainly because camping can be one of the dirtiest experiences of your life, and everyone else at a festival wants to shower just as much as you do. That’s where this person tried to get ahead of the game by bringing their very own portable shower.

If it’s not clear what you’re seeing, you’re seeing a person standing underneath a portable shower that has been pitched in a tent. Clearly, this festival goer was seeking a little more privacy than was offered, but it hasn’t exactly gone to plan. For one, the tent doesn’t look stable whatsoever.

Cops Gone Rogue

Talk about cops behaving badly. This police officer totally let his guard down at this particular festival, so much so that he grabbed the closest hula hoop around, threw it over his head, and gave it his best hip-circling action. Judging from the expression on his face, he’s having a whale of a time, too.

Luckily it looks as though the other festival-goers have accepted him into their circle as one of their own. Sure, he’s wearing a police helmet and he’s technically on duty – his willingness to join in on the fun proves that he’s welcome here. We love that the cop looking on from the far-left side sees the funny side of all of this.

Topless Moshing in the Mud

It’s one thing to attend a music festival when the weather’s bad, where you’ll have to deal with pouring rain, muddy boots, and chilly weather. But why make things worse by getting all your clothes dirty as well? That’s the only reason, as far as we can see, why this guy took his top off before falling into a puddle of soggy mud.

Or, perhaps, he was just lucky and just happened to be topless when he accidentally slipped on the wet surface. Perhaps lucky isn’t the right word, though, as something tells us that he’s never going to be able to get those stains out of his light beige pants. in fact, we’d suggest just going ahead and throwing them straight in the trash.

Lunch With a Side of Sludge

Everyone knows that it’s frequently rainy back in England. But we’re shocked to see what kind of conditions people attending the Isle of Wight Festival are accustomed to. Located on an island off the south coast of England, these festival-goers had to put up with eating lunch while swimming knee-deep in water.

Clearly, nothing was going to stand in their way when it came to having good old-fashioned festival fun. All they needed to do was dress up warm and come with an appetite – just as long as they remembered to pack their wellington boots. From the looks of it, thankfully, everyone did.

Targeted Sliming

These guys were prepared for things to get messy at this particular concert. There’s neon-colored goo and slime everywhere, and it’s all just part of the fun. But what about if your face is being directly targeted by someone’s squeezy bottle of lime-green slime? We just hope she had her eyes closed.

Sure, it’s not really as toxic of a substance as it looks – it’s just meant to look as though it’s radioactive. But regardless, we doubt anyone really wants to take a truckload of goo straight in their eyes. Here’s hoping that this poor festival-goer was allowed to jump to the front of the queue for the showers.

Quit Horsing Around

There’s something about seeing a policeman riding a horse wearing a horse mask that really takes away his sense of authority. Maybe it’s the horse’s stupefied expression, or maybe it’s the likeness to Bojack Horseman. Either way, we think the police force could totally overhaul its stern image with a few more of these masks back at the station.

We don’t know how this festival-goer managed to convince him to put the mask on, but we’re glad he did. A part of us wonders if this cop joined in the festival merriment and drank a little too much himself, which of course, he’s not supposed to do while on duty. Whatever the case, the poor horse he’s riding doesn’t look too impressed with his decisions.

Neighborly Reassurance

You never know who you’re going to be camping next to before arriving at the festival. And at some point, you just have to pick a place to pitch your tent and hope you have some nice neighbors. In this case, these neighbors were so nice that they prepared everyone around them for their nighttime activities.

They politely wrote on a cardboard sign, “Please don’t dial 911 these are screams of pleasure.” Honestly, we’re impressed with how assured they are that they’re going to bring someone back to their tent at night. Perhaps, they’re using the sign as a way of signaling potential suitors?

Patience Is a Virtue

It’s easy to forget that some of the worst festival experiences don’t actually take place on the field. Take a look at just how crazy it can be at the airport on the last day of a festival, with everyone trying to fly back home at the same time. And after a few days of partying hard, we’re sure it’s not an easy predicament to find yourself in.

Just look at the disappointed faces of the people in line. They know that they’re not going anywhere for good while. And to think, these are the lucky ones. Some festival-goers have just arrived at the airport for their outbound flight, and have to start waiting their turn at the very back of the queue.