Review – Good Vibrations Society Festival

Now in its 5th year, Good Vibrations Society is a magical, community-first and family-friendly UK festival that packs 3 days of music, talks, ecology, wellness and adventure into the picturesque Ashdown Forest (the real-life Hundred Acre Wood where Winnie-the-Pooh got his honey fix) just an hour’s drive south of London. Which, let’s be honest, is about the same time it takes to find a parking spot in central London on a Saturday.

The Decoded team spent the weekend diving headfirst into everything the event has to offer, and by diving, we mean occasionally emerging from dance floors looking like we’d been through a particularly intense yoga session. We came away feeling nourished, invigorated and incredibly grateful for such a special experience, plus slightly concerned about our newfound addiction to forest-based festivals.

We were also privileged to grab a few minutes for a chat with the festival founder, Johnny Scratchley – a man who’s clearly mastered the art of creating good vibes. Read on for his top tips on getting booked to perform at the festival.

Meet the Mastermind

Johnny has been orchestrating festival magic since he was 21, having co-founded the legendary Outlook and Dimensions festivals in Croatia – events that became so popular they practically put Croatian tourism on the electronic music map. 

And he’s not just a behind-the-scenes operator; he walks the walk as an accomplished musician himself, fronting the reggae-dub collective Gentleman’s Dub Club (pictured below performing on Saturday night’s lineup). Their new single Painkiller is out now, in collaboration with Drum & Bass legend London Elektricity.

After years of sun-soaked Croatian coastlines, Johnny decided to bring his festival skills closer to home, creating something that would serve his local community whilst attracting music lovers from far and wide too. The result? Something that feels like the best house party you’ve ever been to, if that party happened to be in an enchanted forest with world-class music.

The Music

Down to business – the music. With previous editions featuring the likes of Leftfield, Morcheeba, Goldie, Roni Size, Brand New Heavies, Roy Ayers and many, many more, it’s clear that they take their music seriously. This isn’t a case of booking whoever’s trending on TikTok this week – there’s proper curation happening here, with big name acts alongside lots of exciting, up and coming artists who have been hand-picked from hundreds of applicants.

This year’s main stage lineup was no exception, with live performances from the legendary Soul II Soul, Dawn Penn (now well into her 70s and still utterly adorable), Norman Jay, a high-energy reinterpretation of Paul Simon’s classic Graceland album from the London African Gospel Choir which had even the most rhythmically challenged festival-goers moving, and even a UK Garage throwback set from So Solid Crew. Watching a crowd spanning several generations all unite in their appreciation for bangers from the Ayia Napa era was a beautiful thing to behold – though we’re still not entirely sure how some of the younger attendees knew all the words.

The festivities kicked off at the Bloom main stage each afternoon, with live bands and performers building the energy levels into the evening like a perfectly constructed DJ set, but with actual instruments. DJ action ramped up and continued late into the night at the Warren, where we spent many hours immersed in Drum & Bass, red lights, hay bales and hazy goodness that made us question whether we’d accidentally wandered into a particularly atmospheric farmyard.

Wandering further down into the woods (because apparently getting lost in a forest at night seemed like a good idea at the time), the vibes were high with house, disco and Italo in the cosy Nest space. There’s also a hidden gem amongst the trees called the Nightjar, offering live jazz and cocktails – because nothing says “forest festival” quite like a perfectly mixed martini served under a canopy of ancient oak trees.

Wellness (Or: How to Pretend You’re Not Hungover)

Aside from the music, a big part of the Good Vibrations Society experience is about wellness – which, frankly, is exactly what you need after discovering that you can indeed dance for six straight hours if properly motivated. There’s a daily programme of yoga and breathwork sessions, workshops, nature walks, and inspiring talks. We particularly enjoyed ‘How making music remakes your mind’, which explored the physical and cognitive benefits of playing and making music (and presumably explained why we felt so euphoric after witnessing that gospel choir performance).

The Wild Spa is a luxurious addition that deserves special mention. You can book in for a session in the outdoor hot hub, cold plunge, sauna and warm shower – basically a Scandinavian wellness experience but with better music playing in the background. After a big night dancing into the early hours, it was the perfect way to cleanse and replenish energy in the fresh air, whilst also providing an excellent opportunity to contemplate life choices and plan our next dance floor moves.

Something that really struck us throughout the weekend was how incredibly friendly, welcoming and inclusive the whole experience was. We shared special moments, conversations and meaningful connections with people from all walks of life – from seasoned festival veterans who could navigate the site blindfolded, to wide-eyed newcomers still figuring out how to pitch their tent. True to the festival’s name, good vibrations emanated throughout everything we experienced and everyone we met (including the very friendly ground staff).

Top Tips for Artists Hoping to Get Booked

During the build-up to Saturday night’s festivities, we met with Johnny for a tour of the festival site and a chat about his ethos, musical curation and advice on getting booked as an artist. 

Here’s what he had to say:

What do you look for musically when booking artists for the festival, and how important to you is originality?

The music has got to have warmth, soul and a human feel to it. Originality is a big thing too – I sometimes get disappointed if I go to an event and just hear the same songs over and over again, which happens quite often. If you can bring something original and I’ve never heard something like it before, it jumps out at me instantly. A really good example of this is an artist I noticed called OSC who plays minimal drum & bass, with soulful vocals over the top – I’m not sure if they were bootlegs or DIY mashups but I’ve never heard anything like those versions before and it was a no-brainer – I was straight in with the booking.

What advice would you offer to aspiring DJs wanting to get booked at the festival?

This year I had 672 applications and I listened to all of them personally. The ones that stood out were presented in a proper press kit format – with bitesize, easy-to-access information and videos of them playing live, so as a promoter I could imagine what they actually sound like and then place them confidently within the event. 

The live moment is so unique and it’s all about communication – the detail and precision is less important at that point. It’s about your ability to connect with an audience, look up, embrace, and be reactive – if your head’s down, it’s easy to forget that you’re a performer and you’re sharing a real moment with a group of people.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?

The big thing about Good Vibrations Society is that it’s a community-first event. We started it at the end of lockdown as a reaction to being separated from each other during Covid. I grew up around here and I wanted to create something for the community – it started small and we built on that core, from the performers to the staff to the audience. People come back year after year and they’re empowered, they have creative ideas and there’s always an opportunity to contribute. It’s an open door, everyone’s welcome – come and be a part of it.

Bring on 2026

We truly loved the Good Vibrations Society experience and will definitely be returning next year, with our families / kids in tow! Whether you’re interested in applying to perform as an artist or you simply like the sound of an amazing weekend away where you can simultaneously party hard whilst also expanding your mind and nourishing your soul, you’ve got to check it out.

Early bird tickets for 2026 have already sold out (because apparently other people have figured out this was something special too), but sign up to their mailing list to stay in the loop for the next ticket release. Trust us – you don’t want to miss out on what might just be the UK’s best-kept festival secret… though after this review, perhaps not so secret anymore.

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