S2O HK music festival cops flak for noise control issues

The S2O Hong Kong Songkran Music Festival has copped flak as it reportedly received noise complaints from locals due to the event's loud music and vibrations.

The S2O, a party music event that combines electronic music with Thailand’s annual New Year celebration, Songkran, was held at the Central Waterfront Event Space over the past weekend on 8 and 9 June.

The S2O has drawn mixed reactions from netizens due to noise control issues. Over the past weekend, media intelligence firm CARMA observed more than 400 mentions related to the event, with 50.4% negative and 16% positive sentiments. 

The majority of the negative sentiment stemmed from noise complaints, particularly on Sunday night, with several social media users, notably in the "Wong Tai Sin residents" (黃大仙區友) private Facebook group, expressing their dissatisfaction and frustration with the noise levels, according to CARMA’s HK GM Charles Cheung.  

“Conversely, a group of netizens, primarily on the LIHKG platform, believed the complaints were unreasonable. They argued that there was no clear evidence linking the loud noise to the event and found it hard to believe the music could be heard in Wong Tai Sin,” he said. 

According to multiple media reports such as The Standard and Sing Tao Headline, the police received many noise complaints from citizens from Wong Tai Sin district on Sunday night between 9 pm and 11 pm, during the second day of the festival.

Citizens from locations such as Chi Wan Shan, Diamond Hill, and Lok Fu complained that they were disturbed by loud soundwaves, vibrations, and intense music beats, according to the reports. They also attributed the disturbances to the music festival being held across the sea.

According to the reports, the police said they had received numerous complaints on Sunday night regarding the disturbances. However, they were unable to confirm if the loud noise was directly linked to the S2O.

According to Sing Tao Headline, the Environmental Protection Department (環保署) also received two complaints related to the S2O and is investigating. Meanwhile, its inspections during the event period did not find any noise level exceedances.

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to the Hong Kong Police Force, Environmental Protection Department, and S2O Hong Kong respectively for a statement. 

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Last year, the S2O festival in Hong Kong also faced criticism due to the sudden withdrawal of Swedish DJ Alesso from the event lineup. In response, the organiser of the event released a statement expressing its regret to announce that due to severe weather conditions and flight disruptions, Alesso was unable to make it to Hong Kong for the performance. Alesso had already rearranged his personal schedules specifically for S2O Hong Kong. 

“For those who choose to continue to attend and support the festival, each person will receive complimentary drink vouchers upon entry, please redeem them at main bar. S2O Hong Kong will proceed as scheduled […] We understand the disappointment, S2O is feeling the same, refund process is arranging, and will be announced once we are ready together with the updated performance schedule.”

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