If I could give any advice to my 2016 self after going through this year it would be: “Ade, you’re in for a wild ride”. I graduated from college, moved to another state, and started a full-time job along with an apprenticeship. All the meanwhile still managing to have fun and attended a total of 13 shows, 8 raves, and 3 major three-day festivals (last year I went to 15 shows and raves total) which inspired me to start Vibe With Ade. This post is to reflect on what I loved most this year from my favorite sets to my favorite festival this year.
Favorite Show of 2017: Jauz Off the Deep End – Los Angeles, CA
Jauz is one of my favorite artists after seeing him at Crush 2016. His unique bass house sound always left me super energized and I love the brand he has created. In February, I drove six hours to catch his Off the Deep End Tour at the Hollywood Palladium. With a two hour set, customized staging to look like a sharks mouth, and an insane b2b easily made it one of my favorite shows. Jauz killed it per usual but what I loved was at the end for 30 minutes it was a b2b between Jauz, Getter, Ghastly, 1/2 of Zeds Dead and Slushii. That was the first b2b I ever witnessed and it was insane! Also got to meet Jauz briefly and snag a pic *cue fangirling moment*.
Favorite Rave/2 Day Fest of 2017: Beyond Wonderland – San Bernardino, CA
This was my first event not at Rawhide in Arizona and my first Insomniac event. Our group kept on saying the whole weekend “we’re definitely not in Rawhide anymore” as we were shook by Beyond. The moment you walked in you were transported to the aquatic underwater theme. The NOS Event Center is the perfect venue that Insomniac can create an atmosphere for its attendees. The stage production was insane (shoutout to Bassrush for that Outer Realm stage) and all the acts we saw put on amazing sets. That weekend is still one of my favorites and I will definitely try to return again in the coming years.
Favorite Sets of 2017
This was probably the hardest to think about. My main criteria was how the set made me feel, how well it was orchestrated, and if I’m still thinking about it to this day because then it obviously had an impact on me. These sets in my top 5 and in my honorable mentions I saw from start to finish and were just amazing sets to experience live.
1a. Porter Robinson at EDC Las Vegas
This is #1 for me and probably will always be. Finally getting to see a live Worlds set at EDC and with my best friends. We were super close to the stage too it was one of the best experiences possible. As he was ending with Goodbye to a World there were EDC fireworks in the background and ended straight into Language. You could just look around and see the love between everyone in the crowd. It was the most beautiful ending to a set. Truly magical.
1b. Porter Robinson & Madeon – Shelter Live at Coachella
I was sad that the Shelter Live Tour didn’t have any stops in Arizona so I thought I would never have the chance to see it live. Then there was Porter and Madeon on the Coachella lineup and I knew I had to get my ticket. I was weekend 2 so I truly saw the last shelter live performance. The way Porter and Madeon blended both their sounds to create this set was inspiring. I hadn’t known their backstory of how they met and how special this was for them which made it special for everyone in the crowd. On top of that their visual and stage layout contributed to the overall performance. Unforgettable.
2. Skrillex at Coachella
“Skrillex Surprise Set at DoLab” is all I need to sprint like Usain Bolt from Coachella’s main stage to the DoLab. I’ve seen Skrillex as Jack U but never solo. The DoLab was packed our group was at the edge of the entrance from everyone trying to get a glimpse of the man himself. He started out with a very housey vibe to his set then did a complete 180 into filth. By dropping his classics and adding a new spin to it. Never would I ever thought I’d be head banging at Coachella, but there I was. Unreal.
3. Zhu at Phoenix Lights
I had been wanting to see Zhu for quite some time now and I was COMPLETELY caught off guard. This set was probably one of the VIBIEST sets I have ever experienced. Everyone at Phoenix Lights was not ready for this set. He sings and plays piano live. He played his songs we love like Faded and Working For it but he had a Black Beatles remix as well as RL Grime mashup with Everyday I’m Hustling. Still blown away by this set and excited to see him again at Decadence.
4a. Don Diablo at EDC
Don has always been a favorite of mine. His future house sound is so fun and bouncy, I suck at shuffling but was dancing away this entire set. This was the first set of my first EDC which was even more special. It was such a happy and positive set through and through. A guy I had met in the crowd even traded me a mini hexagon (Don’s label) kandi. Don Diablo also brought out Gabby J David who is the shuffle queen to shuffle to one of his new songs he just came out with. All I know is I need another Don Diablo set in my life ASAP.
4b. Louis the Child at EDC
Louis the Child had one of the best sets of the entire weekend. This was my second time seeing them and the best I had ever seen them. Having LTC at Cosmic Meadows too was the perfect setting for them. I think about this set a lot and listen to it (thank you Louis the Child for putting it on Soundcloud). You could tell that they were genuinely happy to be there and wanted to give everyone a great show. When artists are having a great time and expressing how grateful they are to be up there, you can’t help but be happy. Excited to see them again at Decadence.
5. Illenium at Beyond Wonderland
Honorable Mentions (forgive me I literally couldn’t decide but felt these were worth mentioning)
Beyond Wonderland: AC Slater, Herobust, Rezz Phoenix Lights: Tchami, Oliver Heldens Coachella: Empire of the Sun, SNBRN, Gryffin EDC: Skism b2b Trampa, Chodegang, Axwell & Ingrosso, Rufus, k?d, Seven Lions, Excision ACL: Rufus, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Killers, Chance the Rapper SoWi: RL Grime, Claude VonStroke, Rezz, Zeds Dead Goldrush: Ghastly, Shiba, Claude, Malaa
Favorite Festival of 2017: ???
Three way tie between Coachella, EDC, and ACL. I attended all three of these festivals for the first time this year. Everything was so new to me. I enjoyed all of them and was blown away by the experience I had. I loved each festival for very different reasons from one another so I couldn’t just pick one.
Coachella I feel like you need to experience at least once, I got to see many artists that I normally wouldn’t pay a concert ticket for. The food was yummy and the art installations were awesome. The Antarctic dome was also a really cool component. Also I found out why everyone loves the DoLab as I practically lived there. I wish I was going next year but logistically won’t be able to make it work. Definitely will go again in a couple of years.
EDC. Electric Daisy Carnival. This festival is so unique and what I’d call like the Superbowl of EDM festivals. It is home to so many and I learned why. You get to see so many artists over the span of three days, there’s so many mini experiences within the festival, and everyone is SO nice. Telling people it was my first time made me feel so welcomed because everyone was genuinely excited for me to be there. I will be back again next year as I loved being under that electric sky so much.
ACL, which I called Texas Coachella, was a crazy two weekends for me. I had just moved to Austin like two months before and getting to experience a festival like that in the city you live in is so cool. It was a way more laidback festival and multi-genre so I got out of my EDM zone for a weekend which was nice. Definitely will be back next year.
All in all 2017 was a pretty stellar year. I really dove in head first into this amazing world and had so many new experiences. I met so many great people and was surrounded by some of my best friends throughout this year. 2017 is going to be pretty hard to beat but we’ll see what happens. I already have plans for EDC and Electric Forest for next year. I am so excited to continue to chase the music and continue to open my mind up to new experiences.
What was your favorite festival or set from this year? Did we have a similar list? Let me know in the comments or tweet at me @vibewithade. Subscribe below to vibe with me into 2018!
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