Insomniac employed a very clever mechanism for delivering the lineup for Electric Daisy Carnival 2015. Instead of just releasing the roster via the usual lineup poster, it released a code last night that fans had to decipher, followed by a lineup poster with all the acts written in that code. The Internet descended upon and made short work of the poster, and voilà—we had a lineup for the June 19-21 event 12 hours before any traditional announcement or press release.
If only Insomniac were half as innovative with the lineup itself. Many of the notable names on the hefty list—listed in full below, and with additions to come, according to Insomniac—are old hat to EDC veterans and Las Vegas clubbers. To wit: Tiësto will play his fifth EDC Las Vegas in a row, as will Afrojack. Fellow regulars Calvin Harris, Kaskade, Hardwell and Armin van Buuren will also return.
It’s not just EDM déjà vu—several bass music and house DJs from previous EDC Las Vegas lineups also resurface, which is a little confounding given the growing visibility of both those scenes. Techno act Umek will log his fifth local EDC, and Excision, Camo & Crooked and John Digweed will have played four of them.
Insomniac has routinely underplayed the importance of the musical performers it books, claiming it’s the attendees who are the real headliners. But relying on so many previous participants means risking fatigue among attendees and gives the impression of a half-hearted curation, especially when EDC's competitors have shown a more discernible evolution by comparison. Miami’s Ultra Music Festival in March (which can also be guilty of rebooking) now has a considerable slate of live headliners to complement the DJs, and in eight years Hard Summer Music Festival in August has quickly grown from being a niche event to drawing over 80,000 a day in Los Angeles, the city from which EDC exiled. In fact, with zero artist overlap between EDC and Hard's upcoming event—and rampant talk of stringent no-compete clauses suggesting performers could only play one fest or the other—has the former, now in its 19th year, lost some of its booking might to the up-and-comer?
Still: There’s gold to be mined in the EDC 2015 roster if you’re a fan of electronic dance music. It locked down relevant and rising names like Flume, Galantis, Disclosure (albeit a DJ set) and Duke Dumont, the latter being one of the few a) live performers at EDC and b) international hitmakers to resist the lure of Vegas clubland. Mark Knight, another infrequent presence in the 702, will also bring his live show to the Speedway.
There are a handful of back-to-back (and back-to-back-to-back) teamings flecked throughout the poster, including a pairing of Green Velvet and Claude VonStroke. The oft-ignored soulful side of house gets representation by veteran Dimitri From Paris. German techno legend Chris Liebing will make his EDC Las Vegas debut, as will Moby, who mysteriously dropped off the 2012 lineup (though it’s uncertain whether he’ll perform a DJ or live set).
Also notable: Insomniac remains committed to its Basscon stage, given the hardstyle genre’s sizable representation here. There’s also a healthy compliment of newbies and under-the-radar names who are easily overlooked in initial lineup scans and worth investigating online. And those hoping to cheer on a fellow local will be able to check out EDM/mash-up DJ 3LAU, who made his EDC debut last year at the gigantic Kinetic Field stage.
The current lineup:
12th Planet
3lau
4B
Aaron Jackson
Above & Beyond
AC Slater
Adrenalize
Adventure Club
Afrojack
Alesso
Alex Kidd
Alison Wonderland
A-Lusion
Aly & Fila
Amine Edge & DANCE
Andrew Rayel
Andy C
Angerfist
Armanni Reign
Armin van Buuren
Art Department
Arty
Astrix
ATB
Audien
Audiotistic Stage
Audiotricz
AVICII
AWE
Baggi Begovic
Basscon
Bassnectar
Bassrush Experience
Benny Benassi
Bingo Players
Bixel Boys
Black Sun Empire B2B State of Mind
Bones
Breach
Breathe Carolina
Brennan Heart
Brillz
Burn Unit
Calvin Harris
Camo & Krooked
Carl Cox & Friends
Carnage
Catz ‘N Dogz
Chris Liebing
Chris Lorenzo
Chuckie
Cookie Monsta B2B FuntCase
Coone
Cosmic Gate
Crisis Era
Crizzly
Da Tweekaz
Dada Life
Dannic
Danny Avila
Darksiderz
Darren Styles
Dash Berlin
Datsik
D-Block & S-Te-Fan
Definitive
Deorro
Dieselboy
Dimitri From Paris
Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike
Disclosure (DJ Set)
Discovery Project
DJ EZ
DJ Jazzy Jeff
DJ Snake
Dom Dolla
Dr. Fresch
Dubfire
Duke Dumont (Live)
Dusky
Dyro
Dzeko & Torres
Eats Everything
Ed Rush & Optical
EDX
Eptic B2B Habstrakt
Eric Prydz
Excision
Fallen
Fatboy Slim
Ferry Corsten
Firebeatz
Flosstradamus
Flume
Flux Pavilion
Freedom Fighters
Friction
Funk House
Galantis
Getter
Gladiator
Graham Funke
Grandtheft
Green Velvet & Claude VonStroke: GET REAL
Hardwell
Hook N Sling
Hotel Garuda
Ilan Bluestone
Isaac
Jack Beats
Jackal
Jason Bentley
Javi Row
John Digweed
Jon Rundell
Justin Martin
Kaskade
Kasra B2B Foreign Concept B2B Enei
Kastle
Kayzo
Kennedy Jones
Keys N Krates
Kicks N Licks
Kidnap Kid
Kiesza
Kove
Krewella
Kry Wolf
Lady Faith
Laidback Luke
Laxx
Leiel
LNY TNZ
Loco Dice
Lookas
LOUDPVCK
Low Steppa
MAKO
Mark Knight presents Toolroom Live
Markus Schulz
Martin Garrix
Martin Solveig
Metrik
MitiS
Moby
Motez
MOTi
Myon & Shane 54
Neelix
NGHTMRE
Nicky Romero
Noisia
Oliver Heldens
Ookay
Orjan Nilsen
Pan-Pot
Party Favor
Petey Clicks
Popeska
Posso
Pretty Lights
Protohype
Psyko Punkz
Pulsatorz
Ran-D
ROYL
Saeed Younan
Sander van Doorn
Sasha
Seven Lions
Showtek
Sigma
Sinden
Skism
Slander
Snails
Speaker of the House
Steve Angello
Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano
TC
Technoboy
The Upbeats
Thomas Gold
Tiësto
TNT
Tokimonsta
Tommy Trash
Trent Cantrelle
Troll Phace
Troy Kurtz
Tuneboy
Umek
Vena Cava
Victor Calderone
Wilkinson
Wuki
Yellow Claw
Zomboy
Z-Trip