1. More special guests, please. This year’s Electric Daisy Carnival had its share of surprises but few captivated ravers like the special guest at the Circuit Grounds Stage on Saturday. London-based dance music titan Fred Again stunned a stadium-sized crowd with floor-rattling cuts from his April album, USB. The bass alone could be heard, if not felt, from across the Speedway. And the Circuit Grounds stage, a concave of LED screens, only seemed to magnify that ecstatic energy.
EDC also welcomed some first-timers this year, with Vanderpump Rules’ reality TV star—and self-proclaimed “No. 1 guy in the group”—James Kennedy joining the Rhynobus art car on Friday for an hour-long set. U.K. indie instrumentalist Four Tet also premiered his first EDC set. Heavyweights like Tiësto and Zedd bodied their Kinetic Field performances, as per usual. An elaborate drone show preceded Tiёsto’s momentous arrival, and the set quickly dissolved into a writhing discotheque of neon capes, spanx and baby yoda totems (more on those later). –Amber Sampson
2. The totems made us happy. Totems were our North Stars here under the Electric Sky, and there were plenty to follow and gawk at. A neon sign bobbing above a swath of ravers during DJ Snake’s set on Saturday offered “Live Nudes.” Another reminded us that “All Sluts Go to Heaven,” and that “This Isn’t a Whore House, It’s a Whore Home” (Dionne Warwick might have something to say about that). One of our favorites happened to be a guy waving a massive “What the F*ck is Techno?” flag. Fingers crossed he figured it out by the end of the weekend. –AS
3. Downtown EDC is still one of the best parts of EDC. Among the layout changes Insomniac made to the footprint this year, Downtown EDC got a helpful relocation.
The activity hub moved to the middle of the grounds, offering more access to its whimsical itinerary. We watched a man get set up with three potential dates on a real-life game show session of “Up To Date” in one area. The show also took place coincidentally right next to the EDC wedding chapel, where one Kandi-coated couple did say “I Do.” Lines for The Queen drag bar and Kandi Casino were packed as usual. But the new YeeEDC Saloon lassoed in a bunch of country-curious ravers who were up for a little line dancing. At this point, the activities at EDC are so popular and creative, they support themselves, with or without the music. –AS
4. EDC sticks to its inclusive mission. This was the first year some EDC vendors included mocktails (sans alcohol) on their drink menu. It’s a sign of the times, as less people turn to alcohol, as the Billboard and Weekly have reported. EDC doesn’t want to leave its sober fest-goers out.
Speaking of inclusivity, we noticed people of all ages, abilities, sizes, shapes and colors partaking in festivities. This is not new for EDC, which prides itself on embracing all attendees indiscriminately. We even noticed what looked like a son showing his mother around, showing that the love for EDM and rave culture can span generations—and bringing us full circle to this year’s theme, “kinetic circle,” celebrating circles of community, trust and life. –Shannon Miller
5. PLUR is sustainable. I looked at the gesture with fascination and perplexity. A man said something (inaudible over the music) to a woman to my side. She smiled and they touched their peace fingers together. (Are they E.T. fans, I asked myself?) Then they used their hands to make a heart, then pressed their palms against each other, then interlaced their fingers and traded bracelets. After seeing this a few more times, I finally asked someone; came to learn, the gesture means “peace, love, unity, respect,” the rave mantra. (I’m an insider now!)
That mantra seemed pervasive at EDC, where buzzing partiers can’t help but bump up against each other as they seek out their next set or experience, some of them forming human chains. I was pleased to hear “sorry” and “excuse me” whenever we were jostled. There were other displays of PLUR: when we sat down to eat, people were willing to share their table with us; when we were clueless as to who was on stage, we could count on other ravers to clue us in and dance with us. PLURfection. -SM
