Tinker Field was swarmed with up to 60,000 concertgoers Nov. 7 and 8 for the annual Electric Daisy Carnival.
With electronic dance music commercializing in the US with its influx of music festivals, the Las Vegas based festival was just one of many that have already made its way through the I-4 corridor this year, joining the ranks with Sunset Music Festival, held in Tampa, Fla. and last month’s Safe in Sound Festival downtown.
In its third year in Orlando, EDC has held large and small DJs from Insomiac, Dim Mak and Dancing Astronaut labels as well as artists from all over the world.
“Berlin (where I’m from) has a special scene. It’s techy and unground, but a very authentic scene. It’s very far from festival style like it is here in the U.S.,” said Thomas Gold, a DJ that performed Saturday.
The two-day festival highlighted popular electronic artists such as Dillon Francis, Steve Aoki, Alesso, Above and Beyond and Knife Party.
“Probably the best one I saw tonight was Above and Beyond. Seeing them in the rain at the end of the night was perfect,” Kevin Sanchez said.
“The only reason any of us are here is to enjoy the music and enjoy some good vibes,” said Katie Garcia, who came to EDC from North Carolina with her group of friends she calls her “rave family”. “I’ve been listening to Alesso for a while now (and) I can’t wait to see him,” she said.
The three stages, Kinetic Field, Circuit Grounds and Neon Garden enticed patrons as they made their way through a wonderland full of music. It’s true carnival style also featured dressed up performers, a Ferris wheel and classic fair rides.
The Neon Garden stage was designated for trance music, while Citrus Gardens housed a variety of bass dropping, electronica sounds.
On Saturday, the entire day’s lineup was infused with more deep house influences.
“Day two is more trance and house music. You’ve got Rebecca and Fiona who are really good, Harvard Bass, Route 94 who are more on the trance side,” concert-goer Eunice Xiao said.
Xiao, who was dressed in just shorts and a t-shirt said that she chose not to dress lavishly for the festival because she opted to enjoy the outfits of attendees dressed in fur boots, hats, rave bras and flower crowns.
“Everyone else is clearly enjoying themselves, but I love admiring how much people go all out with signs and costumes and stuff,” Xiao said.
The intricately crafted Kinetic Field was for larger acts such as Saturday headliner, Steve Aoki. The massive stage, decked with large, trippy owls came with pixie dancers, flames and shooting water.
“The fact that I was even in that crowd literally made my weekend,” Garcia said.
The festival ended its two-day party with an all-star lineup of Dillon Francis, Showtek, Steve Aoki and Knife Party.
“I definitely think Orlando’s EDC is pretty cool (so far), but I think it’s going to prepare me for the bigger and better festivals like Electric Forrest where you camp together and experience the music,” Sanchez said.
