Earlier this month, Los Angeles’ highly anticipated HARD Summer took place in its new home on the radically expanded grounds of the Whittier Narrows Recreation Area. Outdoing themselves not only in the amplitude of attendees, but with the mind-boggling lineup, Gary Richards (Destructo) and his crew delivered one wild party.

Notorious artists such as the Jack U duo, Nero, Dillon Francis, A-Trak, and Disclosure headlined the overwhelmingly distinguished lineup of artists, although all of the talent could have been headlining acts. Each headliner delivered a wild, main stage primed set, capping off each night of the weekend with a bang. Of course we could not miss the rare union of Skrillex and Diplo coming together to form Jack U, nor could I have passed up on crowd-pleasing funnyman Dillon Francis.

However, since the day the lineup dropped back in April, I was beyond enthusiastic to see the amount of funky deep house and techno house talent that was represented. Don’t get me wrong, witnessing the Jack U closing spectacle the first night in the rain, playing banger after banger, setting off flames and lasers was incredible, but what really got me going was the intense funkiness that characterized this summer lineup.

Watching A-Trak do what he does best on his turntables in complete awe was unforgettable, and Disclosure’s all-out, strictly business live set won’t soon be forgotten either, however, I was mostly grasped by HARD’s heaping dose of groovy garage funk. The acts I boogied down at were marked by surprisingly small crowds in HARD’s multicolored tent stages where I spent most of my time out of the dust and getting sweaty in the massive awnings from group-session groovin’.

Saturday kick-started the funk in the Pink Tent. Representing the badass ladies taking over the scene, JNTM favorite J.Phlip had the Pink Tent going off with her infectious, deep bass lines meshed with bouncy disco elements. J.Phlip throws down a party, never a moment of monotony, and she effortlessly makes the crowd dance as hard as they can as everybody gets down to her bootylicious house. I stayed right where I was in the Pink Tent as J.Phlip came to an end for my most anticipated set of the weekend, Tchami.

This Paris native is conquering the states with his uncanny, groovy take on what he is calling “future house.” Tchami flaunted his melodic, deep basslines making anyone and everyone boogie down, whether they were in control or not.

The Pink Tent was booming and what seemed to be a smaller sized crowd was now a roaring crowd of people reflexively dancing in unison, almost as though Tchami was robotically controlling the entire Pink Tent.

From the visuals and the grooving to his exotically catchy take on deep electro house and addictive hit remixes, Tchami tremendously exceeded my expectations and upheld my every reason for anticipation. I headed over to the Purple Tent for the infamous British OWSLA duo, Jack Beats, initially to catch a quick glimpse of what their hype was about.

It quickly turned into me becoming hooked by their incomparable sound blending everything from hip-hop to drum and bass to dubstep to electro/deep house. Their captivating originality makes Jack Beats’ set one I will not soon forget either.

Sunday’s staggering schedule of performances had me restless before I even entered the festival’s gates. My day started early and I soon realized the incredible inflation in attendees, dust, and intoxicating performances. Australia’s Danny Blanc, known as Wax Motif, brought his fresh and unique mixing technique to the Green Tent.

Wax Motif’s techno house sound had crowds flocking from every direction to get down and dance. His set showcased elements of hip-hop throughout his distinct techno dance style and was the perfect prelude to the Green Tent’s next electrifying star, Hannah Wants.

As one of her premiere US appearances, Hannah’s garage-house sound that incorporates familiar hip-hop and R&B tracks had the crowd boogying down. Her use of heavy bass creates a toxic sound that had me goggle over her and her groovy deep house style that impressively stimulated the entire crowd. Hannah Wants got me and the rest of the crowd so pumped for the style she was creating as well as ceremoniously showcasing the success of women artists across the dance music spectrum.

I moved from the Green Tent to the Purple Tent to experience a different take on deep house by Pittsburg’s own Kastle. His sunset performance brought a soulful edge to grime and garage style dubstep. The crowd was disappointingly small considering Kastle’s love to party that is represented by his accomplished development of underground electronic music fused with hip-hop.

His sound is so clean and precise due to his background as an engineer you can’t help but wonder when people will catch on. Kastle effortlessly warmed up the crowd for Wave Racer to take the decks, flipping the party upside down.

The crowd was immediately hypnotized by Thomas Purcell’s, a.k.a Wave Racer‘s, playfully distinct sound. His mix of bouncy, animated synthesizers, electro house, and samples of 90’s gaming systems are compiled into an unmatched blend of sunshine that intoxicated the Purple Tent. Wave Racer’s unconventional and whimsical take on future bass and warping of party jams had everyone boogying down.

The final night of HARD ended with a rapid fire round-robin of sets, as we checked on Gary Richard’s funk-laced techno set as Destructo, Disclosure‘s absolutely jaw-dropping live showcase at the main stage, alongside R&B maven Mary J. Blige, DJ Mustard‘s rowdy hip-hop shakedown, and Nero’s festival-ending return to the American festival circuit.

My weekend ended with some of the best sets of the festival, where I got to see some of the freshest talents dance music has to offer. Nero’s set wound down with their famed “Must Be The Feeling,” artfully mixed with Justice’s pounding magnum opus “Genesis.” I let the goosebumps take over as I put my hands in the air, let my head tilt back, and I took a moment to take it all in.

I had survived HARD Summer. As I joined the mass exodus of exhausted fans still buzzing from the festival’s finale, I realized I had seen every set I wanted to see from the lengthy weekend lineup, while also turning myself onto some brand new sounds I had previously never heard before.

Known for their ultra-diverse roster each year, HARD had me at hello, and now the waiting game begins with anticipation soaring high for next year’s big event.

The post HARD Summer As I Saw It: Fresh, Feisty, and Funky appeared first on Just Noise To Me.

I’ve never been to a festival with a more beautiful setting than SnowGlobe Music Festival in South Lake Tahoe. Waking up and looking out onto the lake and being embedded in the lush green forest with snow on the ground was something completely out of my element. The festival itself was also something unlike anything I’ve ever experienced…

Day 1

I must admit, I’m pissed off my travel plans set me back so far. I honestly ended up missing the better half of the first day of the festival, and only arrived in time to see the last three or four acts, missing some heavy hitters like Holy Ghost!, Kastle, Gramatik, and more. The first act I got to see the first night was UK artist Star Slinger whose bass-filled house set at the Sierra Tent was definitely a good one to get in the mood.

The only thing I have to say about Tiesto is that he was Tiesto — and I mean that in the best way possible. Although I’m not a huge fan, Tiesto really does know how to get a crowd going. For anyone who’s into some serious party/festival rave music, he’s your man. For those looking to get down to some real deep, booty-shakin’ house music, Justin Martin was at the Igloo Tent only a half hour later.

Justin’s set was definitely one for the books, and as a huge Dirtybird fan, you better believe I had a fan girl moment getting to watch his set. Closing out the first night of the festival, Justin Martin played an hour and forty-five minute set to a tent packed full of fans. After his last track the audience was screaming for just one more. Justin looked over to the security guard who luckily granted him another five minutes. Fans rushed the stage when the set was over and the first night was under wraps.

Day 2

I started off my second day at SnowGlobe getting to enjoy the first half of Kill Paris‘s set and then heading straight to the Main Stage for Zeds Dead. Now, in the past I’ve admitted to being on the fence with Zeds Dead, mainly because I caught them right as they got their start, when “Coffee Break” was their claim to fame. In those days, Zeds Dead wasn’t anything to write home about.

Almost three years alter these guys have completely changed my mind. From dubstep to festival trap, the Toronto-based duo had one of the most impressive sets of the weekend, completely packing the grounds at the Main Stage.

I need not yet again mention my love for Dirtybird, so it goes without saying that my excitement level was at an all-time high at the Claude VonStroke show. Getting to see his show at both HARD Summer and his latest US tour, I was expecting to see somewhat of the same set at SnowGlobe. Fortunately, I was incorrect in my assumption and was blown away at some of the material Claude VonStroke was spinning that night. With classic jams like “Turbosteppa” along with some smash hits from his newest album, Urban Animal, mixed in, the Claude VonStroke show was definitely something to remember.

Justin Jay kept the Dirtybird vibes alive in the Igloo Tent, and after closing the night with the theme song from Space Jam, it was safe to say I got enough deep house for the entire weekend.

Day 3

Finally, the heaviest weighing lineup of the entire festival was upon us. Luminox had a great energy on stage to get the party started right: the young Phoenix native was on point with his set, bringing a TON of people to the Sierra tent — something I wasn’t expecting.

Dillon Francis was up next on the Main Stage with a set that wasn’t as great as I had wanted. I’m not sure if it’s because I had seen him a couple times throughout the year, or if his set at HARD Summer was one of my favorite of 2013, but there was something about Dillon’s set that seemed a bit forced. Maybe it was because he was about to hop on a plane to finish off the year in San Francisco with A-Trak. Either way, it was fun as hell and the crowd didn’t seem to mind.

The next heavy hitter of the night was the one and only Snoop Dogg who surprised me by playing all of his classics instead of some of his newer, Snoop Lion material.

Cashmere Cat was next on my list, and damn did he throw down. The crowd at the front was dancing so hard they literally broke through the gate and had to have security come and put it back together. Definitely one of the most memorable sets of the weekend.

I finished off the night watching Cut Copy and, to be completely honest, wasn’t too blown away. They didn’t even stop to bring in the new year, playing through the countdown and finishing their set with a remark like, “Oh fuck! Happy New Year!” The fireworks were fun though!

SnowGlobe Music Festival 2013 Review

Overall I think this was a fantastic festival. With great organization, awesome vendors for food and beer, and a beautiful setting, SnowGlobe 2013 was definitely the best festival I could have been at to close out an already incredible year.

Some negatives: I think the whole show should have been pushed back by a few hours. I’m sure the organizers had to deal with noise level restrictions seeing as the venue is right in the middle of a suburban area, but it was difficult to make it to the show by the 3 o’clock start time. I would have also tried to get a better closer for New Years Eve. Cut Copy was great, but not really the best compared to the rest of the acts they had closing the other nights.

Some positives: The festival was super diverse. Booty house, progressive house, big names, small names… I was glad I got to catch a whole smorgasbord of different acts. Sierra Nevada was the beer of choice, and a great one at that. The prices for food and beverages were also very reasonable.

One of the best things about this festival is the shuttle system. Although it could have been a bit more organized on the final evening, I thought that it was still an awesome, safe, and convenient way to get to and from the show.

SnowGlobe Music Festival was by far and away one of the best festivals I’ve been to, especially in terms of NYE fests. The homegrown vibe was a nice change of pace, and while it seems as though they’re still getting some things together, the folks over at SnowGlobe are on their way to becoming hosts to one of the biggest festivals in the US. If you’ve ever even considered spending your New Years at SnowGlobe, I highly, highly encourage you to do so.

More pictures are on the way! Sit tight and check back right here for updates. 

The post SnowGlobe Music Festival 2013 Review appeared first on Just Noise To Me.