Sherp Review : EDC NY 2016

The Sherp was at the epicenter of the most happening event in The Big Apple, EDC NY, and we have all the juicy details for you!

2016 marked the fifth edition of the Electric Daisy Carnival, New York with more than 80 acts booked to play the five stages at the festival. The festival was held at Citi Field, a massive stadium in Queens and home to the New York Mets. During EDC, Citi Field transformed into a vibrant and colorful celebration ground for Insomniac’s annual electronic music festival. Despite the cold weather and crazy winds (Summer, where art thou?) this year, nearly eight thousand fans attended the festival.

One noticeable new addition to EDC NY this year was Carnival Square, a designated area that showcased delicious local food and drinks. Carnival Square even had a mini art-car themed stage showcasing some excellent artists from New York. EDC’s trademark carnival vibe was apparent again with its many rides, costumed performers, and quirky art installations that included giant glowing mushrooms.

Carnival Square. Photo credit Jake West for Insomiac.

The NeonGarden stage catered to Techno and Tech House lovers over the weekend. Hot Since 82 hosted his “Knee Deep in New York” experience on day one of the festival and he invited The Martinez Brothers, Sante, Technasia, and New York’s very own Green Velvet to play his stage. Day 2 at Neon Garden was an excellently curated experience as Nicole Moudaber brought her MoodZONE stage to EDC. The spectacular lineup at Nicole’s stage included the likes of Mind Against, Paco Osuna, and CLR’s main man, Chris Liebing who teamed up with Moudaber for a powerful b2b set close out a packed stage.

Hot Since 82’s Knee Deep In New York tent. Photo credit The Holy Mountain for Insomniac.

When it comes to production, Insomniac doesn’t disappoint and we’ve seen some iconic stages like the cathedral themed stage at EDC LV in the past. The KineticField stage, also the the largest at the festival, looked very impressive with a 60-foot giant green owl with mysterious, hypnotic eyes. Afrojack, TJR, Adventure Club, and DJ Snake attracted large crowds ther on Day 1. On Day 2, Eric Prydz played the KineticField stage as the sun set over Queens. Those at Kaskade’s performance experienced a 20,000-person sing-along when he dropped “Disarm You” his famous collaboration with Ilsey. Kaskade’s set was accompanied by a stunning display of fireworks as he closed out the festival.

Hoot! Hoot! That’s magnificent kineticField Stage. Photo credit aLIVE coverage for Insomniac.

After its highly anticipated inception on the West Coast, Insomniac’s new Trance oriented baby, Dreamstate made its East Coast debut. The Dreamstate lineup had Trance fans drooling. Ferry Corsten brought back his ancient alias, Gouryella, to New York and was nothing short of breathtaking as he played classic after classic filling the room with nostalgia. Paul Oakenfold’s Psy and Goa laden Fluoro set was a rare delight for New Yorkers. Fadi from Aly & Fila and John O’ Callaghan sets were predictably amazing. Will Atkinson and Ben Nicky are known for their notorious high energy sets, and one might wonder why they were programmed to play sets very early in the day.

The same stage that hosted Dreamstate on day 1 turned into a playground for Bass music lovers as the BassRush experience made its way to New York. Excision, Bro Safari, Trollphace, and Snails took over the stage on Day 2. Datsik made a surprise guest appearance during Excision’s high-voltage headlining set. However, it was Rusko’s b2b set with Caspa that stole the show, with a truly amazing performance.

Laser frenzy at the BassRush stage. Photo credit aLIVE coverage for Insomniac.

The artist meet and greet area was especially amazing as it gave festival attendees a chance to meet industry legends like Ferry Corsten, Paul Oakenfold, and Dash Berlin. While EDC NY is not as massive as its big brother EDC Las Vegas, over the last 5 years the EDC NY has been a consistently enjoyable event with a line-up that never disappoints.

Although Insomniac now has a number of different brands and festivals including Beyond Wonderland, Escape, and Life is Beautiful, it’s safe to say that most of these would not have existed if EDC wasn’t as amazing and a successful experience as it is. EDC has now expanded to Mexico, Brazil, UK, and even Japan. With EDC turning twenty this year, we can expect a phenomenal celebration at its flagship event, EDC Las Vegas this June.

Performers at EDC. Photo credit Marc van der Aa for Insomniac

Review By : Karan Parikh

If you missed out on EDC NY, head on over HERE to check out some of the sets played this year!