The Electric Daisy Carnival headed to New York for it’s third edition this past weekend and here’s a wrap up of some of the best moments from the Metlife Stadium.Β
On the 24h and 25th of May, 2013 Insomiac hosted a smashing third edition of EDC New York. The event was hosted at MetLife Stadium, which is the home arena for the New York Giants. The stacked line up for EDC NY included the likes of Hardwell, Carl Cox, Steve Angello, Calvin Harris, John Digweed. With approximately 80 acts scheduled to play at 5 amazing stages, EDC NY was nothing short of spectacular. What really makes every edition of EDC special is their desire to make things larger than life and give their fans a surreal experience; EDC NY was not an exception to that.
1. Best Stage Design
At the center of the KineticFIELD stage sat a gargantuan and colorful animatronic owl with wings that could wrap around the DJ Booth. Nothing says trippy like giant programmable LED eyes on a nocturnal bird of prey that reacts to music in real time. The owl could seamlessly transform from looking disturbing and ominous to cute and cuddly based on the lighting and visuals. The stage was also equipped with powerful lasers, stunning pyrotechnics and LED Screens to facilitate mind warping visuals. It was arguably EDC NYβs main stage but what was nice about it is was the diverse genres that the stage hosted. This stage hosted the likes of Tiesto, Umek, Hardwell, New World Punx, Adventure Club and Headhunterz. A spectacle of art and architecture infused with technology, kineticFIELD promises a spellbinding experience.
2. Best SurpriseΒ
Some festivals have surprise acts, but EDC NY had a surprise stage called Platinum! It was an intimate, indoor stage that was hosted Las Vegas nightclub, Create and Bud Light. The stage featured some amazing artists like Gina Turner and Dev Bhandari that werenβt even featured on the lineup. The stage also gave fans a chance to watch more than one set of artists like Green Velvet and Claude von Stroke who were also playing the neonGARDEN stage. The stage primarily hosted techno and deep/tech house artists. However, the younger crowd at the festival might have been a little disappointed because the Platinum stage only had its doors open to folks over the legal drinking age (21).
3. Best non-musical attraction
The rides for adrenaline junkies! From a distance EDC NY might have looked more like an amusement park and less like an electronic music festival. EDC NY had a giant but slow rotating Ferris wheel for the feint hearted. On the other hand, there were rides that take you upside down and rotate at blinding speeds while you listen to Headhunterz unleash some nasty Hardstyle beats to make your festival experience more extreme. The rides definitely justify the βCβ that stands for carnival in EDC.
4. Best live act
This honor goes to the dance pop quartet from London, Rudimental. They played at the HARD stage right in the center of Metlife stadium. After a smashing debut album, Rudimental has become one of the most popular acts in the live electronic music scene. Amazing vocals and soulful beats, Rudimentalβs music is a like breath of fresh air. Their music is unique, honest and loveable. Although HARD primarily hosted bass heavy music acts like Bassnectar and Nero, Rudimental had the crowd singing along to their lovely songs.
5. Most underrated act
Dev Bhandari is a name that will be hard to forget after EDC NY. After being in the scorching sun for a couple of hours, The Sherp happened to stumble upon a rather inconspicuous and intimate indoor stage. The combination of Devβs music and the vibe of the stage were comparable to a Techno and House music oasis in the blistering heat. His crisp and clean mixing skills a spot at EDC NY for the second consecutive year. His skill is in combining eclectic sounds into a groovy, seamless mix makes him a stable pillar in the New York DJ scene as well an unforgettable performer at EDC.
6. Best experience enhancerΒ
The crowd made EDC NY what is was. Everyone was in great spirit and seemed to be there for all the right reasons. A lot of people went out of their way to be dressed up especially for EDC. There were people dressed in all sorts of different clothes and strange costumes. If you’re a girl going to Electric Daisy Carnival be sure to wear some flowers in your hair. When you think of the raver crowd, the first thing that would normally come to your mind is how they’re not easy to control and people that are dangerously messed up. I personally didn’t see anyone that was out of control, nor were there any people breaking out into fights. There were people from all over the world, who completely ready and prepared to rage.
7. Most energetic set
Chicago based dance music act Krewella killed it at EDC NY this year. Even though Rainman was not there to grace us with his present, siblings Jahan and YasmineΒ rocked the kineticFIELD stage. The crowd cheered along as the beautiful sisters jumped, danced and went crazy on stage. Their energy and stage presence is infectious and you canβt help but join the madness. Today, as a DJ and artist it is very easy to get pigeon holed into sticking to a certain genre but Krewellaβs high octane set included everything from Hardstyle and Dubstep to Progressive House and Trap.
8. Honorable mention
EDC was extremely well organized. The lines were much less of a hassle than they were in the previous two years. There weren’t any lines for the bathrooms as they were well spread out over the entire venue. Also, a boon was the free water access all over MetLife stadium. You could refill your water whenever you wanted and also, an amazing thing was when you entered, there were sunblock lotions for the public to use, there were several bottles of different SPF and the crew would literally promote you to use it so you don’t suffer a terrible sunburn. To make life easier there were mobile charging lockers and bag checkins too. Insomniac always puts the crowd first and it is one of the key factors that have helped them become one of the best event management and promotion companies in the world.
Pictures & Words by Karan Parikh & Aria Parikh