What began as a mini-Lightning in a Bottle Festival, Woogie Weekend reiterated LIB’s core idea, which is ‘Leave it Better, Leave it Beautiful’. The Sherp discusses its inaugural edition that ended just last week.
Coming off another successful sold-out festival at Lightning in a Bottle this past May,Β The Do Lab decided to expand their lineup with another weekend of music, art, andΒ community.Β This past weekend, Oak Canyon Park in Silverado, CA played host to theΒ first ever Woogie Weekend. Now, asΒ fans of Lightning in a BottleΒ know,Β the Woogie Stage which brings in a delightful number of house and techno acts has always been a crowd favourite. The Do LaB has gone ahead and made an entire festival out of it, featuring some incredible artists along with retaining the do-goodness of LIB.
The Sherp gives you a lowdown on how it went about!
The Location
Having been the location of three previous iterations ofΒ Lightning in a Bottle, Oak Canyon Park was a familiar environment for manyΒ attendants and proved to be the perfect setting for a smaller festival experience.Β With a number of notable underground acts booked, anticipation was high for thecaliber of music the Do LaB scheduled for the three-day festival. The two stages, TheΒ Beat Nest and The Hive, were a stoneβs throw away from each other, which gaveΒ everyone a chance to catch their favorite artist.
The Music
One thing that stood out aboutΒ Woogie Weekend were the scheduled two hour sets that allowed the DJs ample timeΒ to build a vibe and give the crowd a true journey.Β The music started at 4pm on Friday to little fanfare as many worker bees were not yetΒ off and campers were still setting up or traveling to the festival. No problem though,Β as local Orange County house purveyors Nonfiction and Josh Billings of Focus OCΒ warmed up a small but eager crowd. By the time Camea hit the decks, the sun hadΒ already began to set and a nice amount of people had gathered ready for a night ofΒ dancing with new and old friends.
The highlight of the night was most certainly Pig and Dan whoΒ brought their brand of pulsating techno to Oak Canyonβs grassy dance floors and endedΒ their set with their hard-hitting single βUniversal Loveβ. Over at The Hive, AdamΒ Freeland culminated the night in proper old school fashion with some fevering acidΒ house.
Saturdayβs festivities began in true Do LaB style with an early noon set by WoogieΒ veteran Pumpkin who peppered the crowd with remixes of classic dance hits. By theΒ time Marques Wyatt donned the Beat Nest stage, the first signs of less than stellarΒ weather began to arise as rain began to greet festival goers on the floor. But acts like Tara Brooks,Β progressiveΒ legend Nick Warren,Β J.Phlip,Β Desert Hearts made sure that the festival’s music scored big!
Rainshowers, ahoy!
In order toΒ prepare the audio equipment and combat the incoming aquatic onslaught, music atΒ The Beat Nest stopped for several minutes as production crews hurried to protect theΒ speaker stacks and subwoofers. For the next few hours, Woogie Weekend resembled aΒ tropical climate with shattered showers coupled with humid temperatures. While mostΒ folk would cower in the face of uncomfortable weather, Woogieβs faithful embracedΒ the elements and soon umbrellas and jackets appeared across the festival.
Where is the art, though?
Noticeably missing from the festival was the amountΒ of art and immersive environments on display that characterizes Woogieβs bigger sisterΒ festival, Lightning in a Bottle. That is not to say that there was no art as theΒ production throughout the grounds was very reminiscent of The Do LaBβs aesthetic ifΒ only minimal in nature.
The festival, as a whole
The Do LaB always attracts a high level of participation at their events andΒ Woogie Weekend is no exception. The campgrounds came alive at night with manyΒ having set up their own all night parties. The Do LaB would not be outdone however asΒ it announced that they would be having their own sanctioned after hours parties rightΒ outside the main festival grounds with some of Californiaβs most well-known partyΒ crews including Music is 4 Lovers, As You Like It, Pocket, and Feral.
Woogie Weekend turned out to be much of the same for the Do LaB bringing togetherΒ a non-stop party filled with friendly, inviting people of all ages and backgrounds. TheΒ festival aimed to take the electronic rhythms of Lightning in a Bottleβs treasuredΒ Woogie Stage and succeeded in creating their own haven for house and techno.Β Woogie Weekend proved that The Do LaBβs recipe for an engaging experience couldΒ work on a small scale with music at its forefront. Although a cameo from MotherΒ Nature made conditions a little uncomfortable, no amount of rain could wash away theΒ good feels and energy from both the artists and the people who came to see them.
(Words by: Dominic Dang. Images by: Sam Siam and Dominic Dang)