I was immediately struck by the lack of zombiefication amongst ravers by Day 3. People looked in much better shape than I had expected. I suppose those Vegas hotel beds are more comfortable than the usual festival campgrounds. Still, there’s nothing like the fashionable combo of a neon bikini paired with dead, sunken eyes.
Dusky, the hipster’s choice, shuffled things up with an early set of post-garage. They were followed by Damian Lazarus, who kept the kick solid until it was time for a move to the Cosmic Meadow for Bassnectar aka The Nectar. He’s one of the few people who can still make jump up dubstep palatable. His visuals were full of cute animals with laser eyes. Win.
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The Nectar. // Photo credit: aLIVE
I thought Above and Beyond made generally trance-ish music, but their set at the Kinetic Field featured a lot of bossy electro. A fan of theirs told me that they really turn up for EDC and that this was uncharacteristic. I was down, especially from atop a ferris wheel. Stage 7 continued it’s next level programming, with consecutive sets by Le Youth, Bixel Boys, and Amtrac. It also continued it’s branding rush upon mine delicate eyes.
Elsewhere, Carnage played his second set of the weekend, this time at the BassCon, dropping hardstyle. Back at the Neon Garden, John Digweed showed his experience as a mixer and selector. His lighting set-up, with none of the shine turned on his person, showed his old-school perspective in which the DJ-figure is secondary to the music.
Kinetic Field crowd. So…many…people // Photo credit: aLiVE
Anyway, let’s get to the real reason I get all jazzed about EDC Sundays. Drum ‘n’ bass at the BassPod, as hosted by the essential Ram Records. The structure was brand new this year, a massive pyramid of bass. I rolled up initially during Sub Focus’ set. Homie barely even played any d’n’b, instead focusing on some pretty cool, bass-heavy house tunes. It seemed like he was auditioning for a spot on the Kinetic Field. No matter. After him was Andy C, who i’m pretty sure has never played a bad set in his life. Ram Records pop-star playboy Wilkinson followed, with a chuggy set from Loadstar rounding out the night.
The BassPod // Photo Credit: Alex Perez
DVBBS closed out the Cosmic Meadow, but let’s be honest, they’re trash and everybody knows it. Elsewhere, Dash Berlin did what he does best, closing out the Kinetic Field as the sun rose. It’s the same set time he played last year and his devotees treat it as a religious experience.
And just like that, it was over. Sad ravers from across the globe trudged back to their cars or shuttles or helicopters or spaceships and went the fuck home. It was a roundly satisfying EDC.
It’s over!
Check out:
EDC 2014 Day 1 Recap
EDC 2014 Day 2 Recap
