This year Insomniac celebrated 25 years of EDC. The producers came in HOT, boasting the perfect lineup, festival grounds that were unmatched, and a sky filled with drones. Simultaneously we celebrated the 10th iteration of EDC Orlando and it was one for the record books. Here’s a look at what the sunshine state headliners got to experience!
Once entering the North gate, directly ahead you were immediately hit by the sound waves of Corona Beach. Although the stage itself was smaller in comparison to its neighboring stages, the stage hosted some BIG acts like Morten, Nitti Gritti, and JSTJR who played nostalgic mixes and handed out money to fans that answered EDM-related questions from his youtube channel before his set. The beach rave setting had sand, hammocks, and performers dressed as huge fish- the perfect spot to kick the dancing shoes off and let your bare feet feel the energy.
Across from Corona Beach was a true gem. The Rynobus was an iridescent art car in the middle of Pixel Forest. Here you could concurrently buy/collect NFT’s at Coinbase’s Insomniac gallery, play MarioKart on the dance floor, and get lost to the sounds of major acts like PLSMA, Magic Mike, and Florida locals Too Heavy Crew and Evalution. This was the spot you would tell your friends you’d be if you got lost, like an arcade you could spend hours in.
If you stood on the outskirts of Rynobus you could hear the second biggest stage to your right, hugged by giant LED screens and pulsating lights all around the perimeters- Circuit Grounds. Standing at the center of the attendees you felt as though you were being hugged by the triangular screens that stretched like wings deep into the crowd. The Circuit Grounds presented incredible talents such as Liquid Stranger, Louis The Child, NGHTMRE B2B SVDDEN DEATH, Zedd, and Excision. A highlight was DJ Diesel, aka Shaq, who of course made his way into a mosh pit to dance with the fans.
If you found yourself walking over water on a bridge lined with giant color-changing flowers you were crossing Daisy Lane, seconds away from the Stereo Bloom Stage. Picture a giant retro radio with big side-view mirrors sticking out of it and you get Stereo Bloom. The stage was positioned in the spot literally closets to the sunset throughout the weekend and when dark set, the stage was beaming with lights coming straight from its domed center. The energy was limitless under the Sterobloom trance. Hosted by three different hosts over the weekend (Basscon, Dreamstate, and Insomniac Records) this stage had a wide variety of talent including Cosmic Gate, Paul Van Dyke, Dombresky, and an insanely strong finish on Sunday with Martroda who got the house bumpin and everyone moving to the beat.
Stage left of SterioBloom, walk past the giant SuperBloom flowers (THE spot for that gram post) and you run right into Kinetic Field. EDC is known for its iconic Kinetic Field for obvious reasons, this year’s stage included a full-on spectacle. Drones lit up the sky during the opening act taking shape of a flying owl, daisies, and even the EDC 25th year logo. The alternative to fireworks was both green-friendly and soul cleansing. Did we mention the GIANT owl that sat on the Kinetic Field stage was moving its head from side to side and blinking its eyes, judging your every move. This owl was the iconic figure of the entire weekend, that thing no one would forget. Kinetic Stage was home to many, heavy hitters like Alan Walker, Kygo, Afrojack, and a killer Future Rave performance from Morten.
If you are one of those festival attendees who is less crazy about the music but still wants to get that festival energy this year’s event had stuff for you too! The festival featured giant amusement park rides that gave fans 360 views. Gentle rides like the Ferris wheel and other more intimidating rides that were like elevated spinning twisters that overlooked all of Sterobloom! And the food! It wouldn’t be Electric Daisy Carnival without the carnival food we love to regret, and yes, healthy options too! From Mac and Cheese Sandwiches to chicken lo mein, burritos, smoothies, fruit bowls, and entire coconuts; the producers made sure all of your cravings would be met.
In addition to the yummy food, the accessibility to the bars and free water stations came in clutch. Whether you wanted a fresh juice, fancy cocktail, or good ole beer, you had options within eyesight at any given moment.
We can’t forget the shopping! The energetic and bustling market bazaar, a novelly covered vendor village stood right next to the South Gate Entrance. Here you could find clothing, Kritter hair Klips from Kritter Klips jewelry, glasses from Spunglasses, or even get your makeup done and hair braided at the Squad Goals Beauty tent.
And of course, the art installations were breathtaking. In the center of the skyline in between the vendor village and Neon Garden stood Daniel Popper’s beautiful wooden statue “Anima,” a giant praying Gaia gifting lush nature from her hands. The lines to take photos with her where proof is was a photo worth taking.
At last, we make it to our final stage, The Neon Garden. That makes 6 stages, playing for 11 hours each day for three days! Neon Garden was surrounded by beautiful goddess statues, it was the only covered stage on the grounds, the platform under your feet made for a much comfier dancing experience made to withstand the shuffler that would call these grounds home for the next 3 days. Hosted by Factory 93, this church of house hosted a secret B2B2B with Green Velvet, John Summit, and Dom Dolla amongst other house acts through the weekend.
As Armin Van Buuren played one last song at Kinetic Field and the final fireworks flew into the sky, the owl closed his eyes for EDCO’s 10th year, and when you looked around you felt the energy in the air. It was love and happiness amongst friends and strangers. A major sigh of relief because we survived a wonderful weekend that brought on so much intense emotion you thought you might burst. We came to this festival and elevated to new heights, we soaked the Florida Sunshine, and watched our auras blossom. In a world that could really use more Peace, Love, Unity, and Respect EDCO brought just that to its attendees, it really was a weekend dose of serotonin.
EDCO returns for 3 Days of Magic Under the Florida Sunshine Nov. 11+12+13, 2022! Passes ON SALE NOW!
Connect with EDC Orlando:
https://orlando.electricdaisycarnival.com/
https://www.facebook.com/ElectricDaisyCarnivalOrlando/
https://twitter.com/EDC_Orlando
https://www.instagram.com/edc_orlando/
Connect with Insomniac:
https://www.facebook.com/insomniacevents
https://twitter.com/insomniacevents
https://www.instagram.com/insomniacevents/
https://www.insomniac.com/
Share On
