This article was co-written by WRR writers Tyler Hubin and Sebastian Aguirre
Last weekend’s Hudson Project was a festival of many ups, and just as many downs. Rain and disorganization plagued the festival’s inaugural year, as the last day of music was forced to be canceled due to unbearable weather conditions. Although the shortcomings are well-documented, what can be lost in the commotion is just how fantastic the music on Friday and Saturday was.
Whether it was one of the many big-time electronic acts at the Circus Tent, or any number of rappers, Reggae, or Experimental performers who graced the Main Stage, there’s no shortage of standout sets to take away from last week. Below are six such acts who in our minds made it all worth the mile long mud trek to our campsites.
Lindsay Lowend
Coming into the weekend, Lindsay Lowend was one of the sets that I had to see. I’ve been a huge fan of his since the Wind Fish EP he released last year, and his latest track “Ashtray” has been the first song I play when I get in my car since it was released a month ago.
We came in hot to the Circus Tent expecting a great set and he did not disappoint. He played his classics like “GT40” and “Sass Mouth”, so by the time he dropped “Ashtray” the crowd was so in it people had to resurface for air. After the mess that was Thursday night this was the perfect set to kick off the weekend. Quality tracks, awesome mixing, and tons of energy imprinted this set into my mind as one to remember. It was a great reminder that the side tents can bring it just as hard as the mainstage.
GRiZ
Although it wasn’t planned as such, GRiZ’s set was my last taste of music for the weekend. From start to finish, Grant had the crowd in the palm of his hand. With each aggressive sax rift he tore through, it seemed as if we all collectively begged for more, and Grant happily complied.
With a setlist that included GRiZ classics like “Smash The Funk” and “The Future Is Now“, an unbelievably nasty live version of Jason Derulo’s “Talk Dirty To Me“, and old-school tracks like “Stayin’ Alive” and “Play That Funky Music“, you felt as if you were transported into a 1960’s jukebox. Ending it all with “Low Rider (Lookas Remix)” capped off what in my mind was the perfect set. A little dash of heaviness, a whole lot of funk, and an overdose of sax all made this one to remember.
Big Gigantic
Some said that Big Gigantic caused the rainstorm that occurred during their set Saturday night. Dom was dueling the weather with his sax while Jeremy drummed up a thunder-like ruckus. The duo opened with their “Can’t Hold Us” remix, dropped “Blue Dream” and “Sky High” off the new album, and weren’t afraid to get trappy with some “Tell Me” by RL Grime and What So Not. I’ve seen Big G a few times now and they never cease to deliver a wild set that engrosses the crowd and entertains everyone. You know they have the crowd when they welcome every new song they introduce with a resounding “OHHHH”. The pressure was on as one of the biggest names at Hudson, and Big G came through like only Big G can.
Flying Lotus
After a 30 minute delay due to production difficulties with his trademark 3-Layer setup, Flying Lotus took the stage to a rousing applause from the faithful who braved the wait. Fresh off a performance at Electric Forest, I can vouch that save for a select few tracks this set was unique from the one we recently heard in Michigan at Electric Forest. With his extremely dark, technical take on hip-hop, FlyLo laid down a set which was a 180 degree turn from what fans experienced earlier in the day. Carefully constructed beats and phenomenal live transitions made this a late night set different from the traditional headliners one might expect at a festival. From his “SDS” instrumental to his stripped down remix of Katie Perry’s “Dark Horse“, this was one where you could sit back and appreciate a great artist at work.
Odesza
We caught Odesza’s set Friday night in the Catskill Cave, a small side stage whose floor gave us our first taste of mud this weekend. Once we got in there we were solidly stuck in place and settled in to enjoy a taste of some Pretty Lights Music before the heavy dubstep of Excision that came after. They dropped one of my favorite songs “My Friends Never Die” as well as their remix of Ki Theory’s “Open Wound” and Pretty Lights “One Day They’ll Know”. This set also featured one of my favorite visuals of the weekend, with some shots of the duo mixing live and big beautiful lasers that lit up the whole tent. After a long anticipated wait I finally got to see Odesza and now the wait starts again.
Exmag
There are few groups in the scene today who are rising faster than these grooving dudes. An early day Exmag set proved to be exactly what the doctor ordered, and I wasn’t alone as the Circus Tent was packed well beyond what their time slot would suggest. Blurring the lines between jam and electronic, Exmag jammed out with standout crowd pleasers like “Ziggowatt” (Exmag remix) and “Fall In Love Too Fast” (Exmag Remix). In a moment to remember, the highlight of the set was undoubtably bringing GRiZ out to perform the latter live. With Eric Mendelson strumming the guitar alongside the sultry sax supplied courtesy of Grant, there was little else you could have asked for. The ideal set to dust off your groove shoes for the day, Exmag hit the nail on the head once again with their one-of-a-kind style.
#MudsonProject
As everyone knows the Hudson Project has been put on blast for a whole list of things, but I can’t help but think back fondly on this weekend. Sure carrying our stuff in Thursday night was a long mess, we were searched on a TSA-like level, and yes, Sunday night was a harrowing experience. But how often do you get to push a tiny cart through mud for two hours? Or engage in a massive mudslide with a bunch of strangers? Or try to get to Wal-Mart at three in the morning because your buddy forgot tent poles just to have to take a 30 minute detour because the bridge is out? Of course the bridge was out. But through it all I still had a great weekend.
One of my main takeaways from this weekend is that the old saying “the experience is what you make of it” was proved true once again. For every few people complaining on Hudson’s Facebook status, there are 10 who are saying they had one of the best weekends of their lives. They had a great time and would willingly do it again. The opportunity was there, did you take advantage of it or let the small negative aspects influence you?
(Photo Cred- Roargasm.com, liveforlivemusic.com, elektrodaily.com, bassfeedsthesoul.com)
Connect with the Hudson Project:
Facebook | Twitter | Website
Share On
you will love it
get it right here
jooouli