Instead of blabbing on and on about how Electric Zoo 2012 was so amazing, I figured I’d just get right to my five favorite sets of the festival. I matched up a few videos with the list so you can have some idea what was going on, but let’s be serious, you obviously had to be there.
TOP FIVE (in chronological order:)
1. Reboot – Friday – Sunday School Grove Vagabundos – 6:30-8:00
Reboot’s set on Friday evening left me with two words I’m happy to say I have stuck in my head: Work It. In the video below (thank you random YouTuber), you can see everyone going crazy while the song “Work It”, which actually belongs to Agent!, Vito & Danito, and Zohki & Roozlee is playing. As a member of Cadenza, Reboot not only proves time and time again why he is part of the Vagabundo family with his highly energetic sets, but he is a master at keeping the whole crowd dancing. It was a close match-up between Reboot and Robert Dietz if you ask me, but I had to give it to Reboot because of this song. The video also gives you a pretty good look at the LED School Bus set up.
2. Sasha – Saturday – Sunday School Grove – 8:00-9:30
A very good friend of mybeatFix has told me time and time again that I need to see this legend spin live, and I can’t believe I waited this long to see him. Sasha’s set was hands down my favorite of the entire weekend. Bomb after bomb was dropped, sending everyone in the Sunday School Grove tent on a trance, ambient, techno roller coaster. The video I found below was probably the highlight of the whole festival for me, it’s when he drops “All That Matters” by Kölsch featuring Troels Abrahamsen. The entire crowd had the perfect vibe and my feet couldn’t stop moving. Sasha successfully told a story with his set. So many artists fail to do this, but I love when a DJ can pull it off. He lifted us off our feet from the moment he started, and placed us back down when he finished. Pure bliss.
3. Above and Beyond – Saturday – Main Stage – 9:30-11:00
I hate to toot my own horn, but I think the prediction I made about Above and Beyond in our Electric Zoo preview was correct: this group was much better on Main Stage. And although it’s something that should be expected, I was impressed with the visuals they had on main stage. Mirroring the crowd on the big screens was a perfect way to involve and amp everyone up watching the show. The video I posted below pretty much sums up the vibe, the visuals, and the tone of the whole performance.
4. Better Lost Than Stupid – Sunday – Sunday School Groove – 2:00-4:00
By day three of Electric Zoo, so many of the same people in the Sunday School tent had met and remembered each other. So when a group like Better Lost Than Stupid plays, there’s a similarity in what everyone is expecting and hoping to hear. For example, when they played “Fela” by Audiofly, everyone went nuts, instantly whipping out their camera phones to film the moment. Martin Buttrich, Davide Squillace, and Mathias Tanzmann, who make up the group, did an awesome job at staying true to their name. They did nothing less of leaving me lost in the music and feeling stupid-happy while they performed. I couldn’t find a video that gives the song justice, so I posted the best one I could find and a link to the song on Soundcloud.
5. Excision – Sunday – Hilltop Arena – 7:25-8:25
If you’ve yet to figure it out, I was a pretty big fan of the Sunday School Grove tent this year. That being said, when someone like Excision preforms, credit must be given where it is deserved. After recently seeing him down in Miami, I knew I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see him again at Electric Zoo. After playing a sick remix to “Chain Hang Low” by Jibbs, a song I normally wouldn’t usually favor, I was happy I got to see a great dubstep set. Anyone walking by the Hilltop Arena while Excision was playing could be instantly mesmerized by the insane LED paneling that was used in the stage set up. Check out the video posted below for an up close view of him playing.
See ya next year in New York animals!
Featured photo courtesy of Electric Zoo
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