Merely two months ago, Insomniac’s presented its massive Electric Daisy Carnival in the midst of the Las Vegas desert. The seemingly endless ocean of skeptics and fans alike were immediately silenced upon arrival, succumbing to the jaw-dropping lineup of the most formidable names in various branches of the electronic variety. Now that the dust has settled, another electronic festival reared its way into the viewing field of those craving another weekend filled with beeps, blips and scantily-clad women that place most club-hopping females to shame.
Except this time the party was much closer to home, with Insomniac delivering another round of weekend electronica madness at the San Bernardino NOS Events Center in the form of Nocturnal Wonderland. While hardly the grand scope and scale of Insomniac’s prize pet, EDC, Nocturnal rarely falters in delivering a concise package that is more than enough to satisfy the appetites of electronica fans itching for another go-ahead to shuffle, cat daddy, etc.
Friday evening opened with the backdrop of a beautiful sunset, set upon the reflection of the lake upon first entering. The colorful cast of attendants – with their wife beaters, booty huggin’ undergarments, or whatever else “zany” comes to mind – made their way through the various art installations placed in the front area of the part. Trees adorned with strings of brilliant colors washed the entire setting with a kaleidoscope of light and sound.
The distant echoes of bone-crunching rhythms, melodically-charged synthesizers and unmistakable bass wobbles carried through the air. The closer we approached locations such as The Labyrinth, Alice’s House or The Sunken Garden, the more apparent it became that this incarnation of Nocturnal Wonderland was charged with a current of excitement and pure, unabashed joy to experience music, motion and sound in a way that Insomniac and its diverse roster of artists can deliver.
The first evening played house to powerhouses such as Fedde Le Grand and the impossibly young Avicii. Their epic, two-hour plus sets focused on an expansive range of their mix catalogue. Classics such as the Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams” were placed into a digital filter, leading to one of the more biblical-esque builds of the weekend – only to drop into the trademark bass that encourages people to shuffle as if the world was on the brink of absolute destruction. Other notable moments included the incredible remix of R.E.M.’s, “Losing My Religion” – appropriate given that just the day before the band had announced their break-up.
Given the band’s extensive range of history, the fact the remix resonated with so many people (who more than likely up until that point never heard anything about R.E.M. until that evening) was a testament to the skills of the DJs on hand.
The second evening would feature the impeccable talents of Dirtyphonics, Showtek and Kaskade – among a slew of many others. Djs were not solely limited to spinning the general malaise of house or dubstep, but other genres such as drum ‘n bass and moombathon were also prevalent.
There were also several groups of stilt-walking fluorescent fishes, neon-lit dragons manned by several people, a guy adorned in a suit made completely of glass (leading to some insanely eye-catching effects during his presence on stage) and a group of sexy gold-clad dancers wearing motorcycle helmets for fun. The eclectic set of performers definitely added whimsy and almost a surreal twist to the entire event – capitalizing upon the “Alice in Wonderland” theme the event has traditionally adopted.
But if the first evening was any indication for the energy that was waiting to burst, then the second evening indeed to these good vibrations and pushed them beyond the threshold. Showtek’s brand of crunching electronic rhythms influenced those in attendance to stomp on the ground as hard as the bass tones themselves. Sub-woofers were placed to the rest even further with the likes of Kaskade – who brought the crowd to a mad frenzy with his well-known knack for combining soaring vocals, melodies and intoxicating rhythms with effortless grace.
It was clear that he upped his showmanship skills after holding residency in Las Vegas at The Marquee, brining the glitz and the glamour of Sin City (and even a bit of that high-octane vibe from EDC) to the NOS Events Center, completely engaging the crowd with prophetic-like musical builds that led to bass drops with enough intensity to violate the sub-woofers with no mercy.
So with that another installation of Nocturnal Wonderland comes to a close. Behind EDC, it’s one of the largest festivals in the area – featuring up and coming acts, as well as a diverse roster of some of electronica’s biggest names. And Insomniac wasted absolutely no time in making this incarnation an improvement upon last year – both in terms of talent and the atmosphere these events tend to deliver. And judging the by smiling faces (whether due to drug usage or maybe a genuine love for the music itself), it would appear it went off without a hitch.
by Alex Mendoza
