The darkness of night blanketed thousands of festivalgoers at the main stage of HARD Summer as electronic dance music super duo Jack U harnessed the spirit of the crowd. Flames shot upward form the tops of the stage into the sky as cool rain showers fell to the ground.
HARD Summer’s dynamic lineup of various established performers and rising acts confirmed its role as a flagship EDM event in Los Angeles. The festival’s new home at Whittier Narrows Recreation Area spread out enthusiastic masses of colorful ravers across five stages with headlining acts Tiësto, Jack U, Disclosure and A$AP Mob performing over the course of two nights.
The HARD and HARDer stages attracted main-stage headbangers and trap enthusiasts while the Purple, Green and Pink tents brought in house and bass fans looking for more groovy styles.
In the evening of the first day, Australian DJ What So Not unleashed trembling drum rhythms through stacked speakers on each side of the Purple Tent’s stage.
At dusk, Justin Martin performed a bouncy deep-house set at the Pink Tent after his DirtyBird Records label mate JPhlip’s upbeat set. Martin drew cheers from the crowd as he grooved back and forth onstage, ending fresh with his remix of Nadastrom’s “Fallen Down.”
Diplo and Skrillex, both big names in EDM, performed together under the stage name Jack U on the HARD Stage to headline night one. The set featured high-intensity drops and a calming mashup of Skrillex’s “Cinema” and Major Lazer’s “Get Free.”
As rain showers picked up during Jack U’s set, a rising sun emerged on the big screens and Diplo shouted, “We’re going to party until the sun comes up!” as the famous “The Lion King” song “Circle of Life” blasted out of the speakers, followed by crowd roars.
In contrast to the big-stage setting, the intimate feel of Green Tent was accompanied by an excellent sound system that successfully maintained bass as they reached near-capacity levels.
The grooviest sets of HARD Summer occurred at the Green Tent, a good 10-minute walk across the park from the HARD Stage. During the afternoon of day two, British house artist Hannah Wants and French DJ Shiba San performed gripping sets, taking deep-house bass music to a new level.
Shiba San’s big-man presence on stage contributed to his set’s heavy thumping feel as he moved back and forth behind his DJ controller. The trembling drop on “Okay” sent vibrating bass through the bodies of the crowd that danced all around the tent to the fast-paced music.
Near the end day two at the Green Tent, DJ and HARD Events CEO and founder Destructo took grip of the stage and provided a slapping deep-house set that kept the audience on its feet. Destructo’s small children watched on the side of the stage holding up a sign that read, “We Love You and Hard,” and his confidence onstage was evident through the lively crowd participation.
After a stunning performance at the Underground Stage for the 2013 HARD Summer festival, U.K. garage dance act Disclosure beamed to the main HARD Stage for a live set. Pounding an electronic drum setup and slapping the bass, brothers Guy and Howard Lawrence grooved onstage with a guest appearance by Mary J. Blige on the upbeat dance song “F For You.”
As with most EDM festivals, popular songs such as Calvin Harris’ “Summer” were overplayed over the course of the weekend. DJ Snake and Flosstradamus performed bumping energetic sets and utilized the cliché tactic of commanding the entire audience to drop to the floor before a big drop.
Of the up-and-coming acts of this year’s HARD Summer festival, Mr. Carmack, from Honolulu, drew a big crowd with his hip-hop dance beats for a 2 p.m. performance on day two that bred a large mosh pit which persisted throughout the set.
HARD Summer is one of the most successful EDM events of the year in Los Angeles and proved its potential for longevity and progress this year with a well-executed location switch and lineup boost.
– Max McGee
Email McGee at mmcgee@media.ucla.edu.