Dancing Astronaut’s Top 10 Sets to Catch at EDC Las Vegas 2014
Dancing Astronaut's Top 10 Sets to Catch at EDC Las Vegas 2014
By now, the car has been filled with gas, the outfits are made, and hopefully, you’ve managed to take a peek at the recently announced artist set times for the quickly approaching opening day of Electric Daisy Carnival 2014. For those who are still penciling in which acts to catch or need a final convincing push for two conflicting sets – look no further. Dancing Astronaut has compiled 10 of the Insomniac flagship festival’s sets to catch throughout this weekend’s festivities.
From trap to garage to progressive and everything in between – we’ve got your back. Read on for 10 of EDC Las Vegas‘ sets you can’t miss this year, and enjoy your weekend under the electric sky.
Sluggers
Miami duo Sluggers has been a long-time contender on our list of rising talents to watch, fearlessly steamrolling through a surge of various genre explorations while snowballing each to make something truly unique and of their own. Following their Axis debut early this spring, there’s no doubt that the two’s forthcoming set at EDC Las Vegas will be one to remember. The two have established a finesse for swinging through a variety of sounds across the spectrum – anything from banging tech house tones to funky g-house vibes can be expected within Sluggers’ one-hour set.
Set Time: Friday at ‘Stage7’ from 11:00 – 12:00 AM
Arty
Insomniac proudly presented their latest branch installment with the reveal of Insomniac Records, and additionally announced Arty as their very first signed artist. Though his inaugural Insomniac Records release remains only a preview, “Up All Night” already teems with the fiery progressive house blasts and the alluring, raspy vocals of singer Angel Taylor. As only an opening standard of what’s to be expected from the Russian native, it’s guaranteed that dance music will soon receive a proper introduction to Arty and his outstanding talents as a house producer. Beyond already guaranteeing previews of his brand new tracks from his upcoming album within his set, as both Insomniac’s first label artist and an individual talent within his own right, Arty will bring a special glimmer to EDC’s stages this weekend.
Set Time: Saturday at ‘circuitGROUNDS’ from 1:30 – 2:30 AM
Ookay b2b Kennedy Jones
For those itching to quench a love of trap, catch Southern Californian Ookay and Kennedy Jones as they dive into a back to back set at this year’s EDC. Each takes control of taut, striking percussive elements layered between thick thumps of bass blossoms for a serious party-inducing set to come. In preparation, the two have already jumped ahead with a fresh one-hour ‘versus’ set on iHeartRadio. Just wait and see what they have coming in store, live, together, and at the cusp of both their teeming careers this weekend at EDC.
Set Time: Saturday at ‘bassPOD’ from 10:00 – 11:00 PM
Syn Cole
In dance music’s turbulent period of growth, those who voiced desire to step away from the all too common ‘big room’ formula but still crave the upbeat, pounding riffs should schedule in Syn Cole’s upcoming set. With a sharp ear for vocal melodies, the young producer marries the ability to engineer a tasteful mixture of progressive meets electro with an undeniable sprinkle of grooving funk influence. Whether it’s his original mixes like his recent “Bright Lights” and his famed “Miami 82” or his eclectic array of remixes, Syn Cole is a star in his own right. Catch him while you can.
Set Time: Saturday at ‘circuitGROUNDS’ from 7:30 – 9:00 PM
What So Not
Pasquale Rotella proclaimed that he was ready to step away from the superstar DJs and begin inviting fresh talents across a variety of genres to light up stages at EDC. Perhaps just one of the few to channel Rotella’s new direction, What So Not will join the festival this year at HARD’s cosmicMeadow Arena. Still hot from Skrillex’s Mothership Tour, it’s guaranteed that the one half Flume, one half Emoh Instead duo will prepare an explosive set for the Vegas crowd. Also coming out from time in the studio, What So Not has already promised that “so much [new] stuff” is coming. Don’t miss the opportunity to grab a new preview at EDC this weekend.
Set Time: Sunday at ‘cosmicMEADOW’ from 8:45 to 10:00 PM
Julio Bashmore
Just about the round the corner for the quickly forthcoming summer release of his debut album, Julio Bashmore’s pit stop at EDC will be a coveted preview of what the producer has in store. The last we heard from Bashmore was “Peppermint,” an addictive house beat with twists of funk and garage tones scattered between the lines, but with his background love of hip-hop and funk vibes and consistent evidence of his forward-thinking production abilities in combination with his approaching LP release, it would be a mistake to pass over the UK producer’s EDC set.
Set Time: Saturday at ‘cosmicMEADOW’ from 8:40 to 9:55 PM
Chromeo
As one of the few live acts to grace EDC’s artist roster this year, Chromeo will bring a warmly welcomed blast of funky goodness this weekend. As a fusion of electronic music and live elements including vocals from Dave-1 and synthesizer tones from P-Thugg, the duo have already made an incredible impression both leading up to and following the release of their new album, White Women. Their appearance on Saturday’s stage will also be a family affair, as Dave-1’s brother A-Trak performs right before the duo take the cosmicMeadow HARD stage.
Set Time: Saturday at ‘cosmicMEADOW’ from 12:55 to 2:15 AM
I Am Legion
The birth of I Am Legion arose as a five-year project in the making between drum ‘n’ bass icons Noisia and the forceful bass cannon that is Foreign Beggars and has only continued to plow forward as a production collaboration to be reckoned with. Not for the faint of heart, I Am Legion first debuted in fall of 2013 with a heavy hand of hauntingly industrial strokes and metallic, dragging bass beats with interludes of hip-hop bars in between. Festival goers can expect I Am Legion to arrive at EDC with a dark, but masterfully produced set to welcome the final midnight stroke on Sunday.
Set Time: Sunday at ‘bassPOD’ from 11:00 to 12:00 AM
The Glitch Mob
We named them as an Act Not to Miss at Coachella, and the Los Angeles-based trio exceeded expectations with the reveal of The Blade, an industrial themed instrumental amalgamation of instruments, stage pieces, and customized software. Though The Blade will be absent this EDC, The Glitch Mob continues to push the boundaries of electronic music by channeling influences of grungy rock in combination with glitch step progressions and live elements while continuing to follow the early spring release of their sophomore LP, Love Death Immortality. Catch The Glitch Mob at EDC’s opening day for an unforgettable and one-of-a-kind showcase of talents.
Set Time: Friday at ‘kineticFIELD’ from 8:30 to 9:27 PM
Madeon
Dance music’s wonder child is Madeon, who at only 19 years old has demonstrated a talent and maturity far beyond his actual years. It has been quite a while since we’ve heard from the prodigy: The last we’ve received from the French producer was “Cut the Kid,” a melodic gem that was mysteriously release in late February. Now, in the midst of his own North American tour and following a short, but insightful discussion with MTV about his future desires for his sound and works, his appearance at EDC will be an appreciated return from the young producer’s recent release silence.
Set Time: Friday at ‘cosmicMEADOW’ from 3:30 to 4:30 AM