That's a summary of 2023. sleeplessthe main promoter of raves on the west coast of North America, has just completed its 30th anniversary with New Year countdown in it NOS Event Center in San Bernardino. With incredible performances by pot, Oliver heldnes, kayzo, Eli Brownhe Heavy smokers, deadmau5, Porter Robinson and many more; all within the theme of an imminent alien invasion. This year's countdown just got even bigger and better, as Insomniac always seems to do.
As usual, Countdown was held at the NOS Events Center in San Bernardino, so if you've been to another Insomniac festival there, it's a pretty easy venue to navigate. The headliners were greeted with a photo op featuring invaders Lazer Rayz and the Ravebots from last year's Countdown. Insomniac is back again with a super immersive environment featuring all sorts of alien performers, flying saucers, and a general feeling like you're in the Twilight Zone. Of course, it's all fun, the main danger is extraterrestrial explorations.
The sets and production were bigger than ever. The main stage of Countdown is the Mothership and is a gigantic flying saucer-shaped screen equipped with a mind-boggling amount of lasers and pyrotechnic stacks at the bottom of the stage. While it would be cool if there was a giant alien backstage, like Grimm in Escape, there's something to be said for simply blowing away the crowd with the maximum amount of lighting, color, and lasers.
The second stage was Nebula and was essentially a mini version of Mothership. The screen on stage was more trapezoidal, but it was the same concept, complete with lasers and pyrotechnics. The third stage was Area 51, which hosted Bassrush over the weekend. Head bangers were treated to a sick stage design with capsule-shaped screens with aliens floating in suspension beamed onto the stage.
One major change from Escape was that the Factory 93/Insomniac Records Twilight Zone stage (not the show) was moved inside one of the hangars near the southern part of the NOS Center. Not only were the vibes optimal, but a covered stage is very welcome when the weather is colder. (Side note: This was the best weather I've experienced on Countdown for as long as I can remember. See last year's recap.) A fifth stage, Galactik Gate, was also added. It was an open-air stage just south of the lagoon, where the Psycho Circus for Escape is usually located. It hosted Space Yacht and Lost in Dreams over the weekend. While I couldn't hear a set at this time, it seemed to play every time I passed by.
As always, the lineup was absolutely packed. And heading into 2024, it seemed like every artist was embracing hard techno and hard dance in general. For Saturday I decided that I wanted to explore as many venues as I could and that I would try to see some artists whose sets I don't usually see. I arrived just in time to dieHe was at Mothership and met a friend, and just like that, the weekend was over! Morten launched into several of his Future Rave hits and brought incredible energy.
After that, I knew I had to play some techno, so I headed to the Twilight Zone and listened to some Layton GiordaniReady. As I mentioned before, the indoor stage was a very nice change of pace, and it got warm too! After that I headed back to the mothership to Mau P.Ready. It's hard to believe that it's been a year since the Dutch producer burst onto the scene with “Drugs from Amsterdam.” A year later, his presentation was filled with other hits like “That Bounce” and “Metro.”
Next, Alison Wonderland took the stage, and this is where hard techno really took over. He started out with some of his old school trap styles and his psychedelic imagery was trippy. However, eventually, his hard techno beats took over. We expect more of this from Alison in 2024.
I headed to the Nebula stage to 4B x JSTJR and released a relentless set full of hard techno. The intro was actually JSTJR's newly released single, “Bassline.” These two understood the task and delivered perhaps the most energetic set of the weekend.
Although that honor might go to the man who followed them onto the Nebula stage, Kayzo. Kayzo absolutely killed it with an impressive and innovative set of hard dance music. This man left it all, heavy dubstep, hardstyle, hard techno, hardcore, Kayzo offered an absolute masterclass.
By day 2, I practically planted myself on the main stage, the lineup was too tight. SOFI TUKKER started the night on the right foot and they were incredible. They basically went from their hit with John Summit “Sun Came Up” to blistering techno, while their backup dancers provided the energy. This was the perfect setting to start New Year's Eve.
One of the quirks of Countdown is the sometimes strange scheduling, as top-tier artists are likely performing at multiple shows. That's why the Chainsmokers took the stage at 6:40 pm and filled the Mothership to capacity. After brushing their hair, Drew and Alex, unchanged, took the stage and wowed the crowd with a set that incorporated all of their classic hits like “Don't Let Me Down,” “Paris,” “Closer,” and “Something.” “Just.” Like This” with a variety of releases and combinations from across the spectrum. Techno, psy-trance, drum & bass, Alex & Drew released it all. Oh, and of course, the lasers.
After that, Oliver Heldens took the stage and wowed the crowd with a mix of some Oliver Heldens classics, some new Hi-Lo tracks, and everything else Oliver always incorporates into his sets. His remixes of “Push Up” and “Let's Get Physical” by Dua Lipa were also highlighted. Finally, deadmau5 took to the main stage and kept the good times going. Joel opened things up with some dark techno, but eventually started mixing in all the deadmau5 classics, from classics like “Some Chords,” “Channel 43,” “The Veldt,” and of course “Ghosts N' Stuff.” .
I finally made it off the main stage to see APASHE's set at Area 51 and boy, did the classically trained trap lord not disappoint. The Belgian-Canadian producer showed why his blend of classical and electronic music is at the forefront. It's all the energy of a dubstep set with the precise musicality and instrumentation of John Williams' score. 10/10 recommend checking out APAHE if you visit your city.
From there, there was no doubt where he was going to sound in 2024. On the Mothership stage with Porter Robinson. This was Porter's first appearance on Countdown since the 2019 edition closed. The fan favorite did not disappoint, releasing some of his classics from his Worlds stint, including “Easy” and “Language” at midnight. After that, Porter got emotional with some hard dance tunes. At one point, he told the crowd, “I know you like 'Shelter' but we have 10 more minutes of rawstyle before that.” What a way to ring in the New Year.
There you have it, Insomniac continues to dominate. Even with no shortage of options on one of the biggest party nights of the year, Insomniac managed to put together one of the most impressive lineups of any festival held this weekend. Countdown 2023 was business as usual for Insomniac. I wouldn't expect anything less than excellence in live events in 2024. Beyond Wonderland will return to the NOS Events Center in March, and Tickets are also available for EDC Las Vegas. In May. Follow Insomniac's social media channels for updates on festivals in Southern California.
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