Coachella: EDM Acts to Catch at Weekend 2
Besides Justin Bieber getting kicked out of Coachella, Madonna kissing Drake, and basically ½ of the festival being purely celebrities, a few major EDM artists shut down the festival during weekend one and really brought the heat to the desert. I wrote a piece early regarding the best acts to see at Coachella Weekend 1 before it happened and now that it has come and passed it is time to breakdown the best EDM acts at the festival
These are the Top EDM Acts from Coachella and I rated them by crowd involvement, guest appearances, new music, and visuals to give an overall gage as to who was the best of the best at Coachella Weekend 1. But for starters, let me begin with some honorable mentions who I just couldn’t squeeze into the Top 5 but who really did an incredible job at Coachella!
Honorable Mentions
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Flosstradamus: One of the the hardest EDM acts to follow up at any event, Flosstradamus knows how to absolutely make a crowd go nuts. With their mixture of heavy bass, trap, and hip hop they can really be versatile with their sets and Coachella was no different. Watching them live you can just see the true crowd engagement and how rowdy they got once Flosstradamus started. Kudos Flosstradamus, stay flossy.
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Ratatat: We haven’t heard much from Ratatat in quite some time but they came to Coachella ready to bring something special to the stage. With incredible visuals and just an overall sound that we have truly missed, that funky electronic vibe, they made us fall in love with them all over again. On top of that, they dropped a brand new song called “Cream on Chrome” and it is absolutely divine. Can listen to it via YouTube or Spotify and buy it on iTunes.
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Axwell Ʌ Ingrosso: Now I know I said earlier they were a must see, but their show did not beat out my top 5. HOWEVER, it is Axwell Ʌ Ingrosso, the men that brought you Swedish House Mafia, and they did not disappoint for their first Coachella performance together. The show was filled with incredible visuals and pyrotechnics and really gave us feels and memories of SHM. It was an incredible show but just not enough to crack my top 5.
Top 5 EDM Acts at Coachella
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Kaskade: Now, I will be the first to admit it but I LOVE KASKADE & HE MAY BE MY FAVORITE DJ! Easily Top 3, so I may be a little bias, however the stats and the news regarding his set back him being the #1 EDM act at Coachella Weekend 1. Playing on Sunday evening right at sundown, he was one of the few EDM acts to bless the mainstage and he did not disappoint. He had a new visual light show and stage setup that was absolutely mind blowing and probably “trippy” to see in person. He may have amassed one of the largest crowds ever at Coachella and it looked like the whole festival was there watching his set. He played his KASKADE classics that we’ve heard over the years but not only that he dropped two new tracks yet to be heard, one was a collab with Galantis by the name of “Mercy” and then he closed his whole Coachella set with an original and future classic by the name of “Don’t Stop” which also features his vocals on it as well. Overall, it may be his best set yet at a festival and it makes me really just want to ditch all responsibilities this weekend and go to Coachella Weekend 2, just for KASKADE! The man is a legend!
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Porter Robinson: After his successful release of his album Worlds, he really changed his whole approach to EDM. To me he pulled a Kanye West. Kanye West use to be straight hip hop/soul hip hop and then his album 808s & Heartbreaks came out and he started a movement and I believe Porter Robinson did the exact same thing with this album. I saw him live at The Warfield in SF and he was big house anthems and straight djing but now his sets are live and full of a magical feels. His performance at Coachella was nothing different. Bringing his Worlds Live Show to the desert he really showed that he is committed and lives and dies for his new sound. He really put on a special performance and even surprised the Chella-ers with a new remix of NERO’s “The Thrill” which was just released on his Soundcloud yesterday. If you watch the live stream of Porter’s show, when that song drops the crowd just goes nuts and immediately falls in love! You may not love Porter Robinson but you have to respect what he is doing, daring to try something new.
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Madeon: This kid is younger than me, and he is selling out shows, working on music with some of the biggest names and basically making the crowd go nuts at Coachella. Madeon’s set to me, may have had some of the best crowd engagement as I watched the live stream. They seemed truly engaged and truly in love with what he was doing. Playing live from his beat pads, Madeon dropped all of his original stuff before Adventure and then of course everything on Adventure and the crowd just loved it! This kid is so young and just doing an incredible job at marketing himself in the right direction and making music that gives people something to feel and listen, rather than just listen.
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Deorro: Pandas everywhere! It was basically like a zoo at Deorro’s Coachella set and man was it a special one. With a special performance with Travis Barker included and an orchestra of pandas played alongside him, he destroyed Coachella and his set was one to remember. Not only did this DJ play at Coachella, he helped host a pool party at the LED Dayclub which was just as special as his set with the intimacy of a pool party. But his Coachella set was the exact opposite as it was rowdy, wild, nuts and loud. Deorro was all in Coachella’s face and they obviously didn’t mind it! Honestly, they probably preferred it! There is a reason why Steve Aoki said he learned so much about producing from Deorro, it is because the man is an incredible DJ and makes incredible rage music, and the people of Coachella absolutely loved it. Who doesn’t love pandas?
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ODESZA: The rising duo is truly rising, and fast. ODESZA’s music has become an absolute favorite of many and universally loved. So if you were at Coachella and missed them, I apologize, because their set was magical and ODESZA-esq. Their unique sound was accompanied by the USC Marching Band and it really made for a special set. They also dropped a massive new single which has yet to be named but it went as hard as anyone else’s new tracks and it just goes to show ODESZA is gearing up for some new music aka new album! I saw them live at SNOWGLOBE 2014 and it will be an experience I will forever remember, I know the people who saw them at Coachella felt the exact same way about that set.
I can only imagine what these artists have in store for Coachella Weekend 2 - I hope all you Coachella goers are ready for some fun this weekend!
WATCH OFFICIAL LIVE STREAM HERE
AUTHOR CREDIT: JOSEPH LOZOYA