Whirlwind weekend covering music festivals. Saturday,
Desert Daze -- the anti-
Coachella in sweltering Mecca, California (
here is my review amidst the 100 degree dust-storm). Yesterday,
Sun God -- UCSD's mini-
Coachella a world away in downright chilly La Jolla, California (and featuring a Ferris wheel, just like its much bigger brother).
Sun God is impressive -- student organized, student run. Virtually only open to UCSD students (as part of their student services fees -- no separate purchase required) -- about 20,000 of them (I attended as an official member of the press). In a bold move (surprising to me given generally conservative college administrations), the festival featured Snoop Dogg as the headliner -- and Snoop did not disappoint. Not your usual Snoop show to be sure, as the wafting of smoke was minimized by some of the tightest festival security I have ever seen. OK Go (pictured to the left) also stood out amidst the festive, carnival-like atmosphere where EDM was also minimized this year (certainly in an attempt to rein in the general EDM "state of mind" -- which is frequently altered as part of the genre's definition). Sure, the festival this year was held on a Sunday -- and sure it ended just after 8 pm (in further nods to an increasing conservatism). But, it
was held. THAT is what matters. Students look forward to it all year. And,
Sun God organizers pulled off this mini-major once again-- no small feat given myriad challenges in an official school sponsored event.
Sun God is impressive -- student organized, student run. Virtually only open to UCSD students (as part of their student services fees -- no separate purchase required) -- about 20,000 of them (I attended as an official member of the press). In a bold move (surprising to me given generally conservative college administrations), the festival featured Snoop Dogg as the headliner -- and Snoop did not disappoint. Not your usual Snoop show to be sure, as the wafting of smoke was minimized by some of the tightest festival security I have ever seen. OK Go (pictured to the left) also stood out amidst the festive, carnival-like atmosphere where EDM was also minimized this year (certainly in an attempt to rein in the general EDM "state of mind" -- which is frequently altered as part of the genre's definition). Sure, the festival this year was held on a Sunday -- and sure it ended just after 8 pm (in further nods to an increasing conservatism). But, it was held. THAT is what matters. Students look forward to it all year. And, Sun God organizers pulled off this mini-major once again-- no small feat given myriad challenges in an official school sponsored event.
