
This moment of Beyond was particularly memorable for my best friend and me because he showed me “Lean On” before it became popular. Here’s a clip I managed to get from the back of main stage: Showtek is a prominent figure in electro house, and I immediately recognized the booming bassline of “Booyah” from afar. We slept in, ate a solidly mediocre meal at Denny’s, and didn’t arrive at the festival grounds until around 5pm.Īmidst stuffing my face with an overpriced hotdog around 7pm, I realized Showtek was playing at main stage.
Beyond wonderland 2016 ticket full#
Calvin Harris may be overpaid for his performances, but damn was I reminded how he produces incredible music.Īfter a full day of dancing, jumping up and down, singing our hearts out, and yelling “THIS IS AMAZING,” my best friend and I were pretty tired to say the least.

Beyond wonderland 2016 ticket free#
My favorite moment in his performance was when he played “Under Control.” Hearing the first takeoff of the electropopish melody made me spread my arms out, close my eyes, and feel absolutely free (ironically, since the song is titled “Under Control”). Having listened to so much of Calvin Harris, I felt I could sing along to every lyric and headbang to every beat of all the songs he played (my neck definitely felt the consequences of that the following morning). By then, my phone had died, and honestly, it was probably a good thing because I was able to truly experience his entire performance. Last but not least was Calvin Harris, closing off the first night of Beyond. I felt electrified hearing the signature line “You blocked me on Facebook, and now you’re going to die,” followed by a massive drop in their hit song “Internet Friends.” They also played some other classics like “Centipede” and “Bonfire.” All in all, Knife Party threw a great show, and you could appreciate their performance even if you weren’t a dubstep fan. I have a special place in my heart for them because they were one of the first DJs I ever listened to (them, along with old-school Skrillex). Knife Party eventually came on, a prominent dubstep duo from Australia with an interesting, but distinctly unique style. My friend and I ended up leaving main stage halfway through their performance to take a break and grab something to eat. I felt wanting to hear more of their DJing skills and less of them speaking. They kept “talking” to us, and although this can be an effective way to engage with a crowd, it just seemed overdone in Yellow Claw’s case. Not because they didn’t put out great music, but rather because of their interaction with the audience. I’ll be honest and say I was a bit disappointed with their performance. The first big-name to come on that I was a fan of was Yellow Claw, an Amsterdam trio known for their mix of trap, hiphop, and hardstyle. Things didn’t start picking up until later in the evening when the sun started going down and more well-known DJs began performing. I took pictures of everything, we had a map out to figure out the layout of the entire place, and we couldn’t help but feel a little unaccustomed to the environment.

We were both new to this, so it was analogous to being tourists in San Francisco. The first day involved a lot of figuring-out. September 26th finally came and we left Berkeley to experience a weekend away in the fantastical world of Beyond Wonderland NorCal (the Shoreline Amphitheater and Grounds in Mountain View, CA).


We bought our tickets, arranged our Airbnb, and cried over our wallets, but we knew in our hearts that this was going to be worth it. I immediately told my best friend, and he got just as excited as I did when he saw the lineup. Calvin Harris? Knife Party? Yellow Claw? DJ Snake? Showtek? Tiesto? All in the same weekend and only an hour-and-a-half drive away? Of course I was going.
