A Weekend You Could Never imagine
Imagine Music Festival 2017 Review
For its fourth annual run, Imagine Music Festival (IMF), presented by IRIS, took place this year from September 22nd through September 24th at the Atlanta Motor Speedway in Atlanta, Georgia. Previously held at Atlanta’s Historic Fourth Ward Park, the new venue has given IMF the ability to host 60,000 plus attendees. This 3-day camping aquatic fairytale is actually one of the country’s last remaining independent festivals. Imagine has stayed true to being an all-encompassing, 360-degree sensory experience that beautifully blends music, circus acts, dancers, live art, workshops, yoga and more. Welcoming various electronic music fans from across the country, Imagine festival transformed the 887 acres into a home for all the benevolent mermaids and merman’s to get lost in the city of Imaginarium. Attendees were welcomed to the opportunity to wander through fantastic atmospheres, creating a weekend they’d never forget.
It’s not a surprise that Imagine Music Festival has been voted as Top 30 festival in the world by Fest300, and Top Ten Emerging Music Festivals by USA Today. The feel of an independent production always hits home.
Day 1 –
Upon arriving on Day 1, it was almost like dipping your toes into the ocean to test the temperature. Getting a feel for all the best spots at every stage, exploring the activities and carnival rides, plus can’t forget the food trucks. The only downside was that Friday only had four of the six stages open but people came in fully squaded with some of the most creative totems I’ve seen yet. My favorite was this long chain of maybe 20 huge circular balloons tied to each other reaching the sky to the point that you couldn’t even tell where it ended. The best part, it ended up being tied to one of two girls backpacks and as she walked she’d be pulled up slightly with every step. Aside from a magical surrounding, the best set of the night was hands down MK at the Oceania Stage. Super groovy and made everyone’s feet stomp when he played a possibly unreleased Dirtybird track that goes like this: “moving up and down, side to side, like a roller coaster…”, which was first internationally heard by Claude Vonstroke as the opening song for his Tomorrowland set this year and people haven’t stopped talking about it since. Other great acts included NGHTMRE, Datsik, and The Funk Hunters. Most of the stages were filled with dubstep and bassy artists playing on with captivating cirque style acts & performances to keep the whimsical vibe live for a very successful first day. The anticipation for Day 2 was boiling as I made my way out of the festival grounds after Tiesto’s upbeat closing set. So ready for the next two days.
Day 2 –
Waking up to the excitement for one my most anticipated sets of the weekend, Chris Lake, got me jumping into line early. Walking into the festival grounds felt slightly different since a whole new side was opened up for the Amazonia Stage and Aeria Stage. Walking down the Motor Speedway bleachers straight into the Disco Inferno Stage for a delicious four and a half hour back to back deep-house-a-thon with DJs, Chris Lake, Nora En Pure, Claptone, and Gorgon City, I was in complete musical bliss. There were amazing floating jellyfish totems everywhere and the really good ones were lit up with colorful LEDs. People in costumes put on a show for the crowd, groups of friends held each other with love and strangers nodded to the beat together. The night ended off with the decision between two musical legends, Deadmau5 and Pretty Lights. We were pleased to see Deadmau5 without the mouse head this time and brought us a surprisingly heavy techno set. Pretty Lights had a special live set and a perfect final ending to the evening.
Day 3 –
Being a fan of Dirtybird Records since early 2013, Day 3 was the dream day. Disco inferno would have a Dirtybird Takeover for the entire evening to close with a final set by the Claudefather himself. The stage was definitely one of my favorites along with Oceania, which had the most amazing lasers I have ever seen. With fire activations and fire dancers surrounding the stage, Imagine definitely brought up the heat with B2B performances by Ciszak, Dateless, Will Clark, and Shiba San. We heard a dope rework of a “Cash Me Ouside” remix, a disgusting remix of Bad and Boujie, and a staircase of mixing genius by CVS. It was the most heartwarming of days and the night was finally cooler than most as the icing on the cake.
As the festival came to an end, we were happy to keep the party going at the campground’s, Silent Disco before our legs finally gave out. It was the perfect decompression to a glorious day. Imagine Music Festival has definitely proven its value. Along with the musical experience, the days were filled with so much fun in the sun with yoga classes, creative workshops, arts & crafts, big splash pool and the best carnival rides. Festivalgoers were floating on flamingoes, playing beer pong, hamster ball fighting and anything you could think of. One thing for certain, it was a hell of a good time. If Imagine Music Festival continues to bring a lineup like this one, there are no limits. I’m excited to see what the 2018 announcement has in store.
But don’t start your festival blues just yet. The magic is far from over as IMF expresses their gratitude for another year with a customer appreciation sale for their imaginers. Tickets are only $99 for a limited time only. If you had just as an incredible experience as I did, make sure you don’t miss their 5-year anniversary in 2018. Snag your tickets HERE.