Imagine Music Festival 2018 Review – An Aquatic Adventure
Photos by: Sasha Sol & Samantha Havens
Imagine Music Festival returned this year to the Atlanta Motor Speedway for a weekend of music, magic, and adventures. This year they celebrated their fifth-year anniversary with their biggest lineup yet. Here’s a taste of my aquatic fairytale experience.
Check out our reviews of Imagine Music Festival 2017 and 2016
Day One- Funky Friday
Today is the day to the start of a wondrous weekend! I can feel the happiness in the air as I set up my camp and look around at all the smiling faces. Everyone hugging, reuniting, laughing, smiling, and some people pre-gaming. I set up my camp and instantly became friends with my neighbors, exchanging camping supplies, beer, and stories of where we’re from. I can feel the excitement brewing inside.
Walking up to the festival entrance, my friends and I stop to take pictures in front of the famous Imagine sign. Imagining what could be inside waiting for us. A quick and speedy entrance to get inside and in less than ten minutes, we are IN! Time to frolic around being festival fairies.
Festival Food
First thing is first, food! Festival food is always the best food, and one of my all time favorites is Island Noodles. After devouring some vegan stir-fry noodles, it’s time to adventure. Dancing our way through the festival we find a group of people gathered around a pirate ship, and the curiosity starts to hit us, so we walk up to find out what all the jazz is about.
Festival Fashion Show
It’s a fashion show! An aquatic themed fashion show happening on a pirate ship, in the middle of a racetrack, can you Imagine? My friends and I sit around the runway admiring all of the beautiful designs from some of the most popular brands in the festival fashion world. The models come out dancing and hooping, along with giant LED robots dancing around the stage, leaving the audience wanting more. The Courtiers hosted the fashion show and after the show we got to talk to some of the models and see some of the designs up close. Leaving the pirate ship fashionably inspired we head over to the main stage.
The Glitch Mob
At the Oceania stage, the main stage, The Glitch Mob is on putting on a fantastic performance. The Oceania stage is breathtaking, such extraordinary details and production were put into this stage and the crowd of music lovers stands mesmerized under the lights. After The Glitch Mob, my crew and I decide to go ride WOLI, the wheel of lights and inspiration ferris-wheel. We talk to the pleasant man selling tickets and find out that the ferris-wheel actually packs up and travels around the country attending festivals, how cool. While riding the ferris-wheel we fall in love with the dazzling display of lights and lasers above the racetrack.
Noisia
We finish the night at the Disco Inferno stage with Noisia. Wow, what an incredible set! The diversity from drum and bass to electro-house to weird bass beats had my music organs exploding. I felt musical pleasure and was left begging for more.
Day Two- Sexy Saturday
Happy Nectar Day! Tonight, is the night with the best music lineup. Ranging from Bassnectar to Zhu to Green Velvet, time to party! But first, we need to cool off from all this heat, so we go to the Splash Pool.
The Splash Pool
Upon arriving to the Splash Pool, we are greeted by gypsy mermaids. Real life mermaids, so exotic. I strike my best pose and snap some epic pictures with these magical goddesses. Time to get wet and have some fun 😉
Beer Pong
After playing around and cooling off we decide to run the beer pong tables pool side. Such a cool setup with the beer tower a few steps away. Playing beer pong while listening to some funky beats with mermaids hanging out nearby is by far way cooler than any college beer pong I have ever played.
Night time falls and the crazy light shows start. We start dancing the night away starting with Liquid Stranger and Ivy Lab then heading over to Green Velvet for some techno vibes. The most anticipated sets of the night are almost here… Bassnectar and Zhu.
Bassnectar
The Bassnectar crowd is always massive and one of the wildest, but wonderful wild. As the set starts, the crowd goes from zero to one hundred really quick. It’s an exciting rollercoaster of emotions, taking you through a trip of highs and lows and periods of euphoria with feelings of absolute bliss. Turning around seeing the genuine happiness in everyone, watching everyone get down like nothing matters. That’s the feeling that these sets bring out in people and that is why Bassnectar has such a huge following.
Zhu
Time to switch it up to some sexy vibes with the majestic and mysterious producer of dance music, Zhu. The erotic feelings are in the air, creating a sea of sexual desire. A desire that is so deep, that you question how someone’s music can make you feel this way. Zhu’s music makes you feel ways you’ve never felt before, and it’s almost indescribable.
Day Three- Sunday Funday
Mimosas to start the final day of Imagine, followed by a delicious lunch to fuel us up. Ready to go, we hit the racetrack. The first set of the day on our is list is Yheti b2b Toadface. Walking up to the Amazonia Stage, we start to hear the brothers going at it. Yheti and Toadface are brothers and watching them on stage together brought me so much joy, seeing how happy siblings can be together doing something they love. Plus, the happiness their music brings to their fans is incredible. All types of different people came together for their set, yet all united by the music.
We danced the rest of the night away at Zeds Dead, Shpongle, and Kaskade. We ended the night with the funkiest of them all, Griz. Griz brought back old school classics into his set while giving them a modern jazz twist. What an amazing way to end the festival.
The Silent Disco
We don’t want it to be over yet, so we go to the Silent Disco. Seeing people dance in complete silence is always a trip. But the best part is switching the different stations on your headphones and looking around to see who is listening to which station based on the color of their headphones.
Frick Frack Black Jack
The last destination of the night is Frick Frack Black Jack. This art installation is gambling paradise, where you can bet anything you want except money. I bet some of my festival treasures and almost won a Dr. Doom doll until I lost it all to the house, but then I won a Queen’s crown a few rounds later and left a winner.
Final Recap
Imagine Music Festival is an aquatic fairytale brought to life. With out of this world production, a super stacked lineup of artists, and tons of extra activities to engage in over the weekend. The festival does a great job at keeping everyone safe and hydrated with an Imagine team going around handing out water throughout the entire weekend. The lines to get in everyday went very quick and I never felt like I had to wait long for anything. I am extremely impressed by all the commitment and dedication the festival takes in creating an excellent experience for attendees.
Imagine Music Festival 2019
Imagine Music Festival will be returning in 2019 over the weekend of September 20-22 to the Atlanta Motor Speedway. Get your tickets here now! Stay on the lookout for more announcements about Imagine Music Festival 2019 by following their Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. See you in 2019!