The Epic Return of HARD Summer to Los Angeles [Event Review]

HARD Summer and Insomniac Events made their triumphant return to town of Los Angeles this previous weekend. It was the primary full scale digital music pageant to be held within the metropolis in a decade; the primary since HARD Summer final occurred at LA State Historic Park in 2013.

The metropolis has been warming up for this; Kaskade and deadumau5 performed a full present on the Coliseum final December, and Insomniac has been internet hosting occasions at “The Torch”, the Coliseum’s northeast entrance. However, this was the primary multi-day pageant to be held on the Exposition Park grounds since EDC again in 2010. Overall, the weekend was an enormous success and is hopefully the runway for extra Los Angeles-based occasions. Since this was a very new setup, there’s quite a bit to get into.

The Festival Layout

HARD Summer has been on the acquainted NOS Events Center the previous two years, and it occupied the Fontana Speedway, three of the 4 years prior to that. Insomniac went completely enormous with the pageant structure for the return to Los Angeles. The HARD stage occupied your complete space behind each the Coliseum and the BMO Stadium, with MLK Blvd operating alongside the south finish of the pageant.

Headliners may stroll into each of the aforementioned venues and never solely simply entry the ground, however simply chill and sit within the bountiful grandstands that each stadiums offered. The HARD stage was the very first place headliners walked in and gaining entry to the Green (Coliseum), Purple (BMO Stadium) and Pink phases was tremendous simple. Getting from HARD to HARDer was somewhat bit of a stroll, nevertheless, nobody received misplaced right here. VIP headliners additionally received entry to an unimaginable air-conditioned space inside BMO. No bottlenecks, simple to transfer round, 9/10.

The Stages

It’s robust to evaluate the HARD stage to phases at festivals like EDC or Tomorrowland which all have very distinctive themes. Over the years, what’s made HARD distinctive is that it actually doesn’t have any sort of aesthetic, apart from yard summer season BBQ, nevertheless, that doesn’t imply that HARD doesn’t have spectacular manufacturing. In reality, the HARDer, Green and Purple phases all had mind-blowing manufacturing. The HARDer stage variety of resembled the Ultra Europe stage. The stage was divided into two horizontal rows of video panels extending outwards and curving inwards behind the DJ sales space. Rows of lights illuminated the columns in between the LED panels. Getting up shut, you bought completely misplaced within the stage design.

The Green stage contained in the Coliseum had a fully large scope. The stage featured a sq. video panel border extending out and getting greater in three completely different rounds of panels. Lasers and pyro made the stage come alive at night time, and being inside the huge Coliseum gave the Green stage a scope that the HARDer stage didn’t have.

Same for the Purple Stage contained in the BMO, which is a model new, world class stadium. The stage featured large diamond formed video boards protruding out into the gang. The important video board behind the stage showcased all of the insanity that was occurring. For Diplo b2b Blond:ish, they even had a basketball hoop arrange for every DJ to shoot free throws on while the opposite one spun. Maybe one of the best setups I’ve ever seen.

While the HARD stage was large, it lacked the grandness and creativity of the opposite phases. It was the identical trapezoidal design that’s featured every of the previous couple years at NOS. I really like the crimson and the added lasers have been a lot appreciated, however, at a stage the place the typical headliner was in all probability actually distant from the stage, it felt small. The sound was not impeccable both.

Metro got here in clutch

If you’re a veteran SoCal raver like me, you’re in all probability very conversant in that dreadful drive from LA to San Bernardino. It can method two hours, in case you’re like me, you’re staying at a Motel 6 or Comfort Inn someplace within the Inland Empire, it’s quite a bit to get on the market for a two or three day pageant. This yr it seems that native headliners overwhelmingly took benefit of public transportation and took the Metro to Downtown Los Angeles. For $3.50 a day you rode perhaps 30-45 minutes fear free to and from the venue. No trying to find parking, no costly rideshares; in case you didn’t take the Metro down to the pageant…properly, kudos to you for spending pointless cash. And, though it was sizzling in DTLA, low 90’s, it was nothing like San Bernardino, which skilled triple digit warmth each days of the weekend.

The Lineup

There’s by no means actually been a nasty HARD lineup, HARD has at all times been identified for having some of essentially the most eclectic and distinctive lineups throughout all festivals. There are at all times HARD stalwarts like Diplo, Skrillex, Dillon Francis, Flosstradamus, nevertheless, this yr, the pageant went in on distinctive b2bs and appealed to the older millennial in all of us. Kaskade b2b John Summit and Skrillex b2b Four Tet have been the headliners this yr. One distinction between HARD and different Insomniac festivals, finest imagine there’s a designated headliner.

Hip-hop was additionally properly represented with 21 Savage and Kid Cudi every taking up the Purple Stage. Early 2000s favorites Fat Joe and Ludacris additionally carried out. Ludacris’s efficiency was notable as he completely packed out the HARDer stage. Seemingly each millennial in Los Angeles was there. Disco was additionally strongly represented on the pageant with Yung Bae on the HARD stage and Jungle on the Purple stage. You by no means know who shall be headlining HARD, however you recognize it is going to at all times be good.

Areas the Could Use Some Improvement

Alright it’s come to that point the place I’ve to name some issues out. In this case, there have been solely two issues that stood out to me, however they stood out massive time. Obviously, there’s going to be rising pains with a brand new pageant location, however these want to be addressed.

First, the bottleneck on the entrance. While there was nothing incorrect with strolling down Bill Robertson Ln from the Metro cease, or wherever you might have parked, there have been mainly 2 VIP entrances and eight GA entrances to your complete pageant. That’s a fraction of what’s often out there at NOS Events Center or beforehand on the Fontana Speedway have been there have been a number of entrances. It was utterly unorganized moving into the venue and I’m certain a lot of individuals simply walked previous the hearty workers who have been wristbanding. Maybe open up extra entrances on MLK Blvd? But, there wants to be extra room for ingress and a extra orderly manner to get wristbanded.

Second, the VIP part on the HARDer stage. It’s robust to complain about any VIP space, in spite of everything, you’re there. But, in case you paid for HARD VIP and spent any respectable quantity of time on the HARDer stage, you have been vastly dissatisfied. The pool was small and crowded, and equally to the entrances there have been mainly six bars serving your complete VIP space; useless to say the strains weren’t precisely transferring easily. I perceive that house was restricted on the occasion, however the HARDer VIP part didn’t reside up to expectations.

That’s just about that on HARD Summer Los Angeles 2023. Despite a pair of missteps, the pageant was an amazing success. Fingers crossed that HARD maintains its dwelling right here in Los Angeles for the foreseeable future. Nothing has been introduced but, however keep tuned to Insomniac’s socials for future updates.