I'm in the midst of day 2 of what will presumably be a 3 day hangover. I treated my body like a 10 dollar whore all weekend and now that I have stopped putting controlled substances in myself, key components of my body are shutting down. I spent my Labor Day laboring in pain as debilitating stomach aches claimed any attempt to relax. It's ok though, it was all worth it. 3 years from now I won't remember how terrible my hangover/withdrawal symptoms were, I'll simply remember the awesome times I had with awesome people.
So what was so great about this weekend? North Coast is the real deal. The North Coast Music Festival (NCMF) is a perfect example of how music promoters have adapted to a change in musical tastes. 3 years ago when I first heard of the NCMF it was a shitty festival no one really cared about, living in the shadow of Lollapalooza which is just a month earlier. The line up consisted of aspiring dj's, indie rock bands and tier 2 rappers. Groupon would practically give tickets away to get people to go and I would typically travel somewhere for Labor Day weekend, most likely a lake.
In 2 years NCMF has transformed into arguably the most enjoyable summer festival in Chicago. Sure Lollapalooza still has 200,000 people flood Grant park each year but everything that sucks about Lollapalooza seems to be lost at North Coast, a smaller more intimate version of what has become an increasingly electronic music festival. What are the problems with Lolla? $300 tickets, stages miles apart and heat in the upper 90's.
Conversely, I got to North Coast about 6pm both Friday and Sunday. Friday I paid $30 for a ticket, Sunday I jumped the fence, because I am still a bad ass. Several $6 beers later I had a somewhat reasonable weekend. I was able to see about 8 acts and I raged my face off. What happened after 10 pm each night was a total black out but I know for a fact that I spent one night sleeping outside my old place in Chicago. Friday I believe I went to Gamekeepers, not sure what happened on Sunday, it was a certified bender.
Pretty Lights, Steve Aoki, Axwell, Mord Fustang, Paul Oakenfold, Steve Angello all gave me an hour of their best most rave-worthy hits and my body still hasn't correctly re-adjusted to a normal equilibrium, I expect bass drop and progressive chords to surround my daily life. What this weekend really opened my eyes up to though was the type of person is attending these festivals. It's funny there has long been a big gap in the level of raging between men and women.
I don't see it anymore.
I think maybe even 5 years ago it was viewed as trashy for a girl to get super wasted and go to a show like this. Since the rise of this magical pill called Molly that gap has shrank considerably. Bombs, rolls, ex, whatever you want to call them, I'm fairly confident that at least 40% of the crowd there was on some type of hallucinogen or upper....and that doesn't even take into account other psychadelics or even pot.
Look, I don't advocate drug use. Anyone that wants to get theirs, I will never judge, but it is kind of mind blowing how popular it has become amongst a generation. Especially interesting is the rise amongst women. I know plenty of people who would maybe get drunk and occasionally get high but that's it. I think that's where most rational people draw the line. The prospect of jamming something up your nose is after all, gross. But now these magical pills that make you feel good, see vibrant colors, enhance a musical experience, well it's taken over the 20something crowd. For every beer I saw at Union Park I saw 10 bottles of water, proving kids aren't even getting drunk anymore, they're just trying to get a roll going and have a good time. I see a decreased presence of violence, I see an increase in general good will amongst strangers. Even if you checked your Instagram stream you could feel the good vibes, these shows are sweet.
Not trying to be preachy, just wanted to point out a trend I saw. Will EDM be the next disco? Is the bubble going to pop? I'm starting to think maybe not. The people that go to these shows really love it. I was a non-believer. I used to be the guy complaining about the tracks sounding like Transformer battles. But now I get it, it's fun to take your shirt off, get sweaty and dance around with your friends.
Chicago never ceases to amaze, I will not soon forget the Labor Day weekend of 2012. Well I've already forgotten a big chunk of it, but I managed not to lose my phone or wallet and I'm going to make it back to LA with almost all of the clothes that I packed. Now I think I'm going to take a nice long walk along the Lake front before my flight home tomorrow morning and say one last farewell to the midwest summer.
No comments:
Post a Comment