The city was bustling with foot traffic from a plethora of events happening over the weekend, but only Beyond Wonderland was worth going to. The long march towards the venue was all worth it once welcomed at the colourful gates. The Alice in Wonderland theme is always enjoyable to take part in. The first day was perfect to walk around and get the lay of the land to locate all 4 stages. Across the festival grounds were pop-up art installations surrounding carnival rides, along with actors walking around dressed up as characters from the novel to take photos with. More than a dozen attendees dressed as the Mad Hatter, but not enough dressed as the main character, Alice or the villainous Red Queen. 

Speaking of the Red Queen, the Queen’s Domain stage was the biggest setting fit for royalty. It only made sense that DJ Snake got it rocking with the successful run recently. DJ Snake got the packed crowd hyped by opening with his remix of ISOxo “F**k The Speakers Up”. The loud sirens ignited the fans’ excitement immediately. He kept the party going with his iconic Lil Jon collaboration track, “Turn Down For What,” followed by “Lean On” with Major Lazer. DJ Snake filtered out the chorus vocals of MØ, transitioning into UK drum and bass. He then requested the audience to turn on their phones’ flashlights to light up the scene for throwback tunes “Middle” and “You Know You Like It”. DJ Snake proceeded to turn up the heat with reggaeton jams with Daddy Yankee’s “Gasolina” and his Latin America track “Taki Taki”. 

At the Mad Hatter’s Castle stage, many gathered, eager to see Rebecca Black’s DJ set. The pop singer has come a long way since her “Friday” debut. A light drizzle began to pour during her set, which only awakened the crowd’s enthusiasm for her set even more. She started with “Sugar Water Cyanide” before leaning into more provocative techno and house music with explicit lyrics. She then went for more pop playing hits like Rihanna’s “Rude Boy” and Black Eyed Peas “Fergalicious”. She even played a remix of the iPhone ringtone, telling the crow it was their exes calling. Many were pleasantly surprised by her skills behind the decks, and it was great to see her mastering different elements in music.

The Caterpillar Garden tent is where all the House music fans camped and grooved for the weekend. One of the biggest names of the event was Chicago legend, Green Velvet. The energy in the tent was immaculate as fans waited to welcome Green Velvet back home. Once on stage, he wasted little time getting the mood right with speakers so loud you could feel the bass in your chest and cause your ears to ring.

The atmosphere was on point as actors on stilts danced by interacting with the front row, and a sea of bubbles fell from the ceiling. Green Velvet played unique blends of Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” and Sharam’s “PATT,” a modern mix of Eddie Murphy’s 80’s classic “Party All The Time”. Of course, it was only right for him to play “Percolator” and “Brighter Days,” two tracks that are synonymous with Chicago house music and pretty much the city’s anthem in the summer.

Alan Walker arrived to the Queen’s Domain stage to a huge ovation. The Norwegian DJ made sure to give the devoted audience by playing favourites “The Spectre” with vibrant aesthetics. He hit people in their feelings with “On My Way” and “Alone” before ending his set with the epic track, “Faded”. Fans stayed at the Queens Domain stage and rallied for Tiësto to close out the weekend, who started the set with his newest single, “Don’t Lose Your Head”. From there, he continued mixing trance with heavy bass with beautiful visuals and pyro that left fans in awe.

Beyond Wonderland Chicago is always a fantastic weekend to experience music. Even with past events getting rained out, fans continue to support the festival because we desperately need more EDM events at the beginning of summer. Since bringing the celebration to the Windy City in 2024, the festival has grown as a destination, earning the name of Insomniac’s marquee title.

Insomniac has shown its commitment to continue to expand the event by recently announcing the fest will be moving location to Chicagoland Speedway and will be a 4-day event starting in 2027! This will turn the event into a camping festival, something many have wanted to experience. While the event is a year away, we here at Quip can only imagine how big the folks of Insomniac plan to go with art installations and the lineup for the new location.

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The festival is well known for having a friendly, inclusive atmosphere, so much so that people board the boat with the full intention to reunite with their ‘Groove Cruise Family’ members, aka #GCFam, from previous years.

“This is our 10th GC,” a festival attendee shared holding up both of her hands to visualize the 10, “we do both, this one and Miami”.

The festival is unlike anything you might experience. GC takes over the entire cruise ship (Norwegian Jewel this time) transforming it into a floating 24/7 festival city. It is easy to get lost early on, but once you figure out how to navigate this beast of a boat it turns into a familiar neighborhood. The experience, however, is not always all smooth sailing. In addition to the general lack of clarity in communication (around boarding and programming), there was a range of mixed issues around scheduling, pricing of things, WiFi issues, and general logistical mishaps, which I suppose are common at most large festivals. But we are at sea and it takes a lot of people to keep this festival moving. It is what it is, you get what you get. If you pay extra you will naturally get more.

The stay at this floating hotel is quite pleasant. The rooms are newly renovated and cozy. There is a wide range of dining options available (included and extra), an entire ‘strip of bars’ (aka Bar City), an actual casino, and an elaborate theatre. Music naturally happens everywhere. The top-deck tennis court was converted to the After Hours where you would hear a mix of DJs greeting the sun every morning. Smaller stages were scattered all across the boat while main events took place on the pool deck during the day and in the theatre for evening headliners. 

Many performances took place on the pool deck but non were as entertaining as Green Velvet’s Saturday afternoon set. Veteran house DJ and producer Curtis Alan Jones came with friends, and friends of friends were also invited. A tight squad of people was vibing behind Curtis while a mixed couple of dancers would step out to the front of the stage showcasing their moves. For two full hours, we danced to Green Velvets’ upbeat portfolio of tracks while masses of costumed people were causing a small fun-riot on stage. Eventually, even the stage security gave up, everyone was welcomed up.

The daytime stage also featured Charlie Duncker, better known by his stage name Acraze, for an upbeat hour-long set featuring his hottest singles, remixes, and throwbacks like Alice Deejay’s “Better Off Alone”. San Diego’s Casmalia played a handful of sets throughout the weekend showcasing her melodic blend of house, tech house, and disco infusions. In a similar manner, Chicago’s NEZ (Chuck Roberts) also played a number of sets sharing his authentic Chicago sound – a bit of classic house, a bit of ghetto house, and a dash of rap. A fun new discovery for this team was DJ Susan whose magnetic personality, giant smile, and infectious beats stole the show on Thursday afternoon.

“We are at sea!” ~ DJ Susan

For most of the weekend, the Bar City stage was taken over by the Martian Circus, an art collective offering an immersive ‘5D’ experience. The stage was decorated floor to ceiling with glow-in-the-dark art installations, an on-site shop, and naturally a very colourful stage. Nearly every night people gathered here for vibrant, occasionally psychedelic performances by a multi-instrumental cosmic soul house band. For those looking for a more personal experience, however, there was also a silent disco, curated by San Francisco’s Rizzo + Vassalo. Between the two channels, participants got quite a range of music which was nice, but the true charm of a silent disco is seeing the people dance to their own beat in a dark quiet room.

On Friday we reached Cabo San Lucas. A short boat trip followed by a bus ride took us to ME Cabo for a day-long pool party. A mix of DJs took over the rooftop bar for a more intimate party while the main pool raged all day to the sounds of Ekonovah (aka Stephen Scotti), Sam Wolfe, Scooter & Lavelle, Gem & Tauri, and the headlining performance by Blond:ish. Here the DJ booth was nested in an elevated hut, much like a bird’s nest overlooking the ocean and our floating home from a distance. Fans and friends took refuge in the surrounding area, tanning, dancing, soaking in the pool, indulging in hotel cuisine.

Ekonovah’s early set was perfectly fitting to the time and place – upbeat, melodic, and transformative in a way. Scotti even tried a few new tracks with the attendees but more on that later (interview coming soon). Sam Wolfe, who was up next, took things up a notch (or two) with his deeper and darker techno beats. But in time Blond:ish stepped up and balanced it all out by playing her catchy original tracks (ie. “Sete”) and dance floor favourites like Volaris’ “Slow Motion” and Disclosure’s “You & Me”. As the sun went down the fired-up entertainment began, and I mean it literally. There was fire in the pool, people in the air, and fireworks shooting out of the Norwegian Jewel. Oh, so many fireworks you could see them on the other side of the bay.

A range of theme nights took over the Atrium stage throughout the week including a full night of old school hip hop DJ sets by the likes of DJ Smiles, Discopill, Chris Duano, and a 3-hour set by Scooter. Sunday’s highlight event was the Deep House Brunch party at the back of the ship, set in the shade of a crochet curtain forest. A mix of old-school and Chicago house was a very welcome change on this final day of the cruise. This set was properly followed by the highly anticipated performance from Said The Sky.

One of the perks of staying on the ship with the artists is that the said artists are there, just wondering about the boat. Embracing this cohabitation the festival team curated a wide range of experiences inviting fans and artists to play and eat together. A quick sign-up form or a visit to the captain’s desk (festival support) allowed attendees to sign up for up to 3 artist-hosted activities and as many dinners as they want.

Having chatted with Acraze pre-event we decided to join him for a guided wine tasting. It was an hour filled with jokes and loose wine education. On a separate night, a small group of friends and fans gathered for a teppanyaki dinner with MitiS who also hosted a pub crawl that turned into an impromptu DJ set. And for something more different,  Kristina Sky brought her infamous ‘Champagne and Pizza’ party to the arcade for a short yet sweet casual hangout. It is worth mentioning though that some of these activities come at an additional cost which was not disclosed in any manner prior to the event’s end.

All in all, Groove Cruise is a truly immersive festival experience. A unique way to travel and a unique place to dance. It is also an excellent place to make friends with attendees and artists alike.

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Last weekend, Dreams Festival (formally known as “Digital Dreams”) took over Echo Beach for its fifth year. The festival included three different stages, top artists from around the globe, and a two day dance experience for Toronto’s biggest electronic music fans. With Friday headliners MK, Above and Beyond, and Andy C at the main stage and fan favourites Green Velvet and Thomas Jack at the Waterfront stage, vibes were positive, drinks were flowing, and the weather was, well, unpredictable.

One of the first acts worth noting, What so Not, came on late afternoon on the main stage. This Australian producer has seen a lot of success in the past few years, collaborating with artists such as R.L Grime, Major Lazer, and Action Bronson. What so Not shared a new song with the crowd, played a remix of Stranger Things and then slowly drifted into his more iconic dance tracks that were very much hip-hop influenced. The crowd was trickling in at this point but the weather was unfortunately going from bad to worse.

Just as the long-time artist and former Swedish House Mafia member Steve Angello took the Echo Beach stage, the rain started to pour forcing everyone to take shelter (if they could). Huddling under a tree by the stage, we watched Angello from a distance while quickly getting soaked to the bone. Like any artist would, Angello played on and did his best to distract the audience from the brewing storm.

We made our way to the Waterfront Stage to see Australian tropical house DJ Thomas Jack. The stage was set up into a tropical rainforest (how appropriate) and the sun started to come out as he began to play. It was an intimate setting and his set list was quite different from what we were used to. It seems that Jack is trying to become a little more hard-core with his music then his usual tropical, free-spirited self. It was a refreshing change which we were interested to hear more of, but as everyone was getting ready to dance the night away, Jack got a message from the event organizers that the entire festival had to take cover in the Molson Amphitheatre because we were due to get a massive thunderstorm.

Obviously, this was not the ideal situation, but safety first. As thousands of people piled into the empty seats and waited under cover for the storm to pass, we slowly started to realize that the announcement was a bit late, and the storm they had predicted probably already happened (we were under that tree). However, it is worth noting that while this could have been an event disaster, everyone was cooperative, helpful, and very positive. It did not ruin the vibe and everyone respected the situation and each other. It was refreshing to see and be a part of.

After everyone was let back into the festival, we ran over to see fan-favourite Green Velvet back at the water stage. A veteran house DJ and lover of spinning in Toronto, Green Velvet brought everyone back into the festival spirit. Above and Beyond was the final act of the night. They are a progressive trance group from London, UK, consisting of three members but only two members at a time will tour so that the third can be at home with their family. Above and Beyond have been around since 2000 and it is obvious that they have quite the fan following. Though their set was a little intense for some, it was hard not to become entranced into their music.

Although the weather was not ideal and some things did not go as planned, day one was a success and the dance community and city came together to put on a great festival. We wonder what they will dream up next year.

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Local duo, The Junkies, got on stage in the early hours of the day to start the party. Although it was clear the duo were having some technical difficulties as well as some very harsh sun burning up the decks and eyeballs, both Valentino Cola and Vince Nicolazzo were enjoying the upbeat energy of the crowd and the beautiful day on the island. Local residents at CODA, you could tell they were comfortable in their element and thrived off of their fellow artists.

Another local artist, Art Department, aka Jonny White, took on his first solo tour (sans Kenny Glasgow), pleasing the crowd with his underground sounds and motivating his local fans to get on their feet and enjoy what is left of this Canadian summer. The music was as perfect as the weather, and he definitely put on a show to make some memories to.

When fan favourite, Shiba San took the stage, the mood seemed to go from chill to party pretty quickly. With a seamless collision of hip-hop and “ghetto funk”, San knew how to please this crowd. Patiently waiting for the 2014 summer hit, “Okay,” fans took to the stage and the Island started to look more like a concert than a beach day. This is where it got good.

Green Velvet (also known as Cajmere) showed up with his infamous green hair and played a set that was nothing short of amazing. Playing classics like “Flash,” “Lazer Beams,” and of course “Bigger than Prince,” Velvet blessed his fans with a complete concert that had the entire Island on their feet. It seemed as though no one even noticed that it started to rain, in fact, it almost made the crowd even more pleased. Ending with “La La Land,” this was definitely one of the best shows of the summer.

If you haven’t got the memo yet, make sure you are on the Island on September 7 for the Labour Day edition of Electric Island.

See more photos and tag yourself in the crowd here.

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As teenagers in flower crowns (yes, that’s still happening) and neon tanks flooded the streets of Toronto, unloading trains and buses, the Flats of Ontario Place began to fill with energised crowds.

In its third year, this was the biggest festival in Toronto yet, an estimated 80,000 people came out, or at least tried to, some of them didn’t get past the security due to…being tired let’s just say, early on in the day. Electronic Nation, in collaboration with Uniq, Capture and a few other partners, made the festival bigger and brighter than ever before. The main addition was the fourth stage, Fantasy Land, located in the back of the island on the bank of Lake Ontario, occasionally gracing the audience with a sailboat or a pirate ship.

While small groups of people wandered the flats eating raw bell peppers, sleeping under trees, or chilling out in Muskoka chairs, crowds were gathering in front of stages in scattered dance circles. Fantasy Land proved to be just the right place for trance on a bright Saturday afternoon. With Saad Ayub and Alex M.O.R.P.H. people went into deep euphoria while the bigger beach was graced by Sébastien Léger, forming mosh pits on the sand.

The highlights of day one were mid-day/early-evening performances at the House of Boom: Hydee, Thugli, Keys N Krates and Crystal Method delivering serious hard-hitting trap and drum ‘n’ bass beats. Keys N Krates, known for their versatility, dropped a solid variety shredding tracks you may have already known off by heart to bits, while Crystal Method came here to show he’s not going anywhere, nor do his narrow retro shades.

On the second day of the festival, the vibe around the flats was a little more relaxed and a little less busy at first. People slowly trailed in for the first few hours just hoping to get some food, struggle with a warm $10.00 beer, and sway to some music until they got their energy back from the day before. The skies were clear, the sun was out, there was no shortage of bacon-wrapped hot dogs or deep-fried Mac ‘n’ Cheese, and the music was quickly taking over.

In the true festive fashion, Canadian DJ Jelo lit up the Dream Stage early on in the day. Known for his intense performances, Jelo came out in full force with some hard-hitting progressive techno and rock-and-roll-inspired mixes. A little heavy for some in the middle of the day, but his true fans and lovers of all things music kept the energy up, crowd-surfing deflating dolphins and lifting girlfriends in bikini tops closer to the sun.

The Chainsmokers hit the stage right after. This being their first year at the festival was eased by every self-obsessed teen’s favourite single, “Selfie” released earlier in 2013. The crowd was pleased and properly warmed up for Fedde Le Grand. While confusion began to spread across the crowd about set times and locations of things, Fedde started almost on time, causing crowds of sweating people to flock to the main stage across a shaking, floating bridge. Fedde brought a solid set playing a mix between his old and new hits like “Twisted,” but leaving out his infamous “Put Your Hands Up For Detroit,” and his new track “Love Never Felt So Good.”

For day two to everyone’s confusion, the new stage got renamed to No. 19 Social Experiment. This sunny and windy side of the Flats was where the festival came alive (and got wet). When long-time DJ Green Velvet (real name Curtis Alan Jones) hit the stage, the areas quickly became the busiest it had been all weekend. With a perfect view of lake, and a choice between dancing your heart out or chilling out on a hill with your posse, this was definitely the best part of the day. Green Velvet killed it as always even when Mother Nature decided to spring a rainstorm on everyone in the middle of his set, Jones kept on spinning. Most of the crowd ran for shelter, but his true fans could not be bothered by a little bit of water (ok, a lot). A few tiny technical glitches, a few thousand damp festival-goers, and about half an hour later, the skies cleared, and everyone was ready to take on the night to the last few notes of “La La Land.”

At this point, most of the festivalgoers made their way to the main stage to reserve a decent spot for Tiësto. Eric Prydz got the crowd alive and warmed up after the storm and before you knew it, Tiësto was taking the stage. “How are you doing Toronto!” came Verwest’s excited Dutch accent spilling through the speakers.

Hosting Tiësto is a pretty big deal since he doesn’t tour much, so Toronto welcomed him back with open arms, fireworks (really, really sad fireworks), and a lot of fist pumping. Being an older DJ playing for a (mostly) younger crowd can be tricky, so it wasn’t too surprising that Tiësto played most of his recent club hits, but it was somewhat of a shocker that his set was nearly identical to the one he played last year on the same stage.

Looking up at the fireworks trying to make their way into the sky with no real climax, lighting up the city skyline, surrounded by thousands of people coming together for the love of music (drugs, drinks, and dancing), it was a good weekend to be Canadian and a great way to kick off the summer.

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Right in the midst of the winter freeze, spreading musical mirth across an icy riverbank, you’ll find some of electronic music’s most talented heavy hitters sharing their beats with over 60,000 people decked out in outrageous one-piece snow suits.

For the mere price of $15 a head, the lineup is downright majestic. Just this past weekend, the party headlined with Max Cooper, Sébastien Léger and TIND. And if those names sound far from familiar, it’s time to do some exploration because the French sure as hell know how to drop a good beat.

Next week’s lineup is pretty close to ridiculous with Diplo and Green Velvet representing the US, so there is still time to exercise your dancing freedom the authentic Canadian way.

If this is your first time, take note: wear everything you own, show up early if you want to get in, and set your body free to the sounds of the underground.

For full lineup and tickets, visit Igloofest.ca

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