Sunrise Festival 2013 w/ Datsik, Doctor P, Butch Clancy, Pegboard Nerds, and more!
San Jose, CA
San Jose Civic
July 3, 2013
I attended the Sunrise 2013 Festival at San Jose Civic on July 3rd. I had originally written a full-write up on the show last week, but due to a computer malfunction, the entire write-up was deleted from the website and my computer. I'll instead be doing the best possible summary that I can give to detail this festival.
On the eve of July 4th, the San Jose Civic opened its doors to a massive, sold out crowd of ravers, all of whom were in attendance for the annual Sunrise Festival, presented by Vital.
After the doors opened, I arrived inside about fifteen minutes into the first act. To me, the first couple acts were more of the same. Then again, I was photographing for most of their sets, so I couldn't really pay too much attention to every intricate detail of their set. The production team and artists did a very good job of making sure that everyone knew who each artist was, by having their name and appropriate graphics plastered on two LED screens at the bottom of and behind the stage.
One of the openers that really caught my attention was Scandinavian EDM duo Pegboard Nerds . Their energy and stage presence was captivating, and the crowd played off of that extremely well. Their name intrigued me as well. Check out these guys; I hope to see more of their work in the future.
The festival built up a lot of momentum as the show went on. More energy with every artist. Things took off at great heights, however, when UK-dubstep icon Doctor P hit the stage. The room filled with crazy, bass-induced drops and a subwoofer positioned in the photo pit that was so powerful that I couldn't stand down there to take pictures.
That comment about the subwoofer applied even more to Canadian-based producer Datsik , the festival's headliner. For the next hour, the sold-out venue was filled with booming bass lines, on-stage dancers, water guns being fired into the crowd, and one of the most energetic crowds I've seen in a very long time at an EDM show.
The show finished up around 2 in the morning. What was even more amazing is that the majority stayed until the last note was played. It just goes to show you how truly dedicated the EDM scene is when it comes to shows.