Photo: Chris Moran
I kicked off the season with a bang this past weekend at the inaugural CRSSD Fest. Held at San Diego’s Waterfront park, CRSSD Fest showcased some of the best international underground DJs. All in a picturesque location. With quite possibly the most polite crowd I’ve ever experienced. Despite record high temperatures throughout the weekend, the event drew over 15,000 sweat-laden from all over Southern California — and that was on Saturday alone. The stacked lineup mobbed three stages, and festival-goers raved to the likes of Pete Tong, Empire of the Sun, Odesza, and Jamie Jones B2B Seth Troxler.
Photo: Chris Moran
Photo: Chris Moran
Photo: Chris Moran
The debut festival was not without flaws, but sh*t happens, and when considering the sheer size of your average music festival, and then reflecting on the fact that the crew had pretty much everything figured out by the second and last day, there is credit due. Awesome job, staff! What was the biggest issue I dealt with? The line Saturday to get in was around the block, and we slithered in at a snail’s pace; that being said, the line Sunday was short and sweet.
Once through the gates, we were quickly welcomed into the rectangle shaped set-up by The Palms stage and a bar to start the day off on the right foot — a day started without booze is a day started wrong. The Palms stage and The City Steps stage were back to back and the Ocean View Live stage was situated at the far end of the venue. It was odd placement for sure, but no one seemed to notice, or at least no one complained.
Photo: Chris Moran
Photo: Chris Moran
Photo: Chris Moran
With a 21-plus age limit as well as craft beer and cocktails flowing in rhythm with the music, the festival definitely catered to an older EDM audience, with the vibes anything but those you find at Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC). And instead of delivering typical “mainstream” headliners, CRSSD handpicked some of today’s biggest underground (contradictory, I know) DJs from around the world and drew crowds much larger than expected.
Saturday brought an eclectic mix of artists such as Damien Lazarus and The Ancient Moons who entertained the daytime crowd with a funky tribal sound. Pete Tong’s 90 minute deep house set proved to be my favorite of the day with a variation of his All Gone Pete Tong show on the namesake stage. Empire of the Sun closed down the day on the Ocean View Live stage with dramatic lighting, unique costumes, and a impressive performance from the Australian duo.
Photo: Chris Moran
Photo: Chris Moran
Photo: Chris Moran
Photo: Chris Moran
Photo: Chris Moran
And Sunday only got better! With Flight Facilities, Odesza, and Chromeo on the Live Stage; Maceo Plex closing out the night on the City Steps stage; and Jamie Jones, B2B, Seth Troxler, and Dutch DJ Bakermat on The Palms Stage, the festival goers were blasted with the world’s best across all three stages. This year’s reigning prince Odesza focused on high energy, down tempo beats with their set, but my highlight turned out to be Bakermat, who tore up the stage and lived up to the hype surrounding the 23 year old Dutch DJ’s first time in the United States. He even pulled a live saxophone player up there with him.
CRSSD Fest is redefining what EDM festivals looks like — filled with craft beer, deep house music, and down to earth vibes — and I couldn’t be more excited for next year. A year older, a year better, right?
Photo: Chris Moran
