Global Dance Festival 2012 Review
by Corey Blecha
Photo by Tye Idleman
For years, Denver’s renowned venue on the edge of the mountains, Red Rocks Amphitheater, has hosted one of the area’s largest dance music events, pushing the sound from the underground to the mainstream over the course of a decade with its annual Global Dance Festival. In Denver, the EDM scene has exploded into one of the largest in America, with hype about it spreading across the world as DJ’s and producers experience our high-energy and dedicated crowds first-hand. The creators of the event, Triad Dragons, have helped to develop a culture of dance music in our city for years now, and this year they kept the ball rolling with another great edition of their prized festival!
The event is held over the course of three days, with the first two nights focusing on more traditional forms of EDM like electro, trance, and house. Huge names like Steve Angello and Knife Party held down the main stage and got the weekend off to a great start as the Denver crowd heated up the rocks for a wild weekend! Some artists, such as Krewella, even took the liberty to play multiple shows while in Denver, making a late night stop at Beta Nightclub to play a “secret set” after their set at Red Rocks. This is a prime example of how hungry the Denver crowd is, with both sets bringing out masses of fans, and plenty of madness!
The following night, thousands of die-hards trekked back up the hill to catch some of Denver’s favorite locals, as well as some of the world’s biggest stars, rock out the best venue around. Saturday’s line-up was highlighted by Above and Beyond’s epic headlining set, and electro-prince Wolfgang Gartner’s barrage of 4/4 bass beats, each taking the party to a new level as the even-bigger Saturday crowd danced into level-nine rave mode and approached the third and final day of the festival.
Sub.mission Dubstep hosted Sunday at GDF, and you can bet that there was plenty of bass music, as some of dubstep’s biggest names tested the strength of the rocks with earth-shattering drops and ear-splitting breaks throughout the entire night. From the main stage to the Global NRG stage downstairs, bass was shaking everything, and it was apparent that Denver has one of the most dedicated dubstep crowds in the world, when drones of people made it out after two nights of partying to see their favorite dubstep heroes. With names like Excision, 12th Planet, Zeds Dead, and Dillon Francis, the party started early, and the DJs didn’t hold back; unleashing drop after drop, and experimenting with the knowledgeable Denver crowd by testing some newer Trap and Drumstep tunes on the eager patrons.
The third night featured some of the best music of the weekend, as well as the biggest crowd. It’s fair to say that dubstep has taken over this city, and now we will just have to see where it goes next. Denver’s keen ear for fresh sounds and experimentation make it a perfect place for an annual EDM festival like Global, and judging by how long it has been around, it looks like it won’t be going anywhere anytime soon!
Category: Electric Buzz
Subscribe
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to receive more just like it.
 |
 |
