Audiotistic Bay Area 2022 Photo Credit: Ivan Meneses for Insomniac Events
This past weekend (July 9th & 10th), the Bay Area hosted its annual EDM and hip-hop crossover 2-day festival, Audiotistic.
Since 1997, Audiotistic has been dedicated to featuring a variety of genres from house music, dubstep, techno, rap, hip-hop, and more. Insomniac acquired the Audiotistic brand back in 2009. The festival began its run in the Bay Area for the first time in 2017. Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, California, has become the home to Audiotistic Bay Area.
This was my first time attending the event and visiting the venue. The festival began at 2 PM each day and ended between 10 to 11 PM.
Going through ticket scans and security, the venue provided a similar atmosphere to Los Angeles’s iconic Greek Theater.
Lines to get in and security moved along pretty smoothly and quickly, considering that most festivals it ends up being a lag on the day.
Walking into the festival, I found a line of attendees waiting for a photo opportunity with their squads in front of a massive display of the word ‘audio.’ Having a large attraction like this as a photo opportunity seemed to be a favorite amongst those attending in bigger groups.
Photo Credit: Scott Hutchinson for Insomniac Events
As I’ve attended various music festivals, I find that an attraction for photo ops should be an essential to these types of events.
The stage where standard concerts are held at Shoreline Amphitheater was not in use for the event. Instead, the two stages for the festival were set up in the outer areas of the venue and a parking lot.
In the back of the stages, you’d be able to find the cocktail vendors and food trucks if you wanted a quick bite without missing a beat of the performances. Stepping further out from the stages, you’d find more food choices and areas to wind down if you needed a dance break.
Something that stood out as unique to this event was the actual venue space had its own sit-down bar area. Additionally, there was a mini-stage area where dancers were up on stage interacting with the festival-goers as they got to chow down on some good eats.
Photo Credit: Scott Hutchinson for Insomniac Events
A staple at Insomniac events is their Ground Control team. This team would walk throughout the grounds and are easy to identify in their specific purple t-shirts. “Ground Control is committed to keeping people safe, being a friend to those in need, and reminding our community that it’s okay to ask for help.” This team is in addition to a standard medic team. Whenever I noticed someone feeling sick, a Ground Control team member was already accompanying them. I feel as though more events should incorporate this type of extension to their medic team.
I have to admit, the food options at this festival were much better than what I’ve seen at larger scaled festivals or even concert venues in LA. The venue featured Jon and Vinny’s, Trejos Tacos, sushi, a cocktail souvenir shaker bottle, and many more.
The two stages, Frequency 1.1 and Frequency 2.2, were separated far enough to ensure that there was no sound bleeding from one stage to the other.
This was a positive in my eyes, as there’s nothing more annoying than being at one set and hearing what is going on at another stage.
Day 1 Performers
Frequency 1.1 featured these performers in order from the start of the day to the end: Codeko, Tsu Nami, Bleu Clair, Jvna, Audien, Sidepiece, Said The Sky, Schoolboy Q, and Chris Lake.
Schoolboy Q on Frequency 1.1 Photo Credit: Ivan Meneses for Insomniac Events
Massive thank you to the Audio Fam & @chrislake for bringing massive energy tonight.🔋🔊 See you tomorrow for Day 2! Single Day Passes at https://t.co/cdoUsXzD5P pic.twitter.com/sRO5P7uEWT
— Audiotistic (@audiotisticfest) July 10, 2022
Frequency 2.2 featured these performers in order from the start of the day to the end: Jon Casey, Com3t A Hundred Drums, Tsuruda B2B Chee, Mersiv, Whipped Cream, Blunts & Blondes, Bloodsport (Saymyname B2B Riot Ten), Svdden Death
Frequency 2.2 stage Photo Credit: Skylar Greene for Insomniac Events
Being in the crowd for Schoolboy Q followed by Chris Lake was a unique experience to go from a rap set straight into a house music set.
Highlight performances from the first day were Sidepiece, Schoolboy Q, and Chris Lake. I have seen Sidepiece multiple times before, and the duo always knows to give the crowd a fun time. Schoolboy Q was a first for me. But he brought all the hype performing some of his classics like ‘Man of the Year’ and ‘Collard Greens’.
Chris Lake’s set ended up being my number one favorite of the whole weekend. The way he engaged with the crowd and built off the energy of everyone made it all the more memorable.
Day 2 Performers
Frequency 1.1 featured these performers in order from the start of the day to the end: Senza, Nøll, Yetep, Kaivon, Armnhmr, Troyboi, Iann Dior, and Rezz
Rezz on Frequency 1.1 Photo Credit: Skylar Greene for Insomniac Events
Frequency 2.2 featured these performers in order from the start of the day to the end: DJ Dials, Chocolate Sushi, Qrtr, Gene Farris, Born Dirty, LP Giobbi, John Summit, and Dom Dolla.
John Summit on Frequency 2.2 Photo Credit: Ivan Meneses for Insomniac Events
Highlight performances from the second-day hands down have gone to Rezz and John Summit.
This was now my third time seeing Rezz live. There’s always something purely exciting to experience her music live as I see her in her own lane creating her own genre within the electronic dance music world.
Rezz recently announced via Twitter that they will be starting their own music label.
Similar to her own sound, the powerhouse DJ is looking for a specific sound on the hunt for artists.
You can already guess what kind of music I’ll be looking for 👀
Slow, trippy HOT ass , mid-tempo bob your head ( and maybe even shake ur ass while your at it ) type beat
+ more (i like slow dub stuff too) (stuff that makes u question existence) 🌀 https://t.co/Vre9Dkummd— RΞZZ (@OfficialRezz) June 27, 2022
As this was a smaller festival with more locals attending than those coming from out of town, there is a lot of opportunity to expand the festival in various ways.
There’s opportunity for expansion on the attractions and interactive experiences for attendees to engage with at future Audiotistic events.
If you’re looking to experience your first EDM festival, Audiotistic would be a great first dip in the pond. The atmosphere, the people and locals, the overall space throughout the crowd, the food, all in all would make a memorable experience.