IDentity Festival / Jiffy Lube Live Amphitheatre (Bristow, VA) / 7.27.12 - Review + Photo Slideshow
Published: August 8, 2012
By: Ty Allen
Friday, July 27th marked the fifth stop of the iHome Identity Festival, in Bristow, Virginia at the Jiffy Lube Live amphitheater. The gates opened promptly at 2:30 - along with the first act of the day, DJ Saam, on the Glow stage - with already hundreds of festival goers patiently waiting in line coated in Virginia’s infamous humidity, and none particularly bothered by it, considering most were in little more than their underwear. Security was smooth and simple, only thoroughly checking bags and purses alike, and asking people to remove all items from their pockets before stepping up to be patted down. Once inside, the music was all that really mattered. Of course, the concession stands were ever present, touting everything from “Lets Rage” to “Bed Head,” and of course iHome needed a tent, but perhaps the most refreshing (literally) was Rockstar’s, boasting three bars continuously stocked with all you can drink Rockstar of numerous varieties - doing their best to keep everyone happy and hydrated.
Unfortunately for many of the early acts, the few hundred people who were at the show on time were drawn even thinner by the three separate stages, to the point where the crowd of listeners barely reached more than a mere forty at some times. That wasn’t enough to stop the fans from ragin’ out though, and the early acts such as Stephan Jacobs, Des McMahon, and the young duo of DVBBS were more than happy to oblige, rocking the crowd with relentless musical energy and physical charisma. Soon enough, more and more partiers piled in, turning the venue into a lively crowd of poppers, lockers, hippies, and head bangers; everyone just letting go to the music and having a great time.
Walking throughout the venue granted a subversive journey, catching waves of wild dub selections, soon drowned out by happy house and disco electronica from the likes of Roberto Gonzales and Static Revenger, soon pumped up to the undying electricity of Madeon, then rushed back into the realm of huge bass blasting from Rockstar’s stage as Le Castle Vania dropped some exclusives for the power-hungry crowd. However, blistering the fans’ ears just wasn’t enough for the brothers of Showtek, whom, went on an hour early in place of Datsik, due to a bit of a delayed flight. Since they got the crowd so amped up and on fire with a bit of their dirty-Dutch, they decided to get up close and personal, extinguishing the ravenous ravers in a cloud of CO2, courtesy of their quintessential, hand-held “gun” and forty-some-foot hose.
As night fell, the glow-gloves and LED hula-hoops stated popping up in pathways and littering the lawns, but paled in comparison to the lavish light shows projecting from both the iHome and Rockstar stages which, while adequately spaced from each other, still encased Jiffy Lube in an auditorium of rainbows and bass drums. With final acts from the powerhouse performers, Datsik, Excision, Wolfgang Gartner, and Eric Prydz, Identity 2012 in Bristow, VA summed up to be one hell of a festival and was nothing short of brilliant. If you couldn’t make it to Bristow, Wantagh, NY, or Philly, don’t worry, tickets are still available for their last eight stops, starting August 2nd in Atlanta and ending the nineteenth in Phoenix, but tickets are flying fast, so get on it!
Friday, July 27th marked the fifth stop of the iHome Identity Festival, in Bristow, Virginia at the Jiffy Lube Live amphitheater. The gates opened promptly at 2:30 - along with the first act of the day, DJ Saam, on the Glow stage - with already hundreds of festival goers patiently waiting in line coated in Virginia’s infamous humidity, and none particularly bothered by it, considering most were in little more than their underwear. Security was smooth and simple, only thoroughly checking bags and purses alike, and asking people to remove all items from their pockets before stepping up to be patted down. Once inside, the music was all that really mattered. Of course, the concession stands were ever present, touting everything from “Lets Rage” to “Bed Head,” and of course iHome needed a tent, but perhaps the most refreshing (literally) was Rockstar’s, boasting three bars continuously stocked with all you can drink Rockstar of numerous varieties - doing their best to keep everyone happy and hydrated.
Unfortunately for many of the early acts, the few hundred people who were at the show on time were drawn even thinner by the three separate stages, to the point where the crowd of listeners barely reached more than a mere forty at some times. That wasn’t enough to stop the fans from ragin’ out though, and the early acts such as Stephan Jacobs, Des McMahon, and the young duo of DVBBS were more than happy to oblige, rocking the crowd with relentless musical energy and physical charisma. Soon enough, more and more partiers piled in, turning the venue into a lively crowd of poppers, lockers, hippies, and head bangers; everyone just letting go to the music and having a great time.
Walking throughout the venue granted a subversive journey, catching waves of wild dub selections, soon drowned out by happy house and disco electronica from the likes of Roberto Gonzales and Static Revenger, soon pumped up to the undying electricity of Madeon, then rushed back into the realm of huge bass blasting from Rockstar’s stage as Le Castle Vania dropped some exclusives for the power-hungry crowd. However, blistering the fans’ ears just wasn’t enough for the brothers of Showtek, whom, went on an hour early in place of Datsik, due to a bit of a delayed flight. Since they got the crowd so amped up and on fire with a bit of their dirty-Dutch, they decided to get up close and personal, extinguishing the ravenous ravers in a cloud of CO2, courtesy of their quintessential, hand-held “gun” and forty-some-foot hose.
As night fell, the glow-gloves and LED hula-hoops stated popping up in pathways and littering the lawns, but paled in comparison to the lavish light shows projecting from both the iHome and Rockstar stages which, while adequately spaced from each other, still encased Jiffy Lube in an auditorium of rainbows and bass drums. With final acts from the powerhouse performers, Datsik, Excision, Wolfgang Gartner, and Eric Prydz, Identity 2012 in Bristow, VA summed up to be one hell of a festival and was nothing short of brilliant. If you couldn’t make it to Bristow, Wantagh, NY, or Philly, don’t worry, tickets are still available for their last eight stops, starting August 2nd in Atlanta and ending the nineteenth in Phoenix, but tickets are flying fast, so get on it!
