The Best Festivals of 2013

One of the biggest parts of the latest surge in EDM has been the overall rise of festival culture. These days, music lovers are shelling out top dolla

Not Available Lead
Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

Not Available Lead

One of the biggest parts of the latest surge in EDM has been the overall rise of festival culture. These days, music lovers are shelling out top dollar to hit up events that feature massive sound systems, the freedom to let your freak flag fly, and an array of DJs that represent the EDM sound. 2013 was a huge year for the EDM festival circuit, with impressive line-ups being sent to locations that range from a cruise ship to a forest. And while you can get a fairly good idea of what the EDM scene has to offer via the comfort of your home, nothing beats feeling the bass in your chest, seeing the people dance, and feeling that energy that can only be found at a proper EDM festival. Here are 2013's best.

Movement Electronic Music Festival

Not Available Interstitial

Date: May 25-27, 2013
Location: Hart Plaza, Detroit, MI
Promoter: Paxahau

Detroit's the home of techno, and their yearly music festivals have made sure to inform the world that this is the place where people truly come to get down. Their 2013 festival boasted 116 acts, featuring Derrick May & Kevin Saunderson, Richie Hawtin, Mala, Brodinski, DJ Hatcha, Moby, TOKiMONSTA, and many, many others. Movement is for the electronic music heads who don't want corny or cheesey beats; give them quality dance music and they'll be jamming in the streets (respectively) for a while.

Electric Forest

Not Available Interstitial

Date: June 27-30, 2013

Location: Double JJ Ranch, Rothbury, MI

Promoter: Madison House Presents, Insomniac Events

Summer festival season should be about exciting experiences; what can be more fun than a true camping adventure? Rothbury, Michigan's Electric Forest was three days of music set in a legit forest, which when lit up is an astonishing sight. The talent? They did a great job keeping the stages well-stocked with the likes of Knife Party, Pretty Lights, A-Trak, Kill the Noise, Above & Beyond, Krewella, Empire of the Sun, Baauer, Flosstradamus, and many others. Three days spent truly escaping the hustle and bustle of life? Magical.

Decibel Festival

Not Available Interstitial

Date: September 25-29, 2013

Location: Many throughout the Seattle, Washington area

Promoter: Decibel Productions

2013 marked the ten year anniversary of Seattle's Decibel Festival, which prides itself on being an international event that highlights not only electronic music performance, but visual art and new media. Spread out over four days, and encompassing multiple showcases and locations, Decibel greeted the likes of Green Velvet, Zedd, Juan Atkins, and Moby, showcases by the likes of Sub Pop, XLR8R, Hyperdub, Hessle Audio, and Mad Decent, and truly highlighted how impactful (and important) electronic music has been in America. If you think the American dance music scene is whatever stigma you associated with EDM, book a trip to Decibel and have your mind completely blown.

HARD Summer

Not Available Interstitial

Date: August 3-4, 2013
Location: LA Historic Park
Promoter: HARD

There's something different HARD Summer. Wtih so many of today's best DJs hailing from and residing in Los Angeles, HARD Summer can feel like a homecoming. That might be because Gary Richards is one of the most respected people in the dance music, or because Richards was one of the first to give many of today's DJs their first real gigs. Either way, anyone who has been to this festival can tell you that this one is just DIFFERENT. The lineup this year included everything from Disclosure and Claude VonStroke to TNGHT, Flying Lotus, and 2 Chainz to Justice, Dog Blood, and the Bromance boys, Brodinski and Gesaffelstein, as well as the Ed Banger crew taking over the Summer Stage to celebrate their 10th anniversary. This festival was no bullshit and no frills, just dope music and a dope time.

TomorrowWorld

Not Available Interstitial

Date: September 27-29, 2013
Location: Chattahoochee Hills, Georgia
Promoter: ID&T

The Internets shook when word of TomorrowLand being brought to the U.S. as TomorrowWorld hit, and when Georgia got the full brunt of ID&T's huge festivals, any doubt that the American version would even hold a candle to legendary TomorrowLand was shut down. Obviously, they are two separate experiences, with pros and cons to both. With its own flavor represented (including stages representing American based labels like Dim Mak and Fool's Gold), TomorrowWorld still had the characteristics of a global even. It connected America to the rest of the world in such a positive way, helping to build a global community that could maybe extend even further than the music.

HOLY SHIP!!

Not Available Interstitial

Date: January 4-7, 2013

Location: On a cruise ship

Promoter: HARD Presents, Cloud 9 Adventures

While Ultra is the true kickoff to the EDM festival season, HOLY SHIP!! is the perfect getaway for EDM heads during the chilly winter months. A four-day cruise with some of the best in the scene? Check. Diplo, Skrillex, A-Trak, Zedd, Dillon Francis, Knife Party, Skream & Benga, Brodinski, and more packed onto this cruise ship, which featured everything from dance lessons to random parties, featuring any number of DJs randomly appearing. The proximity was close; it's not hard to rub elbows with your favorite DJ on ships like this, and being that HARD has a hand in booking this excursion, you end up with a cavalcade of talented DJs rocking the decks at any given part of the day. It's almost too much to handle.

Mad Decent Block Party

Not Available Interstitial

Location: 13 different locations throughout North America

Date: 13 different dates from July through September

Promoter: Embrace & Teamwork

Over the last five years, Diplo and the Mad Decent camp have worked hard at keeping the true city block party spirit in their Mad Decent Block Parties, which originated during the humble DIY spirit that those first parties in Philly cultivated. For their 2013 series, Mad Decent pulled out all of the stops, growing to 13 cities, from Calgary to Los Angeles, featuring Major Lazer, Dillon Francis, Flosstradamus, Clockwork, Skream, Zeds Dead, RiFF RAFF, Danny Brown, Destructo, Lunice, and many others, spread throughout the 13 dates. One of the true highlights was the debut of Jack U, Diplo & Skrillex's supergroup, at the final MDBP date in San Diego. Diplo is on the cusp of today's dance music scene, and with a camp like Mad Decent supporting him, he proved that you could truly provide an awesome alternative to the standard EDM festival experience.

TomorrowLand

Not Available Interstitial

Date: July 26-28, 2013
Location: Boom, Belgium
Promoter: ID&T

ID&T's TomorrowLand is one huge fantasy space for EDM lovers. We imagine most worldwide ravers don't bother with corny vacations, as being in the fanciful wonderland that is Boom, Belgium's TomorrowLand will handle whatever cleansing they need. The 2013 edition of TomorrowLand was no different, breaking an attendance record with 185,000 people getting down to the sounds of Tiesto, Zedd, David Guetta, Avicii, Carl Cox, Steve Angello, NERVO, and many more. With a huge stage setup and the sense of wonderment and character that TomorrowLand has perfected, this is one mecca for any raver who truly loves this EDM thing.

EDC Las Vegas

Not Available Interstitial

Date: June 21-23, 2013

Location: Las Vegas Motor Speedway

Promoter: Insomniac Events

The 2013 EDC in Las Vegas was a crowning achievement; Insomniac moved from strength to strength, topping 2012's 320,000+ attendees with approximately 345,000 headliners hitting Vegas from all 50 states. Rotella and crew also held EDC Week, which featured everything from intriguing conferences to announcements like the possible EDM Awards telecast that's set to highlight 2014's EDC Week. With over 150 acts, massive art installations, and a truly memserizing display of pure EDM sound and wicked style, EDC Las Vegas trumped every other festival bearing that name, including EDCs in London, Chicago, and New York.

Ultra Music Festival

Not Available Interstitial

Date: March 15-17 and 22-24, 2013
Location: Bayfront Park, Miami, FL
Promoter: Ultra

The Ultra Music Festival is the granddaddy of 'em all, trust and believe. Ultra practically kicks off the EDM festival season worldwide, and because it takes place during the long-running Winter Music Conference, book-ending Miami Music Week, when the majority of the EDM world are in Miami. In 2013, Ultra celebrated their 15th anniversary with two massive weekends featuring a number of highlights: deadmau5 performing during both weekends, Avicii debuting much of his album True during his set, Hardwell shutting Twitter down during his ferocious first weekend set, acts like Krewella and Flosstradamus shining on a bigger stage than normal, and Swedish House Mafia performing their historic final set. People laughed, people raged, people cried. And even though the price tags continue to skyrockets, we don't see Ultra dwindling in popularity, and is a true destination for many EDM fans.

Latest in Music