Lifetime Reserve

LUMINESCENCE FEST 2021 RECAP

WHERE? : New Echo Lake Resort in Afton, NY ARTICLE AND EXPERIENCE CAUGHT BY
MF OBLIVION Written 9/24/2021

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The LUMINESCENCE MUSIC AND ARTS FESTIVAL was an otherworldly experience captured at the grounds of Lake Afton in New York at the newly created New Echo Lake Resort that was created by old school followers of the bass and edm scene to give artists and musicians an opportunity to host festivals of a lifetime on their grounds. LMF is a music and arts festival that is full of original electronic music, intense visuals at every stage, galleries, art, vendors (jewelers, fashion, psychics, herbal and crystal merchants, music brands, etc), beautiful scenery, the list goes on. The grounds of LMF have artists of all realms scattered everywhere, combined with masses of intrigued fans and people looking for a new experience to become a part of. 

This festival, though, was something out of a dream, between the psychedelic atmosphere, the amazing sound systems supplied by Hennessey Sound Design, the litter of musicians and artists, the passionate fans, and the revisioning of the grounds all were factors that collaborated greatly to create this abstract and outlandish take on the vision of the luminescence forest! There were 3 stages, house music at the Pavillion, takeovers hosted at the woods stage, and the main acts played at the main stage! Each stage honed a different energy, essentially curating a different vibe for each of the artists that played at these stages. On top of original artists of the electronic realm there were also handfuls of art exhibits and flow artists spread out across the grounds. Even a cool little carnival food truck/bar that you could play games at to win prizes and free food/drinks. All the visuals for the stages were supplied by the legendary VJs of the north known as V.Kash and Daydreemer.

Both days had their own spark and a completely different experience.

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First day started with vibes from the Dipitus crew from Massachussettes on the woods stage at 12:00PM with artists such as Mavys, Versible, Steady., Shortcvke, Slushroom and Ogeaz. On the main stage at the same times were artists of another realm in the dub world. 

Dipitus Label Soundcloud Link : https://soundcloud.com/dipitus

(Unfortunately I didn’t catch any of these sets because I didn’t get there until 5:00PM, quick shoutout to SLUSHROOM and OGEAZ of the DIPITUS crew for helping me get in and contributing to the experience.)

The moment I arrived on the campgrounds I was greeted with an overwhelming sensation of excitement and joy as people showed their mutual appreciation for the arts and engaged in deep communication after some time of being trapped and separated from the excessive quarantining we’ve had to go through lately with the COVID-19 outbreak. The music could be heard across the lake from the main stage as I was setting up for the weekend and getting ready to adventure into the forest of sounds to catch the next set at main-stage.

The first set I caught was Mikayli, who brought a more modern dub atmosphere to the stage using sounds that you may also commonly hear in the club or at one of those glow raves you see ads for but never go to. His mixing style was smooth and passionate, his crowd control was smooth as he dropped clean bass over more common drum patterns that are often used by artists like bassnectar and netsky. Overall a decent set though that started the weekend to an interesting tone.

MIKAYLI

After Mikayl, Isded came up to introduce the change in tone and frequencies for the evening and headlining artists of the day. Isded brought a sound that was more meditative but dove into the realms of downtempo, deep-dub and trip-hop, which was more suited for the headliners of the night who bring a much similar energy on the decks. After his set I went back to the site to get packed for the rest of the night at the mainstage, but also went to check out what was happening with the secret sets in the woods and some of what was happening at the pavilion before Potions, Onhell, and Chee went on.

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At the pavilion I managed to catch some of Joseph Newall’s, as well as Seffer’s set, who played deep techno and electro house bringing back that 90s rave element that many have missed so much. The mesmerizing laser filled skies and the wicked visuals brought by the legends V.Kash and Daydreemer made it an even deeper blast back to the past. Seeing people get lost in the music while dancing the night away was an unforgettable sight that made me feel like I was living in the 80s and 90s for the dawning era of raving. But this whole weekend was something that reminded me that raving and electronic music have been brought to a new horizon entirely and keeps evolving with time into something even more deep and complex, but is growing to be an even more magical experience for those who get the chance to become attached after feeling it and seeing it for themselves. Nothing compares to physically feeling and witnessing the power of music with others.

After catching a feel of the pavilion, we started walking down to the site before heading off back to the mainstage. On the way we found out details about the secret sets, and were excited after hearing that Chee might be doing one of his secret collaboration sets with an unexpected guest, which caught word around the camps fairly fast. After getting everything we needed from camp we headed back up to the mainstage to catch the headliners of the night. Our good buddy Versible joined us for the ride to the mainstage, bringing the infamous “jug.” If you were there, you would know exactly what I am talking about. Watching this man wobble around with a big spouted jug was one of the funniest and most iconic sights of the weekend that will forever linger in the back of my mind.

We reach the mainstage to become surrounded by laser filled skies and smooth deep wobbles over hypnotic trip-hop melodies being conveyed by the one and only; Potions. 

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Potions had a heart transplant last year and recently was able to recover and begin playing shows again! The passion was felt from the stage to the crowd and everyone seemed entranced in the stories Potions kept telling through the music. 

After Potions was Onhell from California, who built a completely different atmosphere with his set. 

Onhell brought more intense, glitchy deep dark dub to the stage, pushing heavy wobbles and uniquely complex melodies that told stories like dark horror tales, combined with what appeared to be his custom visuals crafted specifically for his shows to enhance that twisted fantasy vibe he’s creating with his music. A phenomenal set all around and caught attention. 

The hype was felt and was the perfect way to transition into the main act, the legendary CHEE.

Chee is an electronic producer from South Africa with a worldwide following, known for his interesting dreamscapes of electronic composition honing forces of dubstep, trap, reggae, techno, and edm, mashing them all together to create a unique sound that can be distinguished amongst other producers worldwide. He played a lot of stuff off of his most recent release “Paralysis Analysis” and rinsed some unreleased as well as older tracks he hasn’t shown off too much. Chee’s set wrapped the mainstage up on an intense note and had everybody curious about how the next day could possibly top the first. 

After the headlining set on the mainstage, I ventured into the woods to find out if the secret set was still occurring. I quickly found out it was being cancelled to gather more heads into the pavilion for their headliner house DJ known as Codes from Brooklyn, NY.

He produces a lot of deep techno and house music and is well known around the northeast for his hold in the electronic house realm. His whole set was absolutely incredible and had nothing but lively contrasted melodies that got the whole room beaming with energy.

I didn’t manage to catch any of Stavi’s set because the crew and I with went back to the site to figure out what was going on with the secret set, journeying through the woods till we found the sounds but had no luck finding it so we went back to the site and found other people who had been looking for the secret set too! So, after no luck finding said secret set, we being the group of producers and creators we are, threw a mini renegade set in the woods at our camp, joined by a new friend who goes by Spike Right, who showed us some of his unreleased projects and upcoming works, clearly inspired by some of the bigger names in the dub scene like liquid stranger and bassnectar, but possessing a different edge that kept the camp moving and vibing! Ogeaz, Mavys, Slushroom, and Versible all supplied the gear and vibes for the late night wind down before conquering day two of Luminescence Fest.

Day two of LMF started with heavy wobbles and witty bass from the DUB DAY crew (based out of Brooklyn, NY and organized by the DiCE MaN) on the WOODS Stage, and on Main Stage were some local DJs I didn’t quite get a chance to peep but managed to hear across the lake and it seemed cool, but not intriguing enough to pull me away from the woods. Right off the bat, NNAMBA came wielding deep meditative and expressive wobbles from the woods stage, using a lot of sounds from Asia and Middle-Eastern countries, combining them with a modern electronic compositional edge, waking up the camps to a nice start before taking on the rest of the day. 

Pleased after catching the last 20 minutes of NNamba’s set, Suspiria came on to continue the groove and brought an even more trancey edge to the stage, bringing a similar sound as NNamba but with deeper wubs and wobbles. Around 1:00pm was IZZI’s set on the mainstage (electronic producer from the Dipitus collective), who expressed passionate wobbles, complex melodies, and witty drum patterns in every drop throughout his set, while also conveying more of a trip-hop/trap feel that was hard not to groove to and get lost in, setting a smooth transitional tone for the rest of the evening that was planned for the mainstage lineup.

Once IZZI’s set was over I decided to head back to the Woods stage before Yung Abner’s set to hang out a little more with the Dub Day crew and vibe to the different energy. The Woods stage during the day was packed the whole time. All the artists brought something a little different to the table that contributed to that day’s extra spark. Indobeats was slinging fun and witty wobbles mixed with weird but head wrapping melodies and in-depth compositional patterns, keeping the whole crowd pulled into the rhythm of the wobbles and entranced in the dub. 

Losing track of the time at the campsite vibing to the sounds, Second Nature comes up (who I had no clue was even playing because of coming so last minute) so I had to stay for a little while longer to experience the legend himself with his overwhelmingly positive energy, and unique mixing style. 

His set was one of my favorites of the weekend. Between his abstract and spontaneous freestyling, the intense bass control, witty musical composition, and passionate showmanship, his set was definitely one that will carry with everyone who managed to catch it. Hard to forget him and his open buttoned high contrasted beach shirt, spontaneous energy, and his party llama he carried around the whole weekend, adding to the whole character. A fun person to be around and makes it a point that a party isn’t quite a party without him. The set felt like a journey through the concrete jungle, an intriguing experience to say the least..

I headed back over to the mainstage after 30 minutes of the Second Nature set to catch the other half of Yung Abner’s set, and was happy to make it in time to catch the leaks of unreleased content he has coming soon.

One that stuck out in particular was the one he did in collaboration with Slaythoven that they have yet to officially release for the world. His set was filled with abstract trip-hop and dark dub, using elements of dubstep, metal, trance, hip-hop, and neurostep to create a mind boggling sound that is hard to label. 

IX [ick’s] was next on the decks on Mainstage.

IX pushed a sound in his set that had a more psychedelic edge, including meditative bass, deep/complex drum patterns, and expressive glitchy composition. His smooth aesthetic brought a calm and chill vibe to the mainstage, giving everybody some time to relax before the hype night that was ahead.

During IX’s set I went back down to the woods to see what was happening with the mystery set with the Dub Day crew and see if it was worth catching, and I’m glad I went. There was a bunch of freeflow b2bs with everyone that was playing on the Dub Day stage along with some guests, hosted by DiCE MaN who was mostly on the decks, but they ended up getting shut down a little early to push everyone to the mainstage for the main booked artists. But I wasn’t heading back to the mainstage until I got a chance to run by the camp to reload on water and snacks before heading back up to the mainstage for the other performers.

Once reaching the mainstage again after stopping by the campsite to get some things, I caught Unknxwn for the first 30 minutes of his set, vibing to the deep wobbles and feel-good melodies before getting sidetracked by the breathtaking atmosphere (clearly, getting sidetracked during a set is a considerably very common situation at the LMF grounds). I went to check out more of the lake on the far right side of the mainstage behind all the art vendors (one of which being the legendary electronic producer and abstract artist Slaythoven) to go skip some rocks and watch the water. I skipped a few rocks and found a really cool crystal buried in the grass next to the water. I then went from the side of the lake to go check out the art gallery and walk the trail a bit to see what I could find, and ended up running into some old friends, then travelled through the woods and scoped out the vendors before travelling my way back over to the stage to catch DiCE MaN’s set who I had yet to get the chance to see live.

DiCE MaN’s set was one that highlights the weekend well, with his wild energy on the decks to his insane bass control, to the witty style expressed verbally and musically on stage, it was an experience of its own that was one not to miss. 

He rinsed some unreleased tracks, specially crafted pieces just for Luminescence and showcased a lot of significant personal pieces that stood out and correlated to the whole weekend. Bringing elements of poetry, modern dub, trip-hop, techno, dubstep, and downtempo to create this wildly creative flavor that is pure and genuine. His performance of his song “Creating New Patterns” off of his “Poor Connections” EP particularly caught me in my emotions and hit me personally in a different way. Haven’t cried that intimately to a song in front of others at a show in my life, it was definitely a new experience and was one that will never be forgotten. Can tell the man has been in the performance game for a minute with his seemingly perfect control over tone and inflection while handling a mic and talking/performing in front of people. This set initiated take off into the next stages of the psychedelic adventure that was ahead of everyone at LMF and also contributed to gathering more people to the mainstage for the main acts.

 

 

Engix came from the darkness emerging onto the decks wielding destruction and massive head-banging bass similar to the renditions of brostep and metalcore.

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Engix went in swinging fists and bringing crazy energy to the soundwaves with his intense production style and aggressive power over the wubs. His aggressive glitchy soundscape of destruction was a wild thing to experience and would be the perfect intro into the bass world for any metalhead.

 

 

Saltus lurked from the side stage and greeted Engix before slamming his USB into the decks after a quick transitional introduction into his set from Engix. 

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Saltus came with a more chill vibe and brought a sound combining elements of trip-hop, glitch-hop, deep dub, downtempo, neurofunk, chillstep, and alternative dub, producing an outlandish sound that makes me feel like I’m talking to UFOs. The significant production style of Saltus is simply indefinable and can only be explained through listening, his whole set felt like a wild trip into outer space.

 

 

Veil and Notlo had a B2B set after Saltus, both bringing different kinds of hype to the speakers, together producing a wild bass adventure through the deep mind digging melodies, slapping drum patterns, psychedelic compositions and wicked wobbles. 

This duo kept a tight hold over the crowd as they tossed the groove back and forth throughout the set. These women of fury, had powerful control on the bass and a unique vibe on stage that surpassed any other throughout the weekend, and was a dope set overall, and contributed to building the hype and energy even though it ran 9pm to 10pm. An incredible duo on the decks that I’m stoked I caught. Both artists independently are known to go hard, and so seeing them perform together was an even greater force.

 

 

Tie Dye Ky was after their B2B, and came with a very different soundscape for the crowd, bringing elements of alternative rock, chillstep, indie, trip-hop, downtempo, and dubstep together, producing a very different sound from other electronic producers around the world right now. 

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His set had all sorts of unreleased tracks, WIPs, official releases and tracks from close friends of his that haven’t been released. Including Pipus who passed away in 2019. The set was a different energy all around and also had me crying at a couple points, especially when he rinsed “Space for Me”, which was from a project he is working on with Potions. All around a phenomenal performance I was happy to get the chance to experience and feel. 

 

 

The headliner of the night BUKU came to seal off the mainstage with a heavy, smooth and action packed finale set, successfully and professionally keeping the crowd energized until he left the decks [but carried his energy to the pavilion stage for the LMF b2b where he threw a techno-house set on the side of his main dub set]. 

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His main headlining set was dynamic and flipped between so many different realms of electronic music, proving why he was the headliner DJ for Luminescence. His sound is known around the world and is well respected all over, as his skills are evident in each of his productions. He threw a massive set on the mainstage, tossing the vibes back and forth between drum and bass, techno, neurostep, glitchstep, and good ol’ dubstep. BUKU satisfied the evening nicely and finished off the mainstage lineup for the weekend perfectly! He carried his energy to the pavilion stage to throw down after the Bois House. 

 

 

After Buku’s everyone went over to see about what was happening with the secret sets at the woods stage but discovered that they were cancelled for the LMF B2B after Boiz House [an improvisational electronic acid house band]. Boiz House maintained an ecstatic and colorful energy on stage and experimented with witty sounds that were oddly captivating. Between the chipmunk vocal fx, wacky bass, and the jam band flow of the group, they brought a fun and experiential soundscape that’s hard to forget. Keep a look out for the Boiz House!

But to many’s surprise including my own, after the Boiz House threw down, BUKU came back to throw a techno-house set to drain the energy out of the rest of the stragglers who were still awake, bringing an old school electronic sound that was reminiscent of the same kind of electronic music that was commonly playing in raves from the 70s and 80s. It was a unique set and an experience to witness, as it was so uncommon, a once in a lifetime moment that will forever be carried with the other memories from Luminescence. After the BUKU rare techno-house set, DiCE MaN came to set the vibes for sunrise with chillhouse and downtempo, unveiling more spoken word pieces and deep heartfelt compositions to anyone who was able to stay up to experience it. A perfect finish to a beautiful weekend. It caught me in my feelings on my way out of the pavilion, knowing the Luminescence Festival was now officially over. The people, music, art, and energy was beyond comforting, but also positively enabling, encouraging, motivating, and inspiring to keep creating, leaving marks wherever possible in any way we can, while actively expressing what we think and working toward building a better world to live in so experiences like these can continue and compel others to grow and be a part of or create something much bigger than themselves. 

 

Waiting patiently and looking forward to next year’s Luminescence Music and Arts Festival! Curious how they will go bigger than this one. If you’re near New York and haven’t caught a festival at New Echo Lake Resort in Afton, I suggest doing so, one of the most comforting places I’ve been for a festival, now my newest favorite!

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