The Dancing Dreamers - Get Lucky 2018: a Weekend of Music, Magic, and Massive Crowds by The Great Salt Lake
Salt Lake City is quickly becoming a premier destination for Electronic Dance Music events, thanks to the hard work of production companies like V2, who put together amazing EDM festivals, such as Get Lucky, which was held over this past weekend.
As the weekend approached, I was on the fence about actually buying my ticket and going to Get Lucky, because my best friend was unable to go with me due to his recent surgery, and I couldn't imagine enjoying myself to the fullest without him there because he had been going with me to every festival since Global Dance Festival last year. I think I felt bad/guilty about wanting to go have the time of my life at the festival while he was stuck at home not being able to do much of anything, and that's why I was so hesitant to actually go. Eventually, I convinced myself to go anyway and I picked up my ticket on Friday, the first day of Get Lucky.
The one upside to me going without my usual company was that I had the opportunity to make new friends, so I ended up going with one of my newer friends, Michael, who I had met at Decadence SLC at the beginning of the year. He said that his rave fam would be there as well, so he was going to introduce me to them all so I could make some new friends to rave with in the future.
As I can imagine would be the case with any new person entering into an established group of friends, I was a little worried that perhaps they would not like me, but those fears were quickly put to rest over the two days of Get Lucky as they showered me with nothing but love and acceptance and made me feel like I had been a part of their rave fam for a while already.
This is my Get Lucky 2018 story.
Day One
My friends and I ended up getting to The Great Saltair at around 9:00, right when Buku's set was starting, and I was ecstatic because I had just recently discovered the music of Buku, and I really love his sound so I was really looking forward to seeing him live. Shortly after getting situated in our spot, I put on my mask and some girl came up to me asking if I wanted to trade kandi.
Of course I said yes, so we did the PLUR handshake and I exchanged my first piece of kandi for the night. I looked at the ones I had to give away and after a moment of deliberation I decided to give her one that said "headbanga" and had elephants on it. Her face lit up immediately and she said that elephants were her favorite animal, so I thought that was pretty cool that I somehow ended up picking the kandi with the elephants for her.
I ran out of water during Buku's set, so I went outside to refill my water real quick, but after I refilled my water I decided to walk around outside for a bit to explore the rest of the festival grounds. I stumbled upon Wax Motif's set in the Tent of Gold, and I was blown away by his sound so I stayed there for two or three songs before I finally decided to go back inside and regroup with the rest of my friends.
By this point, Space Jesus had just come on, and my friends and I were all excited so we all moved even closer to the stage to better enjoy the sound and the trippy visuals. We stayed all the way through the end of Space Jesus, who took us to another planet with his cosmic sound. When Cookie Monsta came on, we stayed for a few of his songs, but then we all decided to go outside to check out Drezo's set.
One of the most significant events of my night happened on our way out of the Celtic Palace, something that I truly was hoping would end up happening that night. I bumped into a group of friends who had adopted me and my best friend TJ into their rave squad last year at Das Energi, who then ended up cutting all communication with us due to some drama that happened between us that arose from a misunderstanding.
I had been wanting to meet up with them so that I could apologize for what happened and try to restore our friendship, so as soon as I saw them I told my other friends that I had to take care of some business real quick and I rushed over to my Das crew and profusely apologized, which, much to my delight, was completely accepted by them. We all hugged it out and traded kandi and caught up real quick, and then I had to leave them because my other friends were still waiting for me.
The Tent of Gold was rockin' as Drezo dropped his beats and everyone got their fill of his amazing sound. Everywhere you looked, you could see people dancing, jumping, and shuffling their hearts out. It was pretty sick! After Drezo's set ended, my friends went back inside, but I stayed in the Tent of Gold because I wanted to check out Mija's set for a while. During Mija's set, I met this girl Mel, who was gloving, and she gave me a sick light show. When she finished, I thanked her and we talked for a little while. I guess I said some pretty profound things to her, because she told me that we need to hang out because she needs my energy in her life. I thought that was pretty cool, because no one has ever said anything like that to me before.
Unfortunately, my phone died during Mija's set, so I went back inside to find my friends during Slander's set. I made it inside just in time to catch Slander dropping "Superhuman" and the crowd joined in to sing along to the song. It was pretty cool to see everyone join together like that! I ended up not being able to find my friends, so I just went back outside after a while and caught the end of Mija's set and the start of Destructo's set.
I was really excited to finally get a chance to see Destructo, as I had been hearing great things about him for the past few months but I had never actually seen him live and I had never actually checked out his music before that night. Destructo brought the house down and everyone danced the night away to his sick house beats. Eventually, I decided to go back inside because I did not want to miss all of Datsik's set.
On my way back inside, I bumped into this random guy who I thought was someone I knew. It turned out that he actually was a complete stranger who just looked familiar for some reason, but the crazy thing was that he thought I was someone he knew too! When we established that we were both not the people the other person thought we were, we laughed it off, hugged, and wished each other a safe rest of the night. I went back inside and caught some of Datsik's set for a while, but after maybe 5 or 6 songs I decided that I wanted to go back outside to catch more of Destructo's set.
This time, I went all the way up to the very front and I stayed in the second row enjoying Destructo's sound up close for a few songs. Eventually, I decided that I wanted to hear more of Datsik's music, so I went back inside to the Celtic Palace and headbanged my heart out for a few more tracks. I still couldn't find any of my friends, but I was having the time of my life so I just told myself not to worry because I would find them somehow before the night ended.
After headbanging for a while, I decided to go outside one last time to check out the end of Destructo's set, and that is where I chose to stay for the rest of the night. When Destructo closed the night out, I started walking back towards the inside, but then something told me to turn around and just people watch for a while. It was at that point that I ended up seeing my friend Jake, @cynicaloptimist! I ran up to him and said hello and we talked for a while before we both went back inside.
When we got inside, we started walking towards the exit, and I saw Mel again and ran up to her and hugged her, and I was surprised to find out that she was actually one of Jake's good friends! When they started talking, I suddenly realized that I had actually met Mel last year, on the very same day that I met up with Jake in person for the first time ever. It blew my mind that such a connection was made! I thought it was pretty sick.
Anyway, we all said our goodbyes and I set off on a mission to find at least one person from our group of friends that went to the venue together that night. I bumped into my new friend Brandon and we decided that we would have better luck finding our friends if we went outside and just started walking towards the area where we parked. Eventually, we found our friends in the car line and we got in and started heading home for the night.
The drive home was cool because one of my new friends, Kendrick, started talking about the more spiritual and esoteric side of raving, and as you all know from listening to my radio show, I am all about those kind of discussions, so we were able to really connect through talking about all that stuff.
Day Two
The second day of Get Lucky, I made sure to get to The Great Saltair before the doors opened, so that I could meet the guy who won the ticket giveaway that I did on my radio show, The Dancing Dreamers with DJ Damashii. I waited around until he got there, and we met up and started talking. We then found out that Andrew Bayer had become ill and couldn't make it to Get Lucky, which sucked for me because I really wanted to see him live and I wanted to hear him drop "Super Human," but the upside of that situation was that Above & Beyond was given an extended set because of it, so it was still a win for us all.
Tyler then informed me that he actually already had a VIP pass to the event for the day, but someone had referred him to this girl whose father had passed away ten years ago that weekend and needed to experience the healing power of trance music, so he was planning on meeting her there to give the ticket that he won to her. She arrived shortly after, we recorded a video of the ticket handoff, and we all went inside.
I immediately went outside to the Tent of Gold and caught the end of Wolfik's set. There were actually a lot of people in the tent, which made me happy to see that so many people had actually come to support the local artists this time around. After Wolfik, it was time for one of my favorite local talents to take the stage: Z&Z! They started their set off with some really hard bangers, and the crowd went wild! After a few songs, I looked back and was pleasantly surprised to see that Z&Z had managed to fill out the Tent of Gold all the way to the back. It was a nice change from when I saw them at Das Energi last year and I was disappointed that there weren't that many people in the crowd.
Eventually, I left the Tent of Gold somewhere in the middle of Z&Z's set because I wanted to meet up with Michael and the rest of his rave fam, who were all inside the Celtic Palace for Gabriel & Dresden's set. Walking back inside it was like I had entered a completely different venue because the sound inside was just so different from the sound in the tent. Where outside was banger after banger and people going wild, the inside was full of nothing but peaceful and uplifting trance sounds that really filled you with emotion and took to you places you never knew you could go.
After Gabriel & Dresden, Jason Ross came on, and one of my new friends, Brandon, was really excited because he loved his music, so I made sure to really pay attention so I could get a feel for his music as well. I had never seen or heard the music of Jason Ross before that night, but I was definitely enjoying it! It was a nice contrast from Gabriel & Dresden's music, which was always soft and flowy. Jason Ross played music that was still very trance-y but went a little harder than you'd expect to hear from a trance set.
During that set, I suddenly remembered that Michael had told me the night before on the ride home that no one in their rave fam had rave names or had even known that rave names were a thing, so I took it upon myself to give Brandon a rave name, and he was the first of three members of the rave fam who I named that night. I bestowed unto him the name Hikari, which is Japanese for "Light." I called him that because he is a pretty sick glover, and because he just has a very bright energy to him that I really enjoy being around. I was very pleased to see that he really seemed to enjoy it! :)
After Jason Ross, the legend himself, Paul Oakenfold, took the stage. I was really excited to finally get to see Paul Oakenfold live, as he was the man who started the rave scene in the UK back in the day and without him we would not have seen the explosion of EDM not just in the UK but here in the USA as well. We all stayed for a few of his songs, but unfortunately, his set was kind of underwhelming and we somehow all ended up going outside in separate groups because we ended up needing a little more stimulation than we were getting from his set.
We went to the Tent of Gold and were treated to the energetic sounds of Yultron, who none of us had seen or even heard of before. Everyone seemed to really be enjoying it though, so it was definitely a good time for us all. Eventually, after dancing around for a good chunk of Yultron's set, we decided to go back inside because Mat Zo was coming on next in the Celtic Palace. My friends went into the crowd, but I had to go get some water, so I broke off from them and said I'd be back soon.
On my way to the back, where the water fountains were, I bumped into another new friend, Scott, another member of the rave fam. We had a nice little conversation about many different things, and then once again the subject of rave names came up and he confirmed that he definitely did not have one yet. So naturally, I took it upon myself to give him one, too!
I decided to bestow unto him the name Suruhanu, which is a word in the Chamorro language that refers to the village healer/shaman/medicine man, the person people go to when they have issues that can only be fixed through the guidance of the suruhanu's wisdom. I decided to name him that because Scott was the person in the group who was giving us all supplements before and during the show and telling us all what they do and how they react with other substances, etc. He was very wise and knowledgeable about it all, just like a suruhanu would be. I thought it was quite fitting :)
Anyway, Mat Zo killed it, as was to be expected from such a talented artist. It was so cool to see Mat Zo explode over the years, because I remember back in the day when I first started raving, Mat Zo used to be the opening act for other more established names in the EDM scene. Even back then, I enjoyed his sound and knew that he was going to go places, and I'm glad that my instinct was right.
At some point during Mat Zo's set, the crowd really packed in and I started to feel like I needed some space, and I looked around and one of my other new friends, Ryan, was looking around like he was on that same level, and we both agreed that it was time to go outside for some fresh air. We went outside and sat in the grass during AFK's set in the Tent of Gold and started talking about all these different things that were coming to mind. We ended up having these really deep conversations and we really connected because we found out that we have a lot in common and had been through a very major physical transformation recently. It was so cool!
Eventually, our other friends came out to get us and they informed us that Above & Beyond had just gotten on stage and was starting their set. We immediately sprung up from our spot in the grass and quickly made our way back inside. As was to be expected, the place was packed. We somehow managed to navigate our way through the sea of people and found the rest of our rave fam.
After a while, I finally saw Michael, so I went up to him and started talking to him because I had not seen him for a good chunk of the night. I told him about rave naming Brandon and Scott, and then I told him that it was time for him to receive his rave name as well. It took me only a few seconds to decide on his name, and then I bestowed unto him the rave name of Shepherd.
He laughed and asked why Shepherd, and I told him it was because, after talking to several other people in the rave fam, I had gathered that the one common factor in all of our membership to the rave fam was him, he had brought us all into the group. He thought about it for a second and told me that it was really interesting that I had chosen to give him that name and that he thought it was super cool!
Then he said something that really made my night; he said "I think it's safe to say that you've been officially accepted into our rave fam!" And now I have an amazing group of people to rave with whenever my best friend TJ can't come with me. :) I'll never be alone at a rave again (although, truthfully, you're never actually alone at a rave, you're just around friends you haven't made yet :P)!
Anyway, I moved around in the crowd for a bit as I enjoyed Above & Beyond's music, and eventually I found myself next to another one of my new friends, Warren, and we enjoyed the uplifting melodies of A&B together for a good chunk of their set. We talked for a bit here and there, but we were so absorbed in the music that I guess we couldn't bring ourselves to interrupt the flow of the music by having deeper and longer conversations during the set. I thoroughly enjoyed every second of it, though!
Then came the moment we had all been waiting for: PUSH THE BUTTON. For those of you not familiar with Above & Beyond's shows, they do this thing as a sort of fan service aspect of their sets, where they will gradually wind down the music and bring it to a halt, then look out over the crowd to choose some lucky people to come on stage with them and "push the button" to start the music back up again. It is every Above & Beyond fan's dream to be selected to push the button, and the most dedicated fans try to maximize their chances of being chosen by occupying the front rail for the whole set.
Eventually, the time came for Above & Beyond to end their set, and while I wished we could have gotten more A&B, the night couldn't have gone more perfectly. We all made our way outside and back to our vehicles, and that was the end of our Get Lucky 2018 experience. As the doors closed and the magic of Get Lucky was left behind, we all left transformed by the music and the wonderful experiences we had all shared together as a rave family. This was my very first Get Lucky ever, and I am so glad that I decided to go, and I am so glad that I got to experience it with such an amazing group of people.
Check out some of my other posts!
Six Sites You Need to Know About as a New Steemian
How You Can Withdraw Your Steemit Earnings to USD
How to Use Tags to Maximize Visibility for Your Posts and Gain More Upvotes
How The Minnow Support Project Helps You Achieve Your Dreams on Steemit
How I Achieved 200 Followers in My First Month on Steemit
Why I Chose to Invest $100 in Steem
How To Set Up Your Steemit Profile
The Dawn of The Dancing Dreamers
The Dawn of Friendship In a New Age
I'm Just an Island Boy Living in Utah who Loves EDM
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Omg! You had a lot fun, i hope your friend is fast recovering you can show the pictures so that he can get well fast... well done @rodeo670 cheers.
Thank you @deeclown!
I really enjoyed reading through .....In the mood for dancing again
INDEED!
So sorry I missed your comment within the payout window! Thank you so much for reading my story, I'm glad you could appreciate it. :) Have you gone to many raves?
Obviously it was a great fun
Holy shit. Nice. Think he could send me a tiny bit of that luck? Mine's all bad. :P