Quack, Quack Duck Sauce Came Back | Splash House June Edition 2019 Recap #HNTT

8

The whole time I thought I was bringing the heat to Splash House but boy did they really do the damn thing! I left my hometown Ventura around 11 A.M. on Friday, June 7 and made my way to Los Angeles to grab my friend who decided to just come for the ride and lay by the pool. Next year I may leave on Thursday just to avoid the disturbing amount of Friday traffic. We did things right by stopping by the store and grabbing some necessities for the long journey. Due to a large amount of traffic, we did not arrive in Palm Springs until late Friday night. Before we got to our hotel, I made a pit stop at the Renaissance to grab my wristband. The maps that were provided on the Splash House Instagram were extremely helpful and accurate. Not to mention the design was so fabulous- Kudos to the designer! The next couple of days were packed with tons of fun, and a really hot Sun. I broke down my adventure by day. Check out what an amazing time I had below!

Day One

I am notorious for planning an event with so much ambition. However, I have to be honest… it rarely works out the way I wanted it to. I have never been to Splash House before and I decided to attend a little later than most. Therefore I did not stay at a sponsored hotel this time around. Just like I learned with EDC Las Vegas, next year I will be staying on site for so many reasons. That being said, I made my way to the closet sponsored hotel which happened to be Saguaro. I am glad I decided to take a quick walk around because I never went back to that venue again. All of the artists I wanted to see just happened to be at the other stages. I loved all the fabulous colors that painted the walls of this beautiful hotel. One of the staff members I spoke with taught me that Saguaro was the only venue of the event when Splash House started.

From the Saguaro I caught the shuttle to the Renaissance where I found out that the Carl’s Jr food truck was complimentary! The girls working were handing out some cool gear like sunglasses, a drink floatie, and a coozie. From there I hopped on the shuttle and made my way to the Riviera for my first set of the day. Australian electronic duo, Cosmo’s Midnight was playing as I arrived. They are a new music to munch ears but perfect for setting the mood of a Palm Springs pool party. I bounced around the pool area absorbing the strong sun and checking everything out. There was a Stella Rose tent, a Red Bull bar, Aperol Spritz drink truck, and plenty of free water. I especially loved the free water because I wore my Lunchbox that day. The pool was super crowded so I didn’t bother getting in. Instead, I went over to the VIP area that was stage right and allowed you to be backstage up close and personal.

I positioned myself comfortably on one of the cozy oversized chairs and got ready for the moment I had anticipated since Beyond Wonderland. One of my favorite artists who I had not seen perform live was about to get on stage. To my greatest pleasure, I was able to meet CRAY right before she jumped on. I briefly told her how happy I was to make it to her set. She was so laid back and happy to tell me that she was excited to drop some serious house music. Her performance was nothing short of perfection to me. She totally killed it and created a very relaxed pool day mood that came with the perfect side of hype. The smile on my face in the picture she so graciously took with me says it all.

Following CRAY was Medasin who was also a new artist to me. My favorite part of his performance was when he dropped The Office theme song. Everyone in the crowd popped off and the party started getting crazy. I am very thankful I was able to learn some new music and have someone new to follow. Next on the lineup at the Riviera was Troyboi. Day One was full of firsts for me, as I had not seen Troyboi perform live either. Watching him play was the best way to end the first day of Splash House. He absolutely killed it, ending with the one song I wanted to hear “ili”. Following the parties at the pools was the Air Museum After Hours for the second night. I went back to my hotel and accidentally laid down, big mistake! I never made it to the party for my redemption of Dom Dolla. Oh well, next time I suppose.

Day Two

Once again my ambition was larger than what I was capable of. After waking up at 2 AM of night one, I shot over to an after party with my dear and talented friends, Fancy Unicorns. Who doesn’t love a good house party with great people and better vibes. I happened to stay a little later which had me sleeping until about 2 PM on day two. Eventually I got up and ready because there was absolutely no way I was going to be missing A-Trak as I did in Las Vegas last month. His performance was at the Renaissance which I had not been to yet. By the time I arrived at the party, it was in full swing and the pool was packed. As I politely made my way to the front of the stage, I realized I needed water desperately so back out I went which was when I discovered the barely occupied and perfectly shaded VIP space that was filled with amazing comfy chairs. Typically I am one for being in the middle of the crowd but the heat was working a number on me so I chose to relax. Per the usual, A-Trak was beyond amazing and a genuine example of talent.

I believe the biggest surprise of the weekend was when Duck Sauce NYC made a rare appearance. Duck Sauce is the duo A-Trak and Armand Van Helden formed in 2009. The extremely talented pair became popular for their song “Barbra Streisand” The crowd went buck wild with everyone singing along when they played it on Sunday night in between their solo sets. I have my Rave Mom aka Boss, Jennifer to thank for telling me to absolutely not miss Armand’s set. What a reward! After Duck Sauce, Armand did his own set and closed out the weekend. I skipped out just before the last couple of songs to beat some of the traffic. According to social media, Duck Sauce was not the only surprise. Jai Wolf brought out Manila Killa for his show at the Riviera. What a weekend!

The After Hours

As I mentioned above, I slept right through the second night of the after hours. However, I definitely made it out to night one. This badass party was hosted at the Palm Springs Air Museum from 9 PM -2 AM on Friday Night and 9:30 PM to 2 AM Saturday Night. On Friday night I arrived in Palm Springs around 8 PM due to hours of Los Angeles traffic. I took some time to get into the mood and head to the museum around 11 PM. I decided to drive myself since I wouldn’t be drinking, but when I got there I found a completely full parking lot. The very nice and knowledgeable parking attendants said my best option was to drive to Saguaro and catch the shuttle. That’s exactly what I did and they were correct. Luckily I had previously picked up my wristband because the line to do so was very long. As I walked in English Duo Dusky was just beginning to play.

I took myself on a little tour of the event to see everything that was offered. First thing when you walked in were the porter potties, and a lot of them. Followed by a food truck that  was serving sliders, burgers, mac n cheese, and rice medley bowls. I do not recall the name of the truck but the food sure looked tasty. All around were vintage planes on display for us to check out. I thought that was so cool! As I continued to walk around I ran into the two large General Admission bars available which were in the two of three covered areas; The event was outdoors which was beautiful with the desert heat. The beer and cocktails offered were moderately priced from $10-$15. The third covered area was where the VIP section was located stage right. The VIP area provided a dancing space directly in front of the stage, indoor restrooms, a separate bar, seating areas and stand-alone bar tops for leaning and resting. However, if you did not opt for VIP, general admission had picnic benches and bleachers for you to rest your feet. It was awesome seeing the variety of outfits! Everything from rave & festival fashion to casual and club wear. This was also the first opportunity for purchasing merchandise. Overall, I thought this was the perfect spot for the After Hours.

The Shuttles

Besides the free food from Carl’s Jr. and the amazing music, I believe the shuttles were one of the best features of the event. Frankly without them the festival would not run the way it does. Each hotel has a designated area for pick up and drop off. They ran for the After Hours and as well as during the day. At night they did runs to the museum from 9 PM to 1:15 AM. During the day rides started at noon and went until 10 PM departing every 20 minutes. Much like the hotel rooms that were having their own parties, the shuttles did as well. Although the rides were short, it was so cool to sit and talk with people from all over. I was impressed with how efficient the timing of each ride was. In addition, the staff were handing ice cold water bottles for free just to ensure we were staying hydrated. Well done!

See you in August!

Good thing for those of you who are having serious FOMO right now, Splash House hosts a June session and an August session. Tickets are still available for tier 2 General Admission however, all hotel packages are already sold out. There were a lot of people who stayed in an Air B&B. That is something I would consider for the August session. Stay up to date on our Instagram. I am looking forward to that lineup drop!

Featured image via Nikki Jahanforouz