After a sliver of hope teased us last year, ILLfest officially makes its return to Austin, TX this Friday and Saturday – and what perfect timing! Following a fairly mild winter punctuated by cold spurts, Austin is starting to see sunnier, warmer days once again. Right now both Day 1 and Day 2 of the festival are forecast for full sunshine and a high of 66 and 70 degrees, respectively, ready for Austinites to bust out their bass faces and rage outside at the event’s new home of Circuit of the Americas.
The advent of spring brings a renewed vivacity for life and the hope for brighter, happier times. And for all of us festival junkies, there couldn’t be a more ideal occasion to celebrate this seasonal transition than a full-blown festival production of live and electronic dance music, a bone-crushing wattage of bass, a barrage of sky-illuminating lasers, and of course the gathering of our inimitable community. With about 10,000 attendees each day, ILLfest is about to be Austin’s best party in a while.
A quick glance at the lineup and you’ll see what feels like the coolest nostalgia throwback – headliners Kaskade and RL Grime b2b Baauer. I can’t help but feel a flashback to my rave baby days. Sometimes it might not seem fitting, maybe even a bit forced, but I’m excited as hell for reliving those good ole times.
Friday will hit us with bass music at its finest. Those of us more inclined to the weird wubs will get our fix through bass legend Liquid Stranger, the ongoing Mersiv revolution, and more much deserved recognition of underground artists like Smoakland and Ravenscoon. And of course, we are blessed with my first favorite EDM artist, RL Grime, going back to back with “Harlem Shake” phenomenon Baauer.
Saturday, on the other hand, is set for a day of straight vibin’. While we were getting wild and wonky the day before, now we’ll be chillin’ with all the homies basking in the sun to the groovy beats of Justin Jay, the melodic soundscape of Ekali, and finishing out with EDM pioneer Kaskade.
There’s a nice variety of genres filling out this two-day festival including indy, future-bass, electro-funk, bass, house, trap and dubstep. Three-day fests have an advantage of packing in more artists and more genres, but this has the advantage of being more intimate while still keeping a terrific balance of music. It’ll be a treat seeing travelers experience how dope of a scene Austin showcases — from the awesome people to the underground culture, to the delicious food and a magnificent curation of street art and murals — proving why ATX has become one of the hottest places to be in the entire country right now.
Friday offers afterparties from Liquid Stranger and Mersiv, Malaa, and The Knocks, while Saturday keeps the beats bumpin’ with afterparties featuring a Kaskade Redux set and Phantograms delivering a DJ set. Weekend GA passes for ILLfest start at $257 after taxes, while single day passes start at $128 after taxes. Check out the full schedule below!
