Entering the Portal, Florida’s Much-Needed Okeechobee Festival: A Look At Saturday
The festival schedule had something to look forward to throughout all hours of the day all the way into the early hours of the day. Many of us began to lose sight of what day and night was, as days blurred together and it became a marathon to the end. If you chose to shower or baby-wipe it, the distance between campsites and shower sites was fair; however, the lines for men and women were NOT equal (sorry, ladies).
Another crossroad opened up for music fans as the second day of shows started, between the ThisSongIsSick Beach Party and being able to catch the legendary George Clinton performance. The lineup and the backdrop over at the Aquachobee stage made it the ultimate beach party, featuring artists like Brasstracks, Whetan, and Louis Futon. To others, the chance to catch a living legend and Parliament-Funkadelic was a moment that could not be missed. The passing of the baton among members made it a funk party for young and souls alike who wanted to get funky. A highlight of the festival was the guitar solo from “Maggot Brain,” which captivated and slowed down time for those lucky enough to be at the Now Stage that surreal Saturday afternoon.
To get a fix from missing an act like Brasstracks, the sunrise GRiZ performance was essential. This was the first time for many Florida natives to catch GRiZ, and he threw on a party which got loud and dirty but equally fresh and funky when he brought out his saxophone. Many people had the opportunity to catch festival MVP GRiZ, with his countless performances during the weekend as a secret set or backing someone such as Michael McDonald at the PoWoW performance.
Over at the Be Stage, one of the craziest sound levels you will ever experience happened over at the Bassnectar performance. His thousands of fans, known as BassHeads, camped way ahead of time to get to the front of his show. No matter where you saw Bassnectar from, chances were you able to hear it and see those lasers from the next city over.
Saturday was the ultimate lineup for fans of electronic music. Between the beach party and the sunrise set, it still kept going way into the late hours. Acts like Snails and Porter Robinson attracted huge crowds to the Now Stage.
If you didn’t stick to the EDM acts, Okeechobee brought together two classic acts for one life-changing performance that brought the inner fangirl in all of us for Usher and The Roots. Going back and forth between the careers of the band and the R&B mogul, they had everyone screaming their hearts out for the classics that took us back in time to the time when “Confessions” stole our hearts over a decade ago.
Trying to catch your breath at this festival was nearly impossible with countless moments that would make you never want to sleep. For those lucky enough to make their way to the Incendia stage Saturday night, a treat was in store for the chilly Florida nights. As the steampunk-inspired, flame-spewing stage lit up the night, the DJ sets made for some of the most lit nights one could spend on a Florida shoreline. The sand meant people were able to take their shoes off and get down without feeling cold since those flames had us nice and toasty. A secret set from Snails went on for over two hours for one of the best sets seen during the festival. The day started to peek in, and many of us had to head back with the goal of catching some sleep during the weekend.
Follow along with our Okeechobee coverage with our inside look at Sunday:
http://www.musicfestnews.com/2017/03/15/entering-portal-floridas-long-time-needed-okeechobee-festival-day-3/