Imagine music festival is a mid-sized EDM festival held at the Atlanta Motor Speedway in Georgia (about 40 minutes south of Atlanta).  This was my first year attending the festival but I had an amazing time.

I drove in Friday night. The lines and vehicle checks went pretty quickly, although security in general seemed fairly inconsistent.  For example, I watched as one poor guy made a last ditch effort to rescue his liquor from a glass container (not allowed) by dumping it into a plastic bottle.  Some cars were searched in depth.  Other cars, including my own, were simply asked, “Do you have any glass?” and then waived through after a cursory glance in the trunk.   After I made it through the lines I set up camp, then headed out to see the first few sets.

Friday night’s highlight was, of course, Tiesto who always puts on a good show.  I also discovered some new artists I like including Leah Culver who not only DJs but also sings during her sets and even (I think) does some of the cartoon animations for her lightshow.

Bring soup.

Saturday started early. It’s hard to sleep in when your tent starts heating up like an oven. Showers were hot and the lines weren’t long at 830 am. I went solo to this event, but brought along a sausage, kale, and white bean soup I’d previously made and then frozen into a giant ice-cube of yumminess. I heated it up on Saturday and offered it to all my neighbors, which was a terrific way to get to know people.

OMG the lines.

Badnews: 1-3 hours waiting in line to get from the campground to the stages. Good news: great time to meet people from all over the US.

Saturday night my favorites were Zomboy, Flux Pavilion, Deadmau5, and Pretty Lights. Zomboy had incredible energy. Flux Pavilion was my favorite that night, mostly because I recognized many of their songs including their iconic I can’t stop.  I hadn’t seen Pretty Lights before but they have an incredible light display and a very unique band+DJ style with multiple people not only working the decks but also playing live instruments.

By Sunday people were starting to leave (lots of out-of-towners) so crowds were smaller, although there were still plenty of good acts to follow. On Sunday I was most excited to see Illenium who I’ve never seen in concert. He didn’t disappoint.

Overall it was a terrific event combined with beautiful weather. I had a amazing time, and if I’m anywhere within driving distance next year I’ll definitely be back.