Day two opened up with Martin Garrix on the main stage, and despite the early set time (1:00pm), Downsview Park was already packed, as thousands of people came to see the young DJ perform. Not disappointing in the slightest, he ran through an electrifying set that really got the energy going as the day started off.
The next artists of note were 3LAU and Adventure Club. The former always brings an unparalleled energy to his sets (he played the after party the night before at the Guvernment and had the place going crazy) and VELD was no different. The 23 year-old DJ from Vegas dropped impressive mash-ups alongside reliable hits like How You Love Me and Escape and put a genuine smile on the faces of all those in attendance as they danced away to his smooth transitions and catchy music.
Shortly after, the two dubstep DJs from Canada played to a very pumped up crowd who seemed to be going harder on day two than they did on day one. Running through hits like Crave You, Youth, Shadow of the Sun (one of my favorite Adventure Club songs) and Lullabies, the Montreal duo delivered another melodic set mixed with some hard hitting Dubstep that reminded us once again of why they’re one of the most exciting acts in EDM.
Over at the Bacardi stage, things also seemed to be more hopping than they had been the previous day. With fantastic sets from Savoy and Gramatik (who I had never seen before but was very impressed by), those who chose to stay away from main for a bit definitely got their fix of solid beats. Closing off the Bacardi stage was Iggy Azalea, who despite only playing for about 40 minutes, had the whole crowd eating out of her hand. When the pop singer’s hit Fancy came on, people literally lost it. It was definitely a sight to see.
Back at main, things were really getting going. Tommy Trash brought some great electro house while warming the crowd up for ZEDD, who definitely had the females in attendance going nuts. Bringing with him his new remix of Magic’s Rude, along with over-played yet still enjoyable hits like Clarity, Stay the Night and Find You, and of course, a couple mashups, the young DJ had the crowd fired up as they sang along to his mainstream friendly tracks.
Though I’m not the biggest drum and bass fan, I do have to appreciate what Knife Party did when they came on next. Running through songs like Bonfire, LRAD, and a bunch of other Big Room/seizure inducing sounds, the Australian duo was incredibly energetic. Like so many before them, they stayed away from the more mainstream stuff and just delivered what their fans wanted to hear, setting the stage perfectly for the festival’s headliner: Mr. Calvin Harris
Playing a very radio friendly set, as expected, Calvin gave us Summer, Feel So Close, Sweet Nothing, I Need Your Love, Under Control and just about every other mainstream hit you’d expect from the Scottish DJ. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as his music is catchy, easy to move to and the lyrics are all imprinted in our heads, but he just didn’t really do very much to stand out.
I had just seen him in Vegas the week before and it was more or less the same set, with very little variance. Then again, when you have a festival like VELD and you hire Calvin Harris to close, he obviously needs to play to the masses and it’s understandable why his set was so heavy on mainstream hits. Still, it was a solid way to close off the two day weekend and the production on the stage during Calvin’s set was excellent, with enough lasers, lights and confetti to excite even the most jaded festival-goers.
Overall, INK Entertainment threw down another memorable and exciting party at the VELD Music Festival. The event has yet to disappoint, and with things only getting bigger and better each year, I’m already counting down the days to 2015’s August long weekend.