The SAMFs of Spring Awakening Day 3
A hashtag, an acronym, and a feeling, “SAMF” triggers different memories for each Spring Awakening attendee. Though the festival itself has now drawn to a close, the reminiscing has just begun, and a stacked Sunday gave even more material to nostalgically sift through. While we could bring you the ATB, Break Science, Chuckies of Spring Awakening Day 3, we’re bringing you the SAMFs to fully exercise the acronym one last time.
Showtek
The Showtek boys made their Chicago festival debut on the Main Stage, and if crowd response is any indication they’ll certainly be back. Delivering an unadulterated electro set to an audience that immediately responded to every pounding drop, the pair drew a crowd that was so packed fans literally didn’t have room to sit down when asked to engage in an epic jump. Undeterred, the brothers’ hype man Sjoerd may have done enough jumping for everyone: in between spraying the crowd (and Wouter) with C02, jumping on speakers and getting down with the front row, his antics served as a perfect compliment to the crazy collabs that punctuated the set.
Alex Ridha
The Equinox stage turned into sheer aural chaos when Alex Ridha aka Boys Noize took the stage. Though his skull setup was absent, the wunderkind opened with “XTC,” providing the perfect adjective for the set. Running from acid to tech to dub-infused and dirty, the set featured a little new Dog Blood, a little old Boys Noize, and a lot of wow. When the last uhn tiss of “Jeffer” rang out, a “one more song” reared up. Though Alex attempted to give the crowd what they were literally screaming for, a time restraint is a time restraint, and the crowd admitted defeat, clapping and cheering him all the way off the stage for trying.
Monkey Love
Tommy Trash set his locks a flying at Da Drive Stage Sunday, giving the full trashed experience to his Gold Coast fans. With “Monkey See Monkey Do” getting radio airtime in the Midwest, for some it was their first taste of Tommy; to put it mildly, he left a lasting impression. As the sun set the crowd did get lost again, but found themselves when Steve Aoki’s “Ladi Dadi,” Kid Cudi’s “Pursuit of Happiness” or Tommy’s own remix of “The Vedlt” came on. With neon beams bouncing around the tent, the crowd truly was in love with the way they were.
Family
In a homecoming for the ages, Krewella were received with pomp, circumstance, and a Chicago Bull at their Main Stage performance. Introduced by the Bulls’ Jimmy Butler, when Jahan and Yasmine popped up from behind the decks after a hearty “krew – ella” chant, the crowd went absolutely ballistic. Through the set’s drops and dips, shouts of love from stage and screams from the pit, the crowd sang to the originals, watched adoringly as the sisters head banged on stage and snapped thousands of pictures when Yasmine sang the group’s new Nicky Romero collaboration “Legacy.” When it was over, the crowd – full of both handmade and purchased “krew” shirts, hats and kandi – hugged and cheered: Krewella was their krew in their city, and Krewella would always love Chicago best.
Categories: Music