“I want to see some god damn energy Vancouver!” Los Angeles based DJ and producer Carnage yelled into the crowd. What happened after that? Let’s just say you don’t want to be in the middle of the crowd when In The Pit drops. Unless you’re looking for trouble.
The energy was through the roof not just during Carnage’s set, but throughout the duration of Contact Winter Music Festival 2017. With additional performances from Rezz, Armin van Buuren, and Tchami, to name a few, Contact was one of the best gifts we could have asked for this holiday season.
Ekali at Contact’s Massive Main Stage (Photo: DMNW Team)
Held inside the massive B.C. Place Stadium, in downtown Vancouver (Canada), Contact is a 2-day musical affair that starts immediately after Christmas. In what has become the largest winter music festival in Western Canada, more than 35,000 fans gathered to dance to some of the biggest names in EDM today. We met people from Brazil, China, Argentina, England, and more!
The vibes were chill and the good manners aplenty. Navigating the crowd in teams of two were medical personnel, easily identifiable with their red shirts. Along with more than sufficient security and event staff on site, we felt safe, and gained comfort knowing help was nearby- despite the venue being so big.
Say My Name Bringing the Hard Trap to Contact (Photo: DMNW Team)
One of the good things about B.C. Place being so massive? Room to dance! The field inside was dedicated to the mainstage- perhaps the biggest mainstage rig in contact history! VIP was located in the center of the dance floor, giving those who paid the extra dollars a prime view of the stage. Spread around the field were washrooms, bars, merch stands- even an oxygen bar! We wished there were food options available; for that you had to go to an almost hidden food court area, or the upstairs concourse. Having been to many festivals this year where the mainstage gets crowded, hot, and heavy, it was nice to have freedom to move around while having a good view of all the action.
Into the FVDED Stage (Photo: DMNW Team)
Occupying a hallway in the upstairs concourse was the FVDED side stage. Playing host to several bass, trap, and house artists, even that stage never felt too crowded. It was easy to get to the front rail, and the production was well done. Lasers, led screens, huge speakers: all present. The FVDED stage was an intimate environment that rocked all fest long. The only time it really drew a big crowd was when Malaa performed a banging deep house set.
Armin van Buuren Bringing the Heat to Close Out Contact 2017 (Photo: DMNW Team)
Speaking of banging sets, holy shit. There were a lot of them. Destructo premiered new collabs with Busta Rhymes and Snoop Dogg, we got into our feels when Alan Walker dropped Faded, reunited with Space Mom Rezz, got served a hearty dish of hard trap by Say My Name– shall we keep going? Marshmello, who performed at Contact 2016, returned to close out Day 1 of this year’s edition- starting his set with his fluffy, electric sound before doing a 180 and dropping filthy bass for 40 minutes. Armin closed out day 2, playing a mix of trance-progressive, including a bit of hardstyle, before closing the Contact festivities with his mellow Christmas Days melody.
In what has become a DMNW tradition, you can bet we’ll be making our way across the border for Contact 18! Did you go to Contact last week too? What was your favorite set, or moment? Let us know in the comments below!
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