Page 12 - Zone Magazine Issue 014

Please let the record show that South Lake Tahoe is cold in December. Really cold. But it had been unusually warm during the day, so much of the ground-level snow melted to create the right conditions for an icy festival grounds at Lake Tahoe Community College during the SnowGlobe Music Festival (December 29-31, 2016 – I was only able to cover the first two nights).
By day two, organizers shoveled in mounds of mulch to mitigate the huge puddles that formed near the main stage. Surprisingly, most festivalgoers didn’t seem to mind the cold. I even saw two men wearing shorts at night despite the below- freezing temperatures. In fact, many took the festival as an opportunity to dress up in ’80s-era track suits, onesies, and jerseys (though no hardcore T-Rex costumes), none of which looked remotely warm.
All the booze seemed to heat them up; there was a consistent line to buy shots of Fireball Cinnamon Whisky. I must be getting old because I wore multiple layers of wool and I still felt cold. No, I wasn’t imbibing. And no, I wasn’t dancing alongside everyone else, which probably didn’t help my cause.
Unfortunately for many of the artists, gloves aren’t a beneficial wardrobe requirement for keyboarding, so many of them had to brave the cold with exposed hands in order to properly play. Talk about for love of the craft.
While the festival lineup itself looked small, there was hardly any time when music wasn’t flowing at one of the three stages (two outdoor stages and one tent). In addition, most artists performed hour-long sets, which significantly differed from the generally shorter sets at other festivals. It was refreshing to see and hear lengthy performances rather than just a seemingly abrupt random mix of songs.
As with a lot of electronic dance music today, remixes and mashups dominated the soundspace, with a lot of the artists putting a different spin on the songs that inspired them. Los Angeles-based RL Grime performed remixes of La Roux (“In for the Kill”) and Flume‘s “Never Be Like You” (featuring Kai), who would perform the same song later that night. Norwegian artist Lido reworked Bill Withers’ “Ain’t No Sunshine.” And duo The Knocks remixed a bunch of their own songs including “Classic” and “Dancing with the DJ.”
" As with a lot of electronic dance music today, remixes and mashups dominated the soundspace, with a lot of the artists putting a different spin on the songs that inspired them. "
12 ZONE-MAGAZINE.COM