LA WeeklyHard's Day of the Dead went down over the weekend in Chinatown's L.A. State Historic Park with a lineup featuring Skrillex, Deadmau5, Pretty Lights, Tokimonsta, RL Grime and loads of other electronic artists. Most of the event was awesome. Below, what we liked the best.
See also: Worst of Hard Day of the Dead, 2013
Credit: Timothy Norris
The Face Paint
The Dia de los Muertos theme was in effect, from the decorations to the costumes. But it was the face paint that was most amazing: Intricate skeleton designs, complete with black stitches, black eyes, white cheeks and more, often topped by red flower crowns. Scary hot. -Mary Grace Cerni
Best Tattoo: This guy!; Credit: Katie Bain
The Costumes
At Hard events attendees often come nearly naked, but Day of the Dead also features actual costumes, making for hypnotic people watching and whimsical situations, such as watching a cop, a ninja turtle and Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz all dancing their asses off to trap music. -Katie Bain
The Extra Hour
Daylight savings time just ended, and scheduling the first day of the fest for the night when our clocks “fell back” made for an extra hour of partying (or relaxation). We'll take it. -Katie Bain
Walk Dancing
Walk dancing is when someone's trying get closer to the front of the stage, but a song they love comes on, and they can't help but walk and dance at the same time. It's baller. -Mary Grace Cerni
Starry Kitchen's Tofu Balls; Credit: Mary Grace Cerni
Crispy Tofu Balls
The food selection this year ranged from humanely raised hotdogs to beignets. Our favorite was the crispy tofu balls from Starry Kitchen — crispy tempura nuggets made with tofu, corn, and sweet green rice, topped with a light garlic aioli. Yum. -Mary Grace Cerni
Pretty Lights; Credit: Timothy Norris
Pretty Lights
We saw no crowd getting looser or dancing harder than at Colorado DJ Pretty Lights' melodic trip hop set Sunday night. Watching him dance and sing along to his own songs was also ultra entertaining.
“I'd rock all fucking night with you if I could, but the time just slips away,” he said before rounding out the set with a sample of Steve Miller Band's “Fly Like an Eagle” and his own dance anthem “Hot Like Sauce.” -Katie Bain
Let there be service; Credit: Katie Bain
Cell service
For the first time that we know of, the festival sprung for a cell tower, which made for much better cell reception. It didn't work for all carriers, but many folks were blessed with far less wandering around trying to find their friends. -Katie Bain
Credit: Timothy Norris
Zedd's Dead
The Canadian duo offered a fluid mix of dubstep, trance, and drum and bass, and the crowd was clearly into it. -Mary Grace Cerni
Nero; Credit: Timothy Norris
Nero
London dubstep trio Nero is known for their arena rock-inspired style and Grammy award-winning hit, “Promises.” The combination of live vocals from lead singer Alana Watson and the crisp sound quality made theirs the best set of the night. -Mary Grace Cerni
David Heartbreak; Credit: Katie Bain
David Heartbreak
During his Sunday evening set, the OWSLA signed trap DJ David Heartbreak noted that he had flown 3,000 miles to get to the festival and that it was “cold as fuck” outside. He warmed up the crowd with a set that was engaging, getting them dancing and effectively ushering in the nighttime vibe. Heartbreak's psychedelic visual production looked amazing on the Hard-er stage's LEDs and included loads of pink elephant style animations and footage of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers that was perfectly synced to the heavy trap he was playing. Very nice. -Katie Bain
Calvin Harris; Credit: Timothy Norris
Best Swedish House Mafia Impression: Calvin Harris -Katie Bain
See also: Worst of Hard Day of the Dead, 2013
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