Even in a festival scene that only grows more crowded each year, there’s still nothing quite as magic as EDC, especially EDC Las Vegas. Everything about the illusory festival is art. The stages, the costumes, the performers, the amusement rides, the abundance of rave drip, EDC in itself is art. Art is is integral to the spirit of EDC. One of the most humanizing forms of self-expression. The confluence of imagination and creative skill realized in a tangible medium is beautiful, emotionally reverent, and compelling.

As one of the world’s most grandiose music festivals, EDC has a lot to offer outside of its mind-bending production and one-of-a-kind layout. EDC’s mesmerizing stage designs and jaw-dropping lineups might be enough to convince dance music lovers to attend the prestigious festival, but the art installations dispersed throughout the festival grounds also play a tremendous role in the experience. 

Since its inception, EDC has displayed a wide array of art installations throughout the festival that act as great conversation pieces, perfect backdrops for photo ops, and marvels of creativity to bask in and appreciate wholeheartedly. As much as the festival is a musical showcase, it’s also a living exposition of larger-than-life art. With each year’s passing, EDC founder and CEO Pasquale Rotella and his team discover talented artists to produce exclusive, extraordinary pieces designed to elevate the magic. 

“A vital part of the experience, the interactive art installations scattered throughout EDC are bridges we construct between nature and technology, there to inspire all who come in contact with them," Insomniac explains on the EDC website.

With this year’s EDC Las Vegas quickly approaching, Festival Insider curated a list of ten art installations from years past to give you a closer look at one of the most compelling aspects of the largest dance music festival in North America.

EDC Vegas happens May 20-22, 2022 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nevada. Select VIP passes are still available.

Chasm

South African-born artist Daniel Popper is recognized all over the globe for his mammoth, state-of-the-art installations. A wide selection of his work focuses on themes revolving around the power of human connection, making him the perfect artist to recruit for an EDC piece. For EDC 2020, he created a stunning entryway into the festival’s Nomad’s Land area titled Chasm, a fragmented sculpture of a woman’s head and bust slowly coming apart. His large-scale sculptures are too eye-catching to miss, and this particular piece was one Headliners will remember forever.

The Pool

One of the most talked-about installations at EDC to date is The Pool by Colorado-based artist Jen Lewin. Originally featured at Burning Man in 2008, the immersive piece made its way to EDC Las Vegas a few years later. She built The Pool from 106 LED platforms arranged in concentric circles that change color when stepped on. The Pool is an interactive piece that intertwines light, color, and movement. Festival-goers were able to step on the various circular pads that created a unique visual experience for each user based on their movements. It’s been a while since The Pool has been back on site, but hopefully, it’ll make its way to the Las Vegas Motorspeedway again soon for EDC newbies to enjoy. 

The Electric Daisy

LA-based design agency Poetic Kinetics unveiled The Electric Daisy back at EDC 2012 to symbolize the festival’s name and sole purpose in the most intriguing manner. The 140-foot tall light-up piece featured 45,000 programmable LEDs dazzling anyone that passed by with an around-the-clock light show. The stellar flower portion consists of water-jet cut coroplast pedals and a steel interior framework. Its petals are secured with fiberglass tubing to withstand the heavy desert winds. After just one glance, the interactive visual art piece embodies the vibrancy and joy of Electric Daisy Carnival flawlessly. 

Soma

In 2012, the Flaming Lotus Girls presented their notable Soma installation at EDC Las Vegas for the first time after appearing at Burning Man and an extended engagement on the San Francisco waterfront. Soma is their artistic depiction of two neurons in action. It features an elegant axon arch that connects an earthbound neuron with its neighboring neuron suspended overhead. The piece is illuminated with massive custom LEDs that pulse and vibrate in different colors with the push of a button. Scientifically and culturally, the definition of a soma varies. In some cases, defined as the physical body separate from the soul and mind, soma often is used concerning one’s health. However, this Soma illustrated the significance of human consciousness and the mind-body connection. 

Anima

Anima, another Daniel Popper masterpiece, debuted at EDC 2019 and is one of the festival’s most memorable. The 7-meter statue portrayed a female goddess blowing kisses onto Daisy Lane as attendees entered the venue. Made from steel, fiberglass, wood, and natural fibers, Anima is genuinely one-of-a-kind. Its base held a structured glass floor that attendees could lounge on and relax as they pleased while taking in its beauty and enormity. Popper’s intention with this piece was to create a serene space for festival-goers to thoroughly enjoy and allow for that human meets nature connection he always aspires to portray in his work. 

Pixel Forest 

Easily the most talked-about installation at EDC 2019 was the otherworldly Pixel Forest. The immersive space consisted of a kaleidoscopic tunnel-like passageway full of mind-bending visual displays accompanied by hard-hitting beats. Pixel Forest was an intense interactive experience that left anyone who entered floored. It stunningly merged architecture and technology, and when it returned in 2021, festival organizers incorporated a Coinbase NFT Gallery into its design.

Paraluna

A minimalistic but fascinating installation to note is Paraluna by Christopher Schardt. Paraluna is a massive spinning fan-like disc with a multitude of colorful LEDs that flash to the beat of the melodies playing in the background. The hypnotizing piece was created with the hope of enveloping festival-goers in physical psychedelia. Those who wandered beneath the kaleidoscopic installation likely got lost in the sauce and could say that it enhanced their EDC experience even further.

Art Cars

 As mentioned above, all of the complex stages at EDC are art themselves. But let’s talk about the various Art Cars dispersed throughout the festival grounds every year. It's yet another concept borrowed from Burning Man, yet the Art Cars at EDC remain (mostly) stationary. Think of them as small mobile stages that act as small stages within the festival. Noteworthy Art Cars from previous EDC productions include the Parliament Art Car, the Forest House Art Car, and the Icarus Art Car, among many others. Some cars even feature label takeovers like the mau5trap takeover back in 2019. The best part about these interactive Art Cars is that attendees can hop on them and join in on all the fun along with the artists playing and truly become one with the festival. This year’s Art Car lineup includes Parliament, Boombox, Rynobus, and Forest House.

Hand of God

The Hand of God was hard to miss at EDC 2019 as you ventured just outside the gates of the wasteLAND stage, entering Nomad’s Land. Consisting of a giant mechanical metal hand, the Hand of God allowed festival-goers the odd but satisfying opportunity to pick up and crush actual cars like they do in an old junkyard. The attraction brought video games to life, making attendees the game’s main characters. It was more like something out of Mad Max than a music festival, but it was sure amusing to partake in and watch everyone have fun with.

Palace Blue

The astonishing Palace Blue debuted at EDC 2015, and many EDC attendees from that year are still talking about it. Designed by artist Gerard Minakawa who took inspiration from the Hagia Sophia cathedral in Istanbul. The beautiful structure consisted of captivating bamboo columns with a stunning vaulted roof design and required over 20 tons of material to build. The colorful glowing crystals on top of the palace were breathtaking, and it served as a tranquil chill spot for festival-goers all weekend long. 

Hailing from sunny Los Angeles, California, Good Society embodies the feelings of warm weather, endless days, and good vibes. The record label and event promoter is renowned for their incredible line-ups, careful curation, and stacked compilations. Their latest project Good Society Volume 3 pushes the future beats sound with standout artists like oshi, capshun, Laxcity, whereisalex, DECAP, Chromonicci, and more. They're a mainstay in LA and have been expanding their shows out of state to Salt Lake City, San Francisco, and Austin, for SXSW. 

With Good Society's constant growth we felt it would be the perfect time to connect with Josh Yamini, the brand's founder to get an inside look at what makes them so good. We discuss their origins, the fusion of hip-hop and electronic music, fostering relationships, creating a unique live experience, and much more. 

Starting at the beginning, Josh explains what sparked the birth of his platform saying, "I started Good Society as an expression of my love for the underground and bringing people together. My taste in music was largely influenced by SoundCloud at the time of launch and all of my experiences at Insomniac festivals made me want to put that love of music and people into action." 

One of the core facets of what makes Good Society so special is their ability to bring together the worlds of hip-hop and electronic music. Whether it's future beats, chilled-out lo-fi, or experimental hip-hop and trap, this fusion is central to Good Society's platform.

"My love for these genres initially stemmed from ripping gems off of YouTube and Adult Swim bumps. I listened to lots of Nujabes, Flying Lotus, and Erykah Badu at the time which then evolved into listing to artists like Mr. Carmack, Sam Gellaitry, and Smino. Oftentimes I’ll bring my knowledge of the beat scene together with vocalists that I’m newly discovering to create a blend of genres that’s totally unique. Other times I might just be working with the artists who’ve coined a sound in between the two and are perfectly representing the medium with us," Josh elaborates about bringing together the two sonic worlds. 

In addition to uniting unique sounds, Good Society strives to bring people together. This applies to fans, through the music and events, as well artists. Josh expands on this outlook, "Our goal is to create a space where people can express themselves and find common ground through music. Ultimately we’d like to bring that to scale and create immersive experiences that go beyond traditional club settings while incorporating the songs and artists we’re releasing on our label. We want to create an ecosystem."

The genuine love for connection is what makes the brand so good. While some platforms focus more on numbers, social media following, or ticket sales, Good Society is all about creating an intangible vibe through human connection. Whether it's friendships, business relationships, or something even deeper.

"The good in Good Society stems from all of the constructive relationships this brand has built with artists, fans, and listeners alike. Many of our work relationships extend into personal ones. We’ve seen countless people having become close friends or start dating after having met at Good Society events. One couple is even getting married!"

Relationships are the cornerstone of any great business, but authenticity is what seems to separate Good Society from your typical promoter and label. Their connections are longstanding with many artists and come out of genuine respect and appreciation for their work. The brand is an extension of its founder's life. The friendships and connections along the way aren't just to the benefit of the label but are also about enriching his personal life.

"Much of our early outreach was done through Instagram and led to us doing things like flying out chromonicci for our second show ever, when we were really just learning the ropes and how to refine our events process. I’ve done everything very personally with this brand to the point of hosting artists at my apartment for the week of our shows, such as chromonicci, capshun, zotti, J Kuch, Malik Eliah, and more. Running Good Society is just as much a means to expand on my own life as it is for that of the audience that I curate for. So these relationships I’ve formed with everyone involved are directly tied to my own happiness," Josh tells us.

While Josh is the driving force behind Good Society, he's not doing it alone. Roto and MadBliss serve as the brand's resident DJs. In addition, they have their own videographer, Gavin Banksy, and Arielle Lana LeJarde serves as their publicist and advisor (editors note: Arielle is a writer for Festival Inside but did not take part in writing this feature). Josh handles the majority of the bookings, label releases, promotion, content, and social media while collaborating with different partners on a per-project basis. 

Matching the quality of their label releases, the Good Society events series looks to raise the bar. Josh explains what makes the series special saying, "The vision behind our concerts was initially to throw them in nature. Being that we’re in a big city, it felt natural to build up the foundation of our brand with solidly curated lineups, and uniquely unforgettable nights. More recently we’ve pivoted into renegade shows, different experiences such as the boat party, and are slowly gearing up to diversify the setting of our parties to better fit our initial dream of Good Society. What makes our events special is the fluidity of it all. You might get a live band 420 show with seemingly infinite free cannabis, a massive warehouse party with Alexander Lewis, or cruise on a boat across the ocean with Josh Pan & Luca Lush. We’ve even done insane live shows at a mansion and in a tunnel on the beach. Our diversity of curation and experiences is one of our strongest points."

Good Society has a lot of exciting prospects on the horizon. They will be expanding their events series, working towards an outdoor indie festival, and releasing more thematic compilations pushing the sounds they love. Josh closes our interview fittingly with an invitation to all, "I hope you get to attend one of our shows in the future or are positively charged by the music we release! Moreover, I hope we get to meet someday. Don’t be a stranger!"

Good Society Volume 3

"I curated this project to affirm the belonging of hip-hop & electronic music in a single space. Otherwise known as future beats, this project brings together soulful and jazzy boom bap production riddled with soulful rap vocals and electronic sound design."- Josh Yamini