U of O draws major acts for rave on campus
The 2017 Everybody Loves Everybody (ELE) Festival started Friday, Sept. 22 with an electronic night featuring international DJs Jax Jason, Baauer, and Tritonal, and local artist DJ Khaos.
The day began with opening act Khaos, playing to a small crowd that continued to trickle in as her energetic set went on.
Being stuck with the opening slot—while the sun is still up—isn’t something a lot of DJs want, but Khaos took it in stride, pumping up the crowd for the acts to follow.
“It’s still a great experience because I get to build the vibe for other artists, which is still a challenge in itself,” Khaos said. “Bringing people to the stage is just as fun.”
Ottawa might not seem to have a big electronic scene, but there is a group of dedicated artists who make the city their base. The scene is continuing to grow, with one of the biggest DJ acts lately—A Tribe Called Red—hailing from Ottawa.
“The electronic scene here versus other cities is still very young, but when big artists come, they do have a big fanbase,” Khaos said.
As the only Ottawa-based DJ on the stage, Khaos admitted she would have liked to have seen other local artists. She listed local DJs like W.A.V. as evidence that Ottawa’s electronic scene is strong and growing, and while it’s still so young, it’s hard to tell how the city will grow its scene.
“There’s so many talented people,” Khaos said. “The Ottawa DJ scene for local DJs is super supportive of each other, so it would have been nice to have seen more out.”
The crowd’s intensity made up for its small size as the night wore on, with the excitement swelling in intensity as Jones took the stage. His house music filled the outdoor dancefloor as people clumped closer to the stage cheering for more when it was done.
American producer Baauer followed Jones. He changed things up with a trap-heavy show, much to the delight of the audience, who—if it didn’t grow much in size—grew in enthusiasm. The crowd went wild when he played favourites like his version of “Harlem Shake,” and other popular hip-hop tunes set to trap rhythms.
Tritonal ended the night with a set that was softer than Baauer’s, offering a strong end to the night. Crowd size fluctuated throughout the concert, hinting that maybe Baauer would have been a more powerful headliner.
ELE’s first night of electronic music drew passionate crowds. The festival continued with headliners Pusha T on Saturday for hip-hop day and Jazz Cartier and Chet Faker closing off the festival on Sunday. Coverage continues online.
