Lights, Music, LoveFest!

Words by Kaui Awong, Photos by Tracy Chan 

Wet ‘n Wild Water Park, in Kapolei, was recently transformed by love.

By day, it's the perfect haven for families. But, as night fell, the park became one big dance floor – complete with an intense rave full of pumping music, amazing light shows, and heavy traffic.

Held July 24th, the 12th annual Love Festival, dubbed locally as LoveFest, was truly an event for the modern-day hippie generation. The crowd was so massive that most attendees had to park along the streets near Kapolei Regional Park and make the trek above the freeway to the water park destination.

Headliners included: DJ Kaskade, who rocked the Electric Daisy Festival in LA this past June; DJ Z-Trip, with his post-modern style and sick beats; DJ Reza with his powerhouse trance and psychedelic bass-line. Even fellow DJs from KTUH made their appearances at this bash. DJ G-Spot spun along with DJ Tiko, Matt Lee, Nocturna, and Metal X to name a few.

I arrived about 10PM, inching my way thru the security checkpoints, with Z-Trip pumping sounds from stage two. Throngs of people congregated around the restroom area to quickly relieve themselves…only to find the lines there were mildly ridiculous.

After meeting up up with friends, we made the journey to the crowded headlining stage one. Awaiting Kaskade’s midnight appearance, fans were kept entertained by DJ Reza’s skilled mixes.

At Midnight Kaskade jumped on stage throwing mixes from his recent album, “Dynasty”, while the crowd worked themselves up into a frenzy of dance and sweat – the hallmark of happy ravers. Too bad the high wouldn’t last. Following his initial set, Kaskade seemed to lose his initial swag and continued on into low intensity trance. Not quite what the fans were hoping for.

Back at stage two...DJ Soundsex [Miko] was heavy into his bass influenced session. Many lightshows, cups of water, and hugs were exchanged, as the music allowed everyone to transcend the physicality of LoveFest and enter the world of sound. Demonstrating power over his domain, DJ Soundsex deftly moved his subjects with his mastery of the beat.

LoveFest organizers estimate the crowd at more than 2,500, with approximately 1,800 under 21. If this is any indication of the future of this festival in Hawai‘i, its hosting will continue for many years to come.

As long as fans have a place to listen to bumping music, commune with their contemporaries, and enjoy their surroundings, Hawai‘i can anticipate more LoveFest in the future.

To see more, visit http://www.thelovefestival.com/2010/index.html