perfectchow writesTeresa C. Reacts to Reaction 2016

(CHIRP Radio's Teresa Cuevas attended Day 1 of the Reaction New Years Eve Festival)

For months I had been anticipating shaking my Christmas leftovers off at the Reaction New Years event. Unfortunately, the sweet thumping of electro beats did not send me in to a frenzy of movement that even your grandmother would be embarrassed of. Instead, I wandered around an only partially filled convention center searching for the dancing gods who, when finally found, barely inspired me to sway side to side as if at a junior high dance.

While visions of flashing lights danced around in my head, I lusted after a lineup that included Robin Schulz, Chvrches, Run The Jewels, and Deadmaus. But I have to say that I was most surprised by a DJ that I had never heard of before, Jamie Jones. Jones’ kept it underground, playing a set that encouraged the crowd to keep up the pace and energy. The spectacle of the other artists didn’t match the same level. An unfortunate flatness marked Robin Schulz’s set, and the lead vocalist of Chrvches, Lauren Mayberry, was drowned out by her overly-synthesized album playback. Kudos to Run The Jewels for hyping the crowd, but they seemed somewhat out of place in a showcase of mostly electro and dance artists. As for Deadmaus, what can I say other than its Deadmaus and for his name alone; I thoroughly enjoyed him and his light show.

Overall, there seemed to be many factors working against this festival: The trek of getting to the Donald E Stephens Convention center seemed to detour those that wanted to stay local. Perhaps the fact that people were still out of town from the holidays also contributed to the modest crowd that attended on the first day. The sound system also tended to generate more echoes instead of crashing drops. These are details that I suspect will be examined and ironed out to ensure this event's future success.

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