Festival Report Card: Tomorrowland Belgium 2026 (Weekend One)

Tomorrowland

Few festivals in the world have built a universe around electronic music like Tomorrowland.  Since its debut in 2005, the Belgian festival has grown into one of the most recognizable names in global festival culture, drawing hundreds of thousands of people from more than 200 countries to De Schorre Park in Boom each summer. This […]

Festival Report Card: HARD Summer 2026

For nearly two decades, HARD Summer has carved out a lane all its own. Reflecting Los Angeles’ musical melting pot, no other festival blends warehouse-ready techno, festival-sized bass, UK garage, house, hip-hop, Latin music, and mainstream crossover acts quite like HARD. It’s one of the few places where you’ll see techno purists, first-time ravers, underground […]

Festival Report Card: Shambhala Music Festival 2026

Shambhala

In a live music sector dominated by corporations and commercial music, Shambhala is, literally and figuratively, a breath of fresh air. Over 27 editions since it began in 1998 on founder Jimmy Bundscuh’s 500-acre family-owned farm in Salmo, British Columbia, the remote electronic music campout has grown from a one-stage rave built by a crew […]

Festival Report Card: Kappa FuturFestival 2026

Kappa Futur

Known for blending cutting-edge electronic music with Turin’s striking post-industrial architecture, Italy’s Kappa FuturFestival is a top destination on Europe’s electronic festival circuit. Ravers from all over the world come together to create a multi-cultural celebration of music and dance at the city’s iconic Parco Dora, a former steel factory turned creative playground famous for […]

Festival Report Card: Electric Forest 2026

Electric Forest

Electric Forest remains one of the American festival scene’s most impressive event production feats. Each June, up to 70,000 people gather in western Michigan to dance, mingle, and trip out inside the four-day camping festival’s famous maze of light, color, sound, and experiential art, masterfully constructed in and around the towering white pine trees of […]

Festival Report Card: Bonnaroo 2026

Bonnaroo

In New Orleans French Creole slang, the word Bonnaroo roughly translates to “best on the street.” That aura is what pulls tens of thousands of music lovers to Manchester, Tennessee, each summer for Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival. Since the festival began under its famous moniker—also inspired by New Orleans blues legend Dr. John’s Desitively Bonnaroo—in […]