Electric Forest boasts one of the most diverse festival lineups around, perfecting the Venn diagram model of bringing together the best in jam, electronic, funk, crossover acts, and everything in between. Beyond the music, Sherwood Forest is filled with all sorts of magical, bizarre, and unique musical experiences that one would never find anywhere else. With a little bit of something for just about everyone, we decided to break down our favorite sets from this past weekend by category. Presenting: your 2017 Electric Forest Weekend Two Festy Awards!

Best Dance Party

The String Cheese Incident graced the Ranch Area on Saturday night with a roaring dance party dubbed, “The Big Shebang.” String Cheese tore through the evening with a glistening matrimony of production and sound. The upbeat set touted both Cheese originals and covers, such as “Dear Prudence,” and spectacular collaborations. Artists Matisyahu and Dominic Lalli of Big Gigantic, to name a couple, graced the stage for soul heavy, electronic jams. The four-hour long dance party was vast and impressive, transforming the Ranch Arena into an enlivening ballroom, leaving spirits upbeat and entranced.

Best Rock and Roll

Lotus rears a sound that is instrumental based, while it yet teeters on peculiar electronic synthesis. Lotus presented a Friday night set at Sherwood Court, boasting their archetypal confidence. Their sound was profound and cumbersome, while it threw nods to traditional rock and roll. The crowd was immersed in immense instrumentals and the upbeat vibe that ensued. Lotus’ set included established songs, “Flower Sermon>,” “Greet the Mind,” and “Move Too Fast,” while they included impressive takes on non-traditional content as well.

Best Jams

Jam-heavy powerhouse, Lettuce, consumed the Forest once again for a lively set that boasted their unique sound, filled with blissfully intoxicating beats. With psychedelic undertones, the band encompassed attendees in rhythmic groove and upbeat energy. The marriage of synthesis along with tried and true instrumentals are what construct the band’s’ signature vibe. Those in attendance were not left disappointed to say the least, as the set commenced with powerful jams led by melodic melodies.

Jamtronica

Jam band quartet TAUK undoubtedly brings the heat when it comes to the synthesis of electronic music and sweet, organic jams. Members Isaac Teel, Matt Jalbert, Charles Dolan, and Alric “A.C.” Carter have embedded their sound into the modern, progressive jam band era. Together, band members utilize an impressive array of instrumentals while they infuse electronic elements as well. This sets the stage, quite literally, for a unique presentation of sound that is truly glorious when seen live. Here, there are soulful elements with the principal features of rock and a glistening silver lining that dances on the border of electronic music. Any set touted by TAUK transcends what can be expected of live music, and their presentation at Electric Forest was no exception to that. Each member of the audience was entranced as the group constructed organic improvisations and band classics as well.

Best Group Collab

Alix Perez and bass-music heavyweight, EPROM, have joined forces to present, “Shades.” Individually, the artists are deeply rooted in bass-culture. EPROM crafts a sound that is deep, dark dance music material. Production on previous EP’s play around with the depths of bass music and emulate commendable manipulation of electronic synthesis. With the newest release of the 5-track EP, “Pineapple,” the artist evinces pure skill in the intertwining of bass with a high energy vibe, The production, Shades, with the help of Perez delves deeper into the depths of bass music shining a light on the work that is true head-banging music. The artists immersed the Tripolee stage in a dub-filled, glitch-laced fog.

Best Electronic

Nora En Pure is a hidden gem when it comes to electronic music. The petite blonde boasts a sound that bubbles with progressive delight and delivers the euphoric bedrock that shapes electronic music as a whole. The artist decorated her set with contemporary anthems and later blessed the crowd with her remix of “Hope.” Overall, the Nora En Pure takes the cake for best electronic artist of the weekend with her beautiful, light-hearted sound that penetrates each listener with great elation.

Best Downtempo

While the weekend was anointed with a plethora of smooth instrumentals, downtempo aficionados turned their heads to Conspirator. The duo, The Disco Biscuits’ staples Marc Brownstein and Aron Magner blend groovy acoustics with smooth beats that flows into the depths of smooth rhythms. The duo undoubtedly brought the heat for weekend two, with a high-energy feel and soul soothing euphoria. The downbeat vibe in conjunction with their unique craft shrouded the audience in bliss and marked them one of the weekend’s’ best acts.

Most Genre-Binding Set

Artists Ott and Russell Scott of Russ Liquid both approach electronic music with a unique touch. Ott’s music generates a sound that is psychedelic and electronically oriented, and while Russ Liquid has a similar foundation, Scott integrates traditional funk. The two came together to produce one of the most genre-binding sets of the weekend with a psychedelic groove. Ott has been a long awaited artist at Electric Forest as his set was canceled in 2016, but he evidently arrived this year with a boom, leaving the audience entranced.

Best Act You Might Have Missed

Nahko and Medicine for The People closed out the Jubilee tent on Saturday night with a set that was not to be missed. The collective, reared by Nahko Bear, presents a take on organic acoustics, intertwining multicultural roots and an uplifting sound. The crowd was graced with tracks such as “Budding Trees,” a song that touches on manifesting dreams into reality. Overall, if you were lucky enough to be in attendance for this set, your spirits were undoubtedly in high spirits. This set was truly a treasure waiting to be found.

Funkiest Electro/Disco

Opiou closed out the Jubilee tent on Saturday night with a funk-filled bang. The Australian-born is no stranger to electronica and funk with his integration of bubbling synthesis and prominent horns. The artist integrates glitch, funk, and jazz with an electronic take on traditional sound. Simply put, Opiou’s sound is a marriage of transcendental funk and an electronic kick. While his music boasts funk off of the stage, his lively set took it one step further. In exploring the dimensions of funk from a modern perspective, his set was one of the weekend’s funkiest.

Weirdest Thing We Saw

Known for constantly reinventing the wheel, a relatively new addition to the festival is the Hangar Stage — a trippy, 1940s-style saloon complete with a beauty parlor, buffing/massage station, fake tattoo parlor, bowling alley, barber shop, and more oddities. Hidden within this magical world is a secret speakeasy, only accessible to those gifted a special dog tag by someone “in the know.” Once inside, guests are greeted by early 20th century stewardesses who remain firmly in character and guided back to a special bar and lounge where a burlesque dancer and singer exhibits her “bare” talents for an unknowing audience. Someone even proposed on stage inside this spectacular secret hideaway!

Trippiest Place to See

While the festival’s lineup is not to be discredited, the music alone is not what keeps guests returning to Electric Forest year after year. Attendees seek weird and wonderful experiences inside the magical, mysterious world of Sherwood Forest. One welcome newcomer to the neighborhood this year was a psychedelic church, complete with pews, an alter, and a trippy backdrop centered around a third eye. At any given time of the day or night, you could find yourself at church in the midst of a wild dance party, game show, or some bizarre form of performance art.

Dirtiest House Music

Black Tiger Sex Machine graced Sherwood Court on friday night with their trademark sound. The trio boasts a high energy vibe that defines genres and delves into the depths of bass music. Their big-room sound was laced with hefty synthesis and attracts a crowd keen to the undeniable dirty house.


See below for a full gallery from both weekends by photographer Adam Straughn!