Sonic Bloom Music Festival Is Consistently One Of My Favorites {2018 Event Review Included}

There are A LOT of music festivals out there that offer incredible music, production, arts, you name it. From a massive scale with tens of thousands of people to a small festival with hundreds of people, when you get the perfect blend of a festival size that is not too big but not too small; with world-renowned musicians, producers, artists, an amazing staff, and some of the best vibes you’ll ever experience along with jaw-dropping scenery, it is easy to see how that experience will be one that will impact you for the rest of your life. Sonic Bloom Music Festival is consistently one of my favorite festivals that has the perfect blend of everything one would desire at a camping music & arts festival. There is a lot that goes into Sonic Bloom that makes it a must-attend festival for us every year, such as; the exquisite stage production, artists who are performing like its their last set, painters filling the spaces with bright colors and amazing vibes, the scenery, and of course, the connection through ‘The Unified Field.’ A nickname that holds true to its definition, The Unified Field spawns from the Unified Field Theory, which one of the founders, Jamie Janover went over in our interview back in 2017, click here to read the full interview. “The Unified Field Theory is a set of information that explains the entire universe. It shows how everything in the universe is a unified connected whole and the details surrounding how that works… The idea is to try to express as many forms of human creativity as possible, at the same time, at the same place. When you do that, you get a really cohesive vibe going and “unify the field.” Having curated this festival with that intention from 3 multi-instrumentalist wizards; Jamie Janover, Michael Travis (of the StringCheeseIncident/ Eoto) and Aaron Holstein of VibeSquad, (which when performing together are Zilla.) This festival holds an insane amount of talent, both from renowned names and up and coming acts, all of which are backed by some of the most humble and awe-inspiring people. Dive deeper with us below for an in-depth explanation of why Sonic Bloom is consistently one of our favorite festivals along with an event review from this magnificent 2018 year.

The Beautiful Location of Hummingbird Ranch in Southern Colorado

Nestled at Hummingbird Ranch, around 40 miles south of Pueblo, 140 miles south of Denver, this beautiful ranch was home to Sonic Bloom Music Festival. Perfect for 3 stage set up with camping and nice access all the way around, Sonic Bloom wasn’t too big nor too small. Large enough to make you wish you had kept up on your leg workouts, but small enough where you never got lost. The massive mountains to the west were a huge identifier for those who did get turned around and with a perfectly grown scrub-oak forest where it wasn’t too thick but had enough shade cover from the beaming sun, the layout was perfect for festival goers. Unfortunately, this year, the creek that ran through some of the camping, was dry this year due to our lack of snow. Yes, Climate Change is real, but also, being the year of the El Nino;

an irregularly occurring and complex series of climatic changes affecting the equatorial Pacific region and beyond every few years,” the lack of water from our winter could be a result of that irregularity. That’s a different conversation for another time. Even with the lack of water this year, all the plants and forest vegetation was thriving. This year we even got a decent rainstorm on Sunday. Which during the massive rain storm one of the most anticipated acts, Dirtwire, threw down one of the best sets that we’ve seen in a while. Which leads us to our next point.

 

All of the Musical Acts Performed Relentless Sets

As seen in the picture to the left, Dirtwire, is 3 member group who threw the funk down with their style of blues/world sound mixed with groovy bass. From Harmonicas to bongos, snares, and other unique instruments, these guys brought those Bloomin vibes. This year they had the honor of doing the rain performance where nearly their whole set was a nice mist / decent rain. But they most definitely are not the only acts who were relentless at the unified field. Following them was Eoto, a duo whose first performance was at the first Sonic Bloom. Every year since they’ve brought the Eoto beats and provided an all improvised set. Yup. All improv, they performed the sounds live, looped them if they had to, and put it together for an epic masterpiece. A clip of their performance can be seen below. Incorporating, both Eoto, Dirtwire, and other musicians such as Kamanada, Jamie Janover, Billy from Papadosio, and more for the close out of the main stage, with the epic Sonic Bloom Orchestra. Each year it changes but never ceases to amaze. Another completely improvised set, with no set list only an orchestrator, Sonic Bloom Orchestra ended the festival with the proper vibes and an awe-inspiring amount of talent.

Some of the small acts really got the crowd moving too and was the backbone to the up and coming music for our scene. There were many acts that completely blew us away with what they brought to the unified field, but not all can be named in this review, so if you are curious, join us next year and make sure to venture early to catch the sets that some miss out on. Many of the sets kicking off the day were packed, especially considering it was 2:30 in the afternoon with the sun hitting hard. The Party People, kick-started the festival off on Thursday at the Humming bird stage. Bringing their funky beats, gnarly rhymes, epic turn-table scratches and the best of vibes, this Denver grown group started Bloom off in the most proper way. Video Below. Psyntimental kicked off Friday with some insane wubs and gnarly bass. Krushendo took the reigns for starting Saturday off right, and with Dominic Fante on the drums, the experience was absurd!  Hearing future bass, into metal, followed by some headbanging dubstep, Krushendo was relentless but with the best of vibes.

The Swarm took over the hummingbird stage for an experience like none other. The swarm refers to Jade Cicada, an up & coming artist to some, but to many, we recognize them as one of their favorites. When Jade Cicada took over the ever so beautiful Hummingbird stage, and the visual arts synced up with his glitch hop music, Bloom got spoiled with a performance unlike any other. Blending together 8 bit/game like sounds with glitch hop and unique bass, Jade Cicada played out a set that was all the heat at Sonic Bloom. A video clip of his performance is posted below.

Can’t forget about a trio who I am sure brought a good amount of fans, including myself. Keys N Krates made their Sonic Bloom debut at the main stage for one rocking time. They recently put out a new album which went through a more futurist bass/disco vibe which matched Sonic Bloom perfectly. But they didn’t hold back on that trap, which can be seen below. Shout out to Top Level Productions for this video.

Mind-Bending Visual Art & Stage Production

Ending the first night with a bang, the main stage had the founder and wizard of Wakaan showcase one of the hardest sets at Bloom. None other than Liquid Stranger. Set up on the main stage where the production had ultra-crisp screen visuals and insanely potent lasers, Liquid Stranger took full advantage of the amazing production and put it to the max. They threw down a plethora of heavy beats and psychedelic music, he had the perfect touch of grime and wook. Check out this raunchy clip from his performance.

 One of the most anticipated performances ended out the Bloom stage on Saturday Night with Shpongle and an incredible team of visual and performing artists who together presented top-notch visuals. From Android Jones joining in and doing a MicroDose VR performance, to the multiple variations of performance arts on stage, Shpongle hosted one of the most original performances and grasped the attention of many at Sonic Bloom with the pure amazement of talent. Complimented with exotic psychedelic bass/trance sounds made infamous from Shpongle, this performance was easily one of the top highlights of the weekend. (Mind blowing photo taken by the talented Bradford Watkins Creations)

The Meadow Stage got a complete makeover as this is now a permanent stage structure. Dropping the LED Screens from the previous years and going with a rustic and intimate look, the meadow stage provided some of the rawest sets from the weekend. Picture to the left is a capture of The Widdler through the lens of our friends at Dark Matter Photography.

The last year of the Hummingbird Stage. Yes. The last year. Announced during one of the performances at the stage this year, the Hummingbird stage will be going to Burning Man this year for its last performance, before it burns away. So, being the last year, has to go out in style yes? Well, it most definitely did, from a splendid variation of music, to ohhhh so many different styles of visual arts projects on the stage, the Hummingbird is easily one of the most beautiful stages that I have ever seen that offers an intimate experience and visuals sure to melt your mind.

Each and every year the amount of art that they bring into the festival is just astonishing! They fill the festival grounds with various art installations sure to keep any wanders and adventurers busy. The installations could vary from sacred geometry through pendulums, burner installations, balancing rocks (which didn’t get knocked over from kicking bass from the Funktions,) a blackjack table, and more! Not to mention all of the live painters scattered throughout the forest! 

The Best People That One Can Ask For.

 The unified field is a real thing. When everyone is manifesting for the better it shows. From the staff to the attendees, and everyone else with any kind of connection to Bloom, the vibes always shine brightly at the Hummingbird Ranch during Sonic Bloom. Some of the most kind-hearted people you will ever encounter come to this festival just to give because the reaction is what makes their world go round. And as cheesy as it may sound, but what goes around, comes around, so in other terms, Karma is a thing, and she’s real, and if you do positive, you’ll get positive results. Which thankfully, I had encountered no negativity this year, nor any of the other years I have ever been a part of Sonic Bloom. The staff is there to help and it’s the best. From security, to medical, to stage crew, all the artists, workshop instructors, and every other staff involved in putting this together, they only put together this festival with the best of intentions, and if you have gone you’ll know exactly what I mean, if you haven’t, then this will be an experience you need to witness firsthand.

Just One Bloom & You’ll Be Hooked

Just like it did for me and a countless number of my friends, the first Bloom that you experience will not be the last. My first was back in 2014, and have gone every year since. When a festival is run properly, with the best intentions set to provide the best experience possible, you get what they thrive for. An unforgettable weekend with the best of friends, dank music, delicious food of so much variety, mind-melting art, and best yet, a weekend out in the wonders of Colorful Colorado.

Sonic Bloom 2018 Gallery

Sonic Bloom Facebook Link

Sonic Bloom Website Link

Sonic Bloom Festival TCE Tab

Sonic Bloom Video Clips Gallery Temporarily on Facebook in a playlist. Will be updated asap.

 

 

Author: Dom Ragusa