Electric Forest 2024: The Ultimate Local Spins Preview, Must-See Picks & Users’ Guide

Local Spins’ ‘Looking for the Perfect Beat’ columnist Todd Ernst looks ahead to this week’s mammoth festival in Rothbury with tips, recommendations and the full schedule.

 

SCROLL DOWN FOR DAILY SCHEDULES, FESTIVALGOER TIPS

It’s simultaneously easy, and hard, to remember that just a few years ago fans and friends were mourning the temporary loss of Electric Forest due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

And while it seems festivals across the country are dropping left and right, it’s amazing to see that Electric Forest — which kicks off Thursday at Double JJ Resort in Rothbury — just keeps getting better.

The diversity of of electronic music artists has always been the trademark of Electric Forest, and 2024 feels like the year where there’s a proper shift to a younger generation of acts and artists who aim to energize the 40,000 to 50,000 festivalgoers expected this weekend.

While many eyes will be intently focused on massive acts such as Charlotte De Witte, Everything Always (Dom Dolla + John Summit), Seven Lions, Subtronics, and the return of Pretty Lights, “Looking for the Perfect Beat” is generally more about helping festivalgoers find the artists that aren’t quite on their radar just yet. That said, below are artists worthy of attention beyond eclectic gems in other genres such as Umphrey’s McGee, Ludacris, String Cheese Incident, Dumpstaphunk and Lettuce.

• Cannons (8:15 p.m. Friday, Sherwood Court) – When Local Spins had the opportunity to talk to Cannons’ lead singer two years ago, the theme of that conversation was we were catching the band during the transcendent stage of their career. One of the hardest working bands out there, nearly non-stop touring in support of their newest record “Heartbeat Highway” has had them performing at Coachella and Red Rocks Amphitheatre, along with upcoming performances at Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits. As dusk sets in at Sherwood Court, I can’t think of a better vibe than that of their signature and sultry downtempo groove.
https://www.instagram.com/cannonstheband
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq5ePOCJ5iYJEUQgojeGh8A

• LP Giobbi (12:30 a.m. Saturday, Honeycomb; 11 p.m. Sunday, Carousel Club) – Often described as a “one-woman jam band”, Giobbi’s trademark DJ sets also incorporate live piano and sampling. Transfixed is the word I would use to describe her Saturday main-stage set at Movement, which was one of the highlights over Memorial Day weekend. Founder of Femme House, a nonprofit empowering thousands with production workshops, courses and scholarships for LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC creators, and co-founder of Animal Talk Collective with Sofi Tukker, she’s not just a musician; she’s a force for positive change. In addition to her sets listed above, Giobbi is hosting a Femme House panel at The Brainery at 2 p.m. Friday.
https://www.instagram.com/lpgiobbi
https://www.youtube.com/@LPGiobbi

• Mau P (12:15 a.m. Saturday, Tripolee) – After the Netherlands’ Mau P released his debut tech-house-heater “Drugs from Amsterdam” in 2022, his trajectory rose in a short amount of time. Since his meteoric rise, he has gone on to perform in headlining slots at darn near every major festival, while maintaining a coveted Las Vegas residency at the Wynn’s Encore Beach Club and XS. Mau P is one of the best bookings for this year’s Electric Forest; as his sound maintains the depth of Dutch mentors while introducing the Nexgen to a proper and mature sound of house and techno.
https://www.instagram.com/maupmusic
https://www.youtube.com/@maupmusic

• Sara Landry (2 a.m. Saturday, The Observatory) – Often referred to as the High Priestess of Hard Techno, Texas native Sara Landry is best known for her dark and feminine brand of industrial techno. She has garnered a massive following in a relatively short amount of time and is a testament to the bit of a throwback sound of the harder ’90s rave days.
Interestingly, when it was announced on Sunday that Sara would be performing at The Observatory, there were hundreds of comments suggesting her following is simply too big for the intimacy of the Forest’s boutique interior stage. While the Ranch Arena typically does not host super late-night DJ sets, I can’t help but wonder if there will be a pivot to said stage following Subtronics which finishes up at 1:45 a.m.
https://www.instagram.com/saralandrydj
https://www.youtube.com/@saralandry9223

• Sultan + Shepard (8:15 p.m. Thursday, Tripolee; 10:30 p.m. Friday, Honeycomb) – This Montreal-based duo first hit my radar 15 years ago with a monster remix of Sander Kleinenberg’s “This is Your Night”, which always maintained a slot during most of my personal DJ sets. A few years ago, their drifty synth track “September Everywhere” was a mainstay near every melodic-techno DJ set globally. Touring in support of their newest full-length release “Endless, Dawn” — which features collaborations with Elderbrook and Julia Church — their b2b set with Le Youth on Friday night at the Honeycomb has the makings of a performance for the ages as the saying goes.
https://www.instagram.com/sultanshepard
https://www.youtube.com/@sultanshepard

ELECTRIC FOREST PRO USER TIPS

• For those of you new to the Forest, every experienced attendee will tell you it’s fairly overwhelming, and there is simply no way you can do it all. Download the app, pick your artists and set a schedule if, for no other reason, you have a target to aim for.

• A suggestion I was given many years ago is to enter early on the first day, spend a few hours to take a proper lap, and get your bearings as to how the crowd flows and where the stages are located.

• Cellphone service is unreliable at best, so it’s not a bad idea to come up with a plan and location to meet if you get separated from your friends. That said, I have read Verizon dropped a new tower in the middle of the festival grounds, so with any luck this will prove to be true.

• Although this week’s heat wave will likely be mitigated a bit by the festival’s location 24 miles north of Muskegon, expected temperatures in the middle to high 80s mean attendees needs to drink plenty of water to stay hydrated, take breaks in the shade and otherwise be careful about excessive partying. Dust can also be a major hindrance, so bring masks and/or bandanas.

• Lastly, when you notice the Michigan State Police, give these folks a proper fist bump or thank you. Electric Forest is MSP’s most requested overtime event, and troopers genuinely enjoy the festival themselves. While they are on-site in an official capacity, they are some of the best event concierge types I have experienced in my 30-plus years of attending and producing events.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Todd Ernst has been an electronic music DJ and promoter for 30+ years, and performs as the artist TELLURIUM. While his days are spent as the owner of an indie real estate brokerage; he also owns EXSIGN, which is an experiential entity that designs and manages corporate, non-profit and nightlife events like Irish On Ionia and TEDxGrandRapids. He regularly provides insights into the electronic music world with his ‘Looking for the Perfect Beat’ columns at Local Spins.

Check out Local Spins coverage of Electric Forest 2023.

ELECTRIC FOREST 2024: THE SCHEDULE

Copyright 2024, Spins on Music LLC