Heard It Here First

The Valley of The Seven Stars: a cosmic wonderland of magic, love, and funkadelic bass. It may seem like a tall task to follow up on the ultra-successful inaugural run of the festival last year, but, like he always does, the funky man himself delivered a gem of a weekend. Year two of GRiZ’s festival saw great improvements all around, with a new afters stage dubbed The Satellite, a unique diner installation named Wubski’s, great logistical step forwards, and a growing sense of community and home. This HIHFer was lucky enough to go to both iterations of the festival with plans to continue going yearly. It’s hard to truly sum up Seven Stars in a few words. The festival is healing, exhilarating, captivating, soul-cleansing, driven by free-spiritedness, and so much more. The saxophone playing guru of bass music has curated an experience for ravers of all kinds, with the only rule being to treat yourself, others, and the festival grounds with love and respect.

Getting to this festival early is a must. It gives you time to explore the grounds, go shopping, and dance to the whopping five hours of sets across three different stages. However, the myriad of exceptional vendors selling rave goodies and the merch tent could wait, as early arrivers scrambled to Ouroboros, a gorgeous wooden stage set in the middle of the forest, to catch the surprise Know Good couch set, an absolutely killer way to start the weekend. The party continued with standout sets from HIHF guest mix alum Mocha, Jaenga who played strictly hard bass and riddim, and Seth David who closed out the night with some hip hop bass flips and awesome lasers. Attendees went back to their campsites salivating, excited for the weekend-long experience to continue.

The official day one of Seven Stars kicked off with beautiful sunshine, a great foreshadowing for one of the tracks that GRiZ would play on his night one set. As the rest of the festival goers got to the grounds, early arrivers could participate in arts and crafts, wellness activities, and other exploration. Wubskis, the new restaurant in The Valley, was the first stop on Friday’s journey. The GRiZ themed diner is a blast from the past with the trademark checkered floors, delicious food, paper hats, and a hometown feel. This diner is one of the many upgrades that shows just how much the dubstep don cares about the festival and the seven stars family as whole, putting niche personal touches and generally improving the experience for everyone. 

The music from that day was a masterclass in psychedelic and experimental bass, with amazing performances from G Jones, Thought Process, Jade Cicada, Daily Bread, and rSUN all brought their best stuff, dazzling the crowd with groovy bass and beautiful lasers. GRiZ closed down day one with a bang. At last, the festival was off and running, and no one wanted it to stop.

Saturday started off hot, with the ferocious sounds of Capochino followed by the sploinky viral sensations, Richard Finger. Both sets were bass-face inducing masterpieces and as the last song wound down, it was time to gear up for GRiZ’s famous Chasing The Golden Hour set. The set started with messages about love from the DJ’s close family and friends, and then the funky man played gorgeous groovy tracks as the magic emanating from the festival grounds kept the rain away. Afterwards, Effin, Nikita The Wicked, and Mersiv, respectively, all put on performances that pushed the bounds of each artists’ capabilities. As the rain began to gain a little traction, LSDream stepped on stage, and we were not ready for what the steward of peace love and wubz had to offer. Arguably the best set I’ve ever seen, the performance started off hot with some wild sounding tracks and unreleased beats that awed the crowd. The music was not the only spectacle; the lasers combined with the rain created unique glitter lasers which were a gorgeous melding of nature and technology. The set ended with a heartfelt track about forgiving yourself which brought many in the crowd to tears. After LSDream left his all on the stage, Crankdat was up with a bass barrage set that kept listeners dancing until the inner venue closed for the night. 

The festival goers then had a choice between stages, with Satellite having big energy bass, Ouroboros bringing the Riddim, and the Barn Burner showcasing some experimental sounds. This HIHFer went to the Satellite stage to catch the surprise guest of the night, EAZYBAKED, a filthy and high energy affair. Even though the rain had been falling for a while, the spirits remained high and anticipation soared for day three of this unreal fest.

The rain poured, the ground was muddy, but none of that would deter the masses of Seven Stars. Ponchos, rain boots, spare socks galore, we were collectively gearing up for a high powered lineup on Sunday. The schedule of the day featured big names like Steller, Cool Customer, Clozee, Distinct Motive, Zingara, the premier b2b of Levity and LYNY, just to name a few. Each set was unique. The surprise of the night was when Wooli came out during GRiZ’s final set, and the mammoth loving producer even had his own surprise afters at the Satellite stage. Instead of attending the surprise, this HIHFer chose to go to Vincent Antone who closed down the festival beautifully, blending guitar, vocal samples from multiple genres, and of course filthy bass.

The feelings that this festival inspires are incredibly special. Seven Stars is just one of those events that every raver needs to check off their bucket list. The attention, care, and time that GRiZ and the rest of his team put into this experience is incredibly evident, and the whole thing really feels like a warm hug. This festival is a personal love letter from GRiZ to his fans, which will continue to level up, and we are so excited to see what the future has in store.

Follow the HIHF team on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to keep up with news, fresh tunes, merch giveaways, exclusive mixes, interviews, and so much more!