EDC Orlando was like Insomniac’s test to see if we can build something at the next level. And if you were there, you saw the results. The Imagine Nation has done their first official main stage! At EDC we were asked to continue the tradition of the Neon Garden, and we didn’t disappoint.

EDC was the week right after Escape from Wonderland, so our hands were a little full with both those projects. An unfortunate two suckers, Zach and myself, drew the shorts straws and became the ones responsible for driving the stage over to EDC and missing Escape. We set off on our cross-country journey from California to Florida in a 30-foot box truck…which was actually a bit more fun than I had anticipated, even with the lack of sleep and food.

We got there safe and sound while the rest of the crew flew out to meet us at the site, where we could begin work. Everyone came in stoked and full of energy from Escape, where we built a bayou-style shack for Halloween, and we got started on this huge project.

We wanted to go a little more ’sacred’ this time with the theme, so the inspiration from the stage came from several different Buddhist temples. We thought this would blend in well with the style and vibe Bamboo DNA has, as we were collaborating with them on the space. And to make it even more fun of a project, we asked our dear friend ShrineOn to paint the archways of the temple. So ShrineOn + BambooDNA + Imagine Nation = EDC Orlando’s Neon Garden. Truly a beautiful formula for success.

After it was all assembled, even we were taken back at what it all looked like fully complete…a massive 50-foot main stage in a field ready to take on a crowd of 10,000+ dancing ravers.

Then the festival began, and the real antics started. Dressed in our Buddhist monk garb we walked around the crowd in single-file line chanting, lighting sage, and invoking a sense of mysticism…allowing the crowd to lose sense of where they actually were, as if tucked away in a sacred tibetan mountain top. But that wasn’t all these monks and monkess’ were there for, oh no..they also wanted to make your childlike enthusiasm come alive, taking you back to a time you had no worries except trying to squeeze as many minutes out of recess as you could. We had a pop-up parachute. We had beach balls. We had a volleyball net (and probably could’ve set a Guinness World Book of Records for the most people playing volleyball at a single time.) And we had good clean fun. The crowd was interacting with each other, and getting to know one another…creating an experience for themselves outside of the music.

Stop clowning around and let's play some volleyball!

But let’s not front, the music was pretty dope too. Especially Green Velvet and Claude Von Stroke closing out the show on the last night…while we were out in front of the crowd teaching them synchronized dance moves. The vibes were just right, even on that rainy night. The house was packed, the music was blaring, and everyone was smiling. And it was all very rewarding for all of us here at the Imagine Nation.

All members of the crowd become part of the show at an Imagine Nation stage.

Another one in the books. Look forward to see you on the next one. Imaginator out.

-Kirill Simenchik