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- May 8, 2023
Sundream Baja Closing Weekend, May 11-14 – What To Get Excited For
Featured photo credit: Michael Drummond / @michaeldrummondphoto
Sundream Baja, now in year two of its destination weekend event curated by RÜFÜS DU SOL, is quickly turning over between the opening weekend, which just happened, to the closing weekend, which is coming up. Now that we’ve had a sneak peek of what to expect, thanks to weekend one updates, here is what I’m looking forward to!
The artists, duh!
This is a no-brainer, but this is a lineup that would be worth seeing, even if one were to ignore the magical destination. Of course, three RÜFÜS DU SOL sets are enough to make anyone cry, especially with two of them being live sets. Weekend two attendees will see the return of Weval, Jimi Jules, DJ Tennis b2b Carlita, Jonas Rathsman, Yulia Niko, and Modern Tales, all of whom performed during the first weekend. But weekend two also brings some new faces, including frequent RDS collaborator, Cassian. Given the hosting trio’s penchant for sweeping melodies and emotional vocals, it seems fitting that they fill the bill with other producers with similar leanings, such as WhoMadeWho (live), SOHMI, and Uyiko. And let’s definitely not forget that house music is where the party’s at – this is a fact, I will not be elaborating further – and Mystery Affair, Dixon, DJ Puma, Colyn, and Bedouin around rounding out the lineup to keep the energy levels high in between all of the other emotional sets.
The venue and art.
This year’s festivities are located at El Ganzo Sculpture Gardens, which is part of a unique boutique hotel known for its color and art. Palm trees and cacti sprawl abundantly across the grounds, cropping out of the grass that will serve as the dance floors for all sets. The gardens seem to be lit up with vertical lighting fixtures that were featured in RDS’s iconic Joshua Tree performance and hanging string lights will mark the route into the venue itself. The immersion in the Sculpture Gardens assures some awesome opportunities to enjoy and experience art. And while the beaches seem to be some distance away, the proximity of the grounds to the water will surely make for some beautiful sunsets, which will be the cherry on top of an already magical weekend that promises intimate experiences.
And, of course, the production will tie everything together.
Speaking of intimate, all sets take place on one stage only – thank goodness for no conflicts. The stage setup appears to be sweeping arches of varying heights, the middle of which can be projected onto to make for some very interesting visuals! Light bars flank the tops and bottoms of each arch. It’s hard to tell which direction the stage is pointing towards, but it looks like it may point East which means the sunset in the West will illuminate the backdrop of these sets…but don’t quote me on that because I’m terrible with directions. I’ve seen several comments about the wonderful production work from weekend one and given the attention to detail that RDS is known for with their stage design, I know this will be a highlight of the weekend.
If you’re interested in following along for the weekend, I’ll be posting stories via Instagram.
