I've been going to Moonrise as VIP/Artists Guest for several years. I definitely noticed a change…read morethis year since Pasquale Rotella acquired a majority stake in Moonrise last year. Attendance was mediocre this year and they only had three stages instead of four but added the fourth stage last minute to showcase locals and up and coming artists. I thought this was cool and it gives emerging artists a chance to gain traction - check out Dochat. PLUR seemed to be on its way out here. I saw several rowdy attendees being rude and disrespectful to others. Festival life is not about that. Bring back the PLUR! Security was visible, which I appreciated. The trash though. OMG, pick up after yourselves (PLUR??)...the trash was all over the ground and exploding out of the trash cans. The butts were on point, as usual. So many butts. Tiny butts, big butts, soft butts, hard butts, dimply butts. Kudos to the girls with exaggerated self-confidence. You go, girls! GRiZ was fire. As usual. Favorite totem? BOOF! Heck, yeah!

If you're a festival goer, you will definitely see tons of cons with Moonrise. As much as I would…read morelove to speak highly and rate this festival because it's only an hour away from home (DMV area), I just can't. A couple of my friends and I decided to join a few moonrisers friends, in hopes we'll have a grand old time. Which we did have a chill weekend. It wasn't as grand as I imagined. It's a lot smaller and so is the crowd. Apparently this year's stage planning was different according to a few people. It was POORLY arrange for whatever reason. It was so weird hearing two stages at the same time. There were two semi-shade areas...in odd locations and water stations near the entrance/exit. Below is a breakdown. Overall, I wouldn't attend again but I might if a few friends really wanted to go. Entrance: Important! Prepare yourself!!! It's one of the most craziest and longest entrance compared to all fest entrance! As soon as you get there, the guards splits everyone up in 2 gender specified entrance. Ladies and Gents. Bags are thoroughly checked. Shoes must be off including socks. Which I find silly. They check your totem and whatever is in your hands. There's no actual "line"....prepare to create your own and then squeeze into one. Very unorganized. The cheer team up front was no help because the fact that you have to go through the awful line makes you not want to even continue. At least give me perks throughout the fest so I can cheer up. Ha! Vendors: The retail vendors were good and located in one area (as should). Although some are highly expensive. They offer clothing, jewelry, art, painting, tapestry, and other neat items. Food: I will have to say they had a few food trucks that I've tried from previous festivals. They are absolutely amazing, Love Cup and Gourmet Grill Cheese. Heaven!! But they also had several more great food options, from asian to american. It's soooo all tasty!! I couldn't help myself but to try almost everything. The grill cheese melted my mouth. The pizza was just filling. The chicken bun was perfect for dinner. Hands down, Moonrise had the best food options. Drinks: There were "bar" tents everywhere and bundled up. You have to get your ID checked in the VERY END of the bar and receive a wristband. Sure did not like the security guards because they took too long. Just a little tip, use a blacklight for some of the id's. There designed a certain way. Once you've received your wristband, there's like 6 in a row bars available. Maybe next time, they should put the ID Check in the middle so the line can spread equally. As for drink menu, it's not too bad. They actually serve well. Although be nice if there were more of a variety and drinks sponsors. Music: There were so many great deejays especially trap and bass. But I would love to see a variety especially from my 90s trance days. Unfortunately because of the rain, we weren't able to see a lot of the artists which I personally wanted to see. I do want a portion of my money back because I wanted to see certain artists that I've been trying to see for awhile. I only enjoyed seeing a very few on Sunday. Crowd: The crowd is young. Few adults and a good amount of young professionals. Although, they were very upbeat and chill. As for population, is wasn't even crowded. Bathrooms: These johns were DISGUSTING! They make Ultra look so good! No one cleans them out or even add toilet paper. So my advice, bring wipes and a roll (to any fest but mainly for this one). Bring sanitizers!