Photo of SeatGeek Stadium The Xavierite
With six stages, numerous art installations, and an incredible lineup of DJ’s, North Coast Music Festival was a bang this year! The Labor Day weekend festival held its 14th iteration at Bridgeview’s SeatGeek Stadium from Friday, Aug. 30 until Sunday, Sept. 1.
As each of the three days began, fans including myself were immediately enveloped into the stadium grounds that were filled with attractions. Notable attractions included a ferris wheel, hydro-dipping arms, and even yoga.
This was my first ever experience at an EDM festival, and I had no idea what to expect. I found many vendors in tents selling colorful bags, shirts, hats, glasses, and even pashminas.
Unlike the Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash, which previously took place at SeatGeek, the sports dome was utilized as an air-conditioned stage where performers could pump the volume.
I enjoyed the overall creativity of the festival. One of the stages, “The Shipyard,” was completely built out of shipping containers. Additionally, “The Fire Pit” had multiple fire aspects including a burning roof that provided warmth to festival goers at night.
The festival was extremely photogenic, with many photo opportunities and brightly colored statues placed around the grounds.
Fans rushed to the stadium stage at the end of each night, where the headliners were to perform. The headliners of the festival were DJ Diesel (Shaquille O’Neal), SUBTRONICS, Sevon Lions, Illenium, and Two Friends.
All performers put on quite the show, with pyrotechnics, laser beams, flashing lights, and more. The bass was incredible, and some performers even brought out surprises. One of these surprises was the performers Two Friends bringing out an entire drumline to assist in creating their beats. As well, one of the performers from the first day began playing violin live against a microphone while DJ’ing.
My favorite performance throughout the three days was DJ Diesel’s. Shaq had a unique way of interacting with his fans in the pit. He consistently hyped up the large crowd and called for them to initiate mosh pits. All of the performers were good at keeping the audience entertained, but I truly saw the best experience from him.
Overall, the experience was amazing for my first time. The people in attendance were very kind, and I learned a lot about the dress style of EDM fans.
North Coast Music Festival returns to SeatGeek Stadium for its fifteenth anniversary from Aug. 29 to 31, 2025.
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