HULAWEEN 2015
Halloween weekend, like NYE, has become a bright beacon in the otherwise off-season for festival fans.
On this spooky weekend, there are festivals all across the country where you can dance all day and night dressed up like a Teletubby or princess. You can choose from Insomniac events on the wild and restless west coast, Freaky Deaky up in Chicago, or even Voodoo Experience – set in the ever haunting town of New Orleans. However, SUWANNEE HULAWEEN offers something the others cannot…a final hurrah for the camping inclined festival goer! One last chance to stay up until the sunrise, huddled around a campfire in a cluster of folding chairs with the crisp air billowing through the Spanish moss-covered camp grounds, laughing about life. One last camping festival to close out the 2015 festival season!
Lineup: This years’ Hulaween has a very eclectic lineup. That, combined with the location and vibes of the festival, have earned it the nickname of The South’s Electric Forest. It also helps that the festival is curated by String Cheese Incident, a band that is just as eccentric as the events it sponsors. The other headliners include Pretty Lights, Primus, STS9, and Chance The Rapper with The Social Experiment. That last headliner is the one I’m most excited about! Chance is an incredible indie artist, putting new music out non-stop on his own or with his fellow Save Money crew. Hulaween is an asterisk on his Family Matters tour because it includes the band, The Social Experiment. This is an incredibly talented group of musicians who seem to be on a mission to spread empowerment, joy, togetherness and love through original music that blends genres. While this band and Chance may be off the radar for most of the crowd headed to Hulaween, I have faith that they will all be disciples after witnessing this special set. Just listen to “Wonderful Everyday” for a taste of the feels this collective can induce…
The rest of the lineup includes a variety of electronic music with artists from Griz to The Polish Ambassador to Goldfish to Big Wild. There will also be plenty of funk with Lettuce, The Nth Power, and Earphunk. Throw in some of my favorite new comers to the festival circuit like Modern Measure, Unlimited Aspect, The Hip Abduction and Sister Sparrow & The Dirty Birds and it’s going to be a great weekend of music!
Camping: Hulaween takes place at The Spirit of Suwannee Music Park. It’s completely different than most camping festivals, in a good way! The camp grounds have amenities like any other camp grounds around the country. There are showers and permanent restrooms with running water. The trees offer great natural shade in the camping areas. Typically, groups can use caution tape or rope to mark territory for fellow festival goers en route to the campgrounds. Another great feature of the camp grounds is that they have fire pits! The weather will definitely creep into the low 40’s and 50’s, which can be cold out in the elements. There will be plenty of opportunity to snuggle up to camp fires with blankets and friends in the wee hours of the morning is a treat at Suwannee!
Don’t Forget:
Warm clothes and blankets
Fire wood
More fire wood
Costumes
More costumes
Gate Times:
Thursday 10/28 (Pre-Party) – 8 AM (music starts at 3 PM)
Friday 10/29 – 8 AM
Tips from Fans:
- Go to the Bat House at sunrise or sunset for a spooky surprise from some cute friends
- If you want to set up camp on Thursday, you must have a Thursday pre-party pass. Otherwise, they will make you sit outside the box office until it’s officially open on Friday. You can purchase them at the gate ($80) or online ($65).
- HAMMOCKS FOR DAYS
- Bring a bike! or golf cart (with proof of insurance)
- There aren’t restrictions on glass or other alcohol guidelines…there isn’t a car check (which means yummy beer in bottles is allowed!)
- Keep an ear out for secret sets around the camp grounds
- SILENT DISCO RULES
- As always, prepare for rain-boots, jackets, panchos, tarps
- If you’re in the first wave of people setting up camp for a larger group, bring rope or caution tape to mark off the area you’re saving for friends – fellow Hulaweeners are good about respecting the space
More info at http://suwanneehulaween.com/ or https://www.reddit.com/r/hulaween
