Our Favorite Moments From Life Is Beautiful 2015

With reporting from Rich Thomas and John Ochoa

Though Insomniac was founded in Los Angeles, Las Vegas is no doubt our second home. Every summer, we make our yearly pilgrimage to Sin City for EDC Las Vegas, the biggest and wildest party in North America. Three months later, we’re back in the desert at Life Is Beautiful, where for the first time ever, Insomniac has partnered with the event to bring the hottest acts in electronic music—including Knife Party, Madeon, Claude VonStroke, Porter Robinson and more—all weekend at the booming Troubadour Stage.

The three-day festival focuses on four key cultural elements: music, food, art and learning. From the lush artwork splattered across the walls of Downtown Las Vegas and the prime food options surrounding the festival grounds, to the enlightening learning series discussing today’s global issues, and an eclectic roster of more than 80 chart-topping acts, Life Is Beautiful 2015 was one for the books.

These are some of our favorite memories from the weekend. It’s moments like these that remind us that Life Is Beautiful, indeed.

Dan Deacon, Man of the People

At 4:50 pm on Friday, with the Vegas sun absolutely crushing the Ambassador Stage, Deacon got the crowd fully engaged in multiple activities, like group high-fives and never-ending human tunnels. At 7:10 pm at the Toyota Music Den, under the alias DJ Ebaynetflix, he threw down some Brainfeeder-style acid house bookended by Prince’s “Kiss” and the “Tequila” song from Pee Wee’s Big Adventure. Basically, the takeaway here is that Dan Deacon doesn’t give a toss about your genres, your weather, or your desire to act like a wallflower and not get involved in the live music experience. —Rich Thomas

Calories Are Beautiful

First it was the salmon sliders from EATT, and then the Bugsy Siegel Burger—a brisket/sirloin-mix patty with bacon, pickles and grilled onions—from Siegel’s 1941 El Cortez. For dessert, we had a Margarita Cupcake from Nacho Daddy, washed down with a selection of agua frescas from the folks at Fist of Fusion. Food is a major cornerstone of the Life Is Beautiful experience, and a plethora of options was available to the masses, from vegan Jamaican cuisine and Asian fare to straight-up pub grub and a Coolhaus truck slanging custom ice cream sandwiches. Thankfully, we did a lot of walking over the weekend, but we’ll need to spend a few extra hours in the gym this week to undo some of the delicious damage we did. —Rich Thomas

Skipping Stevie Wonder for Major Lazer Is Not a Crime

You wouldn’t believe the number of internet haters I attracted when I publicly posted that I left Stevie Wonder’s set early to catch the tail end of Major Lazer. I get it: Watching Stevie Wonder is a bucket list item for every music lover, and I’m elated to have watched the master perform in my lifetime. But an extended two-hour performance from Stevie did allow me to pop in and out without feeling too much guilt. (At least I witnessed his peak cover of Bob Marley’s “Waiting in Vain.”) Major Lazer is the one and only electronic artist I will never skip, no matter how many times I’ve seen them live. They closed with an epic rendition of their DJ Snake collaboration “Lean On,” complete with a synchronized dance and lasers galore. Without a doubt, their show was proof of just how far the group has come as both producers and performers. PS: I went back to catch the closing moments of Stevie Wonder, because duhhh. —John Ochoa

Bill Nye the Science Guy Thinks We Can Change the World Together

Any child of the ‘90s understands that whenever Bill Nye the Science Guy speaks, he’s bound to drop some knowledge. It’s no surprise, then, that his speaking engagement, as part of the A Force of Good Learning Series, drew an endless line sprawling across all of Freemont East. Charming, funny, and highly informative, Nye spoke on the urgency of renewable energy. He believes the electrification of all transportation is needed and claims that all 50 US states can fully operate via wind and solar power. Technology is not the issue, he said, as the world’s leading countries possess the means to accomplish total renewable resources. Instead, he believes the complicated problem lies in government policy and human psychology. “If the US were out in front, everybody would be on board,” he says of America’s potential role as a global leader in the renewable energy race, reminding attendees that the upcoming election is a pivotal point for Americans. It’s an international concern, and one which Nye hopes every human on the planet can get behind. “This is our chance to change the world. This is our moment. This is our time.” —John Ochoa

Have Art Car, Will Travel

We saw our fair share of EDC hats at LIB—and the Troubadour Stage was lit all weekend—so you know our rave family was representing. In addition to the four main music areas, the boomboxARTCAR and wideawakeARTCAR rolled in and set up shop just off 8th Street, bumping out tunes to the travelling masses en route from stage to stage. Even though we were 500 miles from the Bill Graham Auditorium and our Beyond baes, Insomniac’s art cars quelled our Wonderland FOMO. —Rich Thomas

Steady Mobbin’

What’s better than a single, deftly orchestrated flash mob? Fourteen deftly orchestrated flash mobs. Starting around 6pm each night, the LIB crew organized flash mobs in all different areas of the festivals, and the crowds were more than willing to take part. —Rich Thomas

Getting up Close and Personal With Our Favorite Artists at the Toyota Music Den

Don’t get me wrong. Watching my favorite acts at the skyscraping Downtown Stage makes my skin break out in goosebumps. But there’s something very personal when I’m five feet away from a performing artist. The Toyota Music Den, presented by Spin, Stereogum and Vibe, brought some of the best acts of the weekend for intimate, stripped-down sets for the hardcore fans. Everyone from Cashmere Cat, Big Data, Saint Motel, Walshy Fire of Major Lazer, New Politics, and more took over the small stage at the Toyota Music Den, where festivalgoers danced, high-fived, and selfied their way to Zen-like happiness. Skip camping out all day at the front row of the mainstage and head to your nearest music den for your next festival set. —John Ochoa

Dropping It Like It’s Hot With Snoop Dogg

Missing any West Coast performance from Snoop Dogg is a musical offense I’m not willing to commit. As expected, the Doggfather brought out fans by the thousands, crowding the Ambassador Stage from the very front of the barricades and spilling into Freemont Street. Watching Snoop was equivalent to hearing his Greatest Hits collection in the flesh, with every smash track from “Drop It Like It’s Hot” to “Lodi Dodi.” I looked to my left and saw the neon glow of the Ambassador Motel proudly touting the message, “Now Serving Gin and Juice,” and I was reminded why Snoop is and forever will be the king of the West Coast. —John Ochoa

The Grass Is Always Greener

When it comes to festival production on a grand scale, it’s the tiny details that sometimes matter most. Case in point: the strategically placed grass in various sections of the festival, specifically in the VIP area. A reported 125,000 square feet of sod was laid down at Life Is Beautiful. If you were lucky enough to have VIP credentials, that meant you could thrown down a blanket on Friday and let the soothing sounds of Stevie Wonder wash all over you while you kicked it lawn-style. You could also grub down in the green area adjacent to the Art Motel. When the temperatures climb to 100 degrees and you’re surrounded by parking lots, a little green goes a long way. —Rich Thomas

A Three-Night Stay at the Art Motel

As one of the festival’s driving pillars, the art at Life Is Beautiful felt like a festival within a festival. A select pool of international artists and modern street artists contributed to this year’s programming via interactive installations and larger-than-life murals splattered across the buildings of Downtown Las Vegas. Situated at the corner of E. Stewart Ave. and E. 7th St., the Art Motel stood as the multicolored crown jewel of the weekend. This hands-on, multisensory installation is composed of various rooms showcasing the work of dozens of artists and creators using every media imaginable. From the second floor art walls to the zany chalk drawings under your feet, every inch of the Art Motel was covered in beautiful imagery and more colors than a jumbo Crayola box. There was even a mural-painting robot creating images I could’t even begin to imagine. Here’s one hotel getaway we’re bound to revisit. —John Ochoa

JAUZ Is a Star Waiting to Explode

We’ve been keeping a close eye on JAUZ since day one, and dude’s been on the rise from the get-go. There’s no doubt he had the biggest crowd at the Troubadour Stage all weekend, even though he went up directly against heavyweights like Chance the Rapper and Duran Duran. (As an homage, he played the latter’s 1982 hit “Hungry Like the Wolf” before dropping some bad beats and diving head-first into a trapped-out bass odyssey.) The next day, I chilled with young JAUZ at the Hyde Out VIP structure at the Downtown Stage during the surprise set from the Killers, when I joked, “This Killers crowd is almost as big as your crowd last night.” It was an exaggeration, but I have a feeling it’s not completely out of the picture in his near future. Trust me on that one. —John Ochoa

Cocktails Are Beautiful

What does it take to create a craft cocktail experience and scale it to accommodate tens of thousands of thirsty festivalgoers? Ask Willy Shine and the Batch Ops team. Like boozy scientists hidden beside the epic Troubadour Stage, they hand-squeeze fresh ingredients, add juices and sweeteners, and deliver the mixes to the various bars around the festival, taking into account things like flavor profiles and dilution rates. The bartenders will then add the alcohol, ice, and other elements—following a detailed process laid out by Batch Ops, of course—and serve. One of our favorites was the Whiskey Bite: Templeton Rye, ancho chili liqueur, bitters, and spiced honey lemonade. “No one else in the world is doing what we’re doing here at Life Is Beautiful,” says Shine. —Rich Thomas

Surprise Set From the Blood Moon

The sky was literally lit with the blood moon. All Sunday night, my social media feeds were flooded with blood moon hashtags and blurry photos of the sky. Still, nothing compared with looking up into the stars from the Hyde Out and seeing the blood-red moon shining brighter than I’ve ever seen. Ironically, the blood moon peaked during Walk the Moon’s set over at the Downtown Stage (cue the sardonic Walk the Blood Moon Snaps). The blood moon was by far the best “surprise set” of the weekend. —John Ochoa

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