Ultra Music Festival Finds The Perfect Home For Its 21st Edition [REVIEW]

What a year it was for Ultra Music Festival. After being hit with the heavy news that the Bayfront Park was no more, organizers scrambled to find a perfect new home for the spectacle. Familiarizing themselves with the stunning Virginia Key Beach, the venue was massive, overlooking the sea, and provided a generous facelift to the positive atmosphere all weekend. It was the perfect place to kick off a new era for Ultra. Celebrating its 21st edition, so much took place and we’re here to highlight some of the best moments of Ultra 2019.

The Chainsmokers surprised many with their performance to close out the festival. Contrary to the uplifting and catchy melodies you’ll hear on the radio, the duo went all out to premiere new collaborations with ILLENIUM, Crankdat, and more. The surprisingly aggressive set blew us away and really shined some light into what the future holds for one of electronic music’s biggest acts.

Arguably one of the most anticipated sets of the weekend. The reunion of Skrillex and Boys Noize truly lived up to the hype. Aside from bringing Ty Dolla $ign up to premiere new music, they flashed the crowd with a spur of unreleased bangers that only confirm Dog Blood is BACK. In an era where house music is at its best, the duo will certainly thrive in EDM’s current climate. We’re also just really happy to have Skrillex back.

So many expectations headed into the night for Alesso. What does the Swedish prodigy have left to prove? Finding himself once again in the headliner slot, the artist took fans on a trip down memory lane. Creating a perfect balance of new and old, the euphoria was at an all-time as many sung their hearts out to the classics put on display. Creating such a buzz on social media, it seemed as if those watching the livestream also found themselves in awe at the perfect set we all just witnessed thanks to Alesso.

Oliver Heldens got a major push from organizers as he rightfully earned his slot as a headliner on the main stage this year. Moving past his earlier set times, the producer took us into the afternoon and really put on a show. The array of grooves, basslines, and energy he left on that stage left more than just an impression. As he continues to climb the ladder, Oliver Heldens showed his worth this year.

With so much to take away from the weekend, we had Armin Van Buuren close out the ASOT stage with a whopping 4 hour set, Deadmau5 debut his Cube 3.0, Shaquille O’Neal joining the mosh pit during SLANDER & NGHTMRE‘s set, Adam Beyer stealing the show at Carl Cox‘s megastructure, and Cash Cash throwing a broken mixer off stage. It was an eventful 3 days to say the very least. With a giant crowd of 170k+ constantly in high spirits, the liveliness was contagious and further confirms Ultra 2019 a success.

Taking some hiccups here and there with energy outages, production failures, transportation issues, and a painful walk from the resistance island to the main festival grounds, there is a lot to take back and improve for next year. It is expected for a new festival grounds to experience issues in its first run but with just 4 months of planning, Ultra did an exceptional job at making sure its attendees remained safe and content.

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