Imagine Music Festival celebrated its 5^th year last weekend, and if you’ve attended in years past, there’s no question 2018 saw major improvements. Artists such as Alesso, Bassnectar, Griz, Kaskade, Zeds Dead, Galantis, and Adventure Club (to name a few) took to the stage in Atlanta for a memorable end of summer celebration.

Imagine, year after year, has been known to ask its attendees what they can do better, and 2018 proved that they’re listening. The main stage saw a dramatic transformation, looking as though it came straight from Insomniac’s EDC Orlando- an extremely impressive feat for a festival in its 5^th year. Water stations were easily accessed, lines were never long, and the layout made for absolutely no sound bleed. We can’t stress this enough: keep giving them your feedback because they are listening.

The main stage was the most notable feature with an incredible sound system and a production team working overtime to deliver. Between the impressive array of lasers, flames, fireworks, and confetti, Oceania provided a remarkable escape from reality. The size of the area surrounding each stage made for easy access to the front where you could find people who were, for the most part, conscious of others space- something hard to come by depending on the festival. Disco Inferno brought a vibe that was unlike the Oceania and Amazonia stage, allowing for a truly unique experience across the festival grounds.

Side note: The lines to enter the festival were never horribly long. We didn’t hear of anyone having to wait 30+ minutes to get in which frequently happens at other festivals.

Aside from the stages, the unique vendors this year dazzled festival goers with custom clothing that one hopes to find only at a festival and not online- beautifully hand painted jean jackets and all. The venue also provided plenty of food options, water stations, bar areas, and bathrooms that could be conveniently accessed from any point in the venue. I can’t attest for the men’s room, but the women’s bathroom had workers equipped with spray deodorant, body spray, hair products, and everything a girl might need when she looks in the mirror for the first time in five hours and realizes that we are in fact in the humid south.

The heat was the only drawback to camping, although they did listen and push the festival back after complaints in 2016 about the unbearable August weather. They did have an ice cart that drove through the campgrounds throughout the weekend, a huge convenience for those of us camped at the back. Silent Disco was arguably the best feature of the campgrounds- it packed out every night until sunrise, giving campers something to do after the sets ended (which was already at 3:00 A.M. Friday and Saturday, a major plus).

Overall, the consensus from the weekend seems to be that Imagine absolutely brought their A game, especially in terms of production and delivering a truly immersive carefree experience. IMF continues to see immense growth, and Iris truly values their attendees honest feedback year after year. For a festival only in its 5^th year, we see loads of potential and even better times ahead.

Follow @imaginemusicfestival to keep up with the latest from the weekend.