This year’s Counterpoint Music Festival, held in Atlanta, Georgia, will boast multiple headliners in what is sure to be an eargasmic weekend. However, lineups are all looking the same these days — that’s why it’s best to sometimes look down to the lower tiers to find hidden gems that truly make the experience at a music festival unique. For this year’s festival, we’ve picked out five of our favorite artists who we believe you should absolutely not miss.
1. Jauz
The young upstart from Los Angeles quickly rose to prominence for his bass house signature sound. Since teaming up with label behemoths Buygore and OWSLA, his rise has been even more pronounced. His shows are characterized by intense, energetic sets that don’t let up for even a moment. If you’re looking to explore some of the newer sounds coming out of the Los Angeles area, this is your guy.
2. Goldfish
Goldfish is a duo from South Africa that puts on one hell of a show. Utilizing live saxophone and double bass, the pair perform upbeat, energetic house rhythms that don’t prescribe to any formula. They’ve traveled the globe performing at dozens of festivals and have the stage presence and talent to back it up. I guarantee you’ll be looking up the words to their hit “Three Second Memory” after you leave the fest.
3. Haywyre
Having already produced a massive amount of music before his arrival at Monstercat, Haywyre has cemented a style all his own. Accompanied by his trusty Nektar Panorama P6 at all times, Haywyre’s live performances are filled with jazz and live improvisation, something you won’t get from any other producer/DJ on the lineup. With a catalogue spanning seven albums and multiple EPs and singles, you can bet that every set will be special.
4. Gorgon City
What do I even need to say about this duo? They’re billed pretty low on the Sunday lineup which gives us the perfect opportunity to ask Counterpoint, “Why?” These guys have been on TV for goodness sake. But seriously, their debut album Sirens last year was a phenomenal example of how to make good dance music, especially in an era of overproduced mainstage anthems. This duo will give you a show you won’t soon forget. They’ll only be performing a DJ set at Counterpoint, unfortunately, but rest assured that the music will more than make up for the lack of stage props.
5. Moving Castle
Okay, so Moving Castle isn’t just one artist — but it’s a collective, so let us have this one, yeah? Either way, we’re super excited for this particular group of producers so hit the Silent Disco areas of the festival this year.
In previous years, Silent Disco was held on three separate stages; this year, the event only emcopasses two in a refined production. Artists will play from 12am-5am Friday and Saturday and 10pm-4am Sunday. During the performances the Counterpoint staff will be providing over 2500 headphones for those who wish to partake in this extremely unique spectacle.
Representing the Moving Castle collective will be names like robokid, AOBeats, Manilla Killa, Michal Menert, Ba-Kuura, Vices, Cray and Cat Moop. Lovers of the unique stylings of Moving Castle will most certainly be satiated.
