The curtain has closed on the second day of 2016 Electric Harambe Zoo as I am now dubbing the festival. Harambe is as ubiquitous as acne as a junior prom with a whole new crop of t-shirts and signs making an appearance on Saturday. In addition to the new Harambe tributes, a new wave of artists rolled into the Zoo including Porter Robinsin, Hermitude, Big Gigantic and Tiësto. We give you the low down on what happened on Randall's Island.
3:15 - The Sunday School tent started late today with Elrow, but De La Swing has the place grooving. A lot of the decorations are new, but the structure is the same. The sound is also much more upbeat today.
3:45 - Louis The Child keep the hype-train going with their set, showcasing some of their own internet famous tunes and those from their friends in the Hilltop Tent.
4:30 - Though it was another gorgeous day outside, the Hilltop Tent stayed packed for Hermitude who brought down the house. Luke Dubs mans the keyboards, while El Gusto handles the controller and turntables, which he does very, very well. It is rare to see turntablism at a festival, but there it was.
5:00 - The pair come out front in front of the crowd and bring a controller and keyboard to play a live rendition of Kanye West's "All Day" for all to see.
5:05 - Two people brought large, battery-powered fans to the festival. I have no idea how they got them in, but it is smart.
5:10 - Harambe is everywhere. A straight up sign with his picture was present in the tent. Another with a small picture of him and a whole bunch of other internet sayings went to go greet Harambe. Then another sign brought together two of the greatest internet conspiracies of the past 15 years - "Jet fuel can't melt Harambe."
5:30 - After a short changeover with some different equipment, Goldfish are on. It is a very different mood from what was just played with a more summery house vibe being set. David Poole plays both saxophone and flute, in between DJing, while Domonic Peters plays an upright electric bass and the keys. This is about as live as it gets for electronic music with two guys without having a full band. This is the type of show that needs to be outdoors, not stuck in the Hilltop Tent.
6:20 - KSHMR is showing why he has built himself for the main stage. The man is a wizard as a producer, putting out several sample packs and producing for the likes of Beyoncé, Selena Gomez and Far East Movement in the pop world, not to mention the countless other big dance acts. His set is at its best when he switches up the tempos and rhythms from the typical main stage sounds one expects, but the hits work and he plays them.
6:40 - SBCR aka Sir Bob. Great name first off. The Bloody Beetroots is already a great name. So going with Sir Bob is another quality addition. He is not playing around with his selections that range from heavy electro to trap to dubstep and house. He is joined on stage by Steve Aoki to do a special throw back of "Warp 1.9" -- a huge record for both of them.
8:00 - Big Gigantic have the Hilltop Arena on lock. The sun has set and their colorful visuals are ready to go. They are mixing together remixes of popular songs like "Get Em High" and "All The Way Up" with tracks from their new album Brighter Future. The saxophone and live drumming make it even more special in the mix of mostly all DJ sets.
8:20 - At last it is Porter Robinson's turn. The anti-main stage act, donning a black knitted cap and long sleaves, his music appeals to the masses without attempting to. He completely changed his sound and image as an artist with Worlds and as a result became a bigger and more respected artist. That has translated to his live show, which allows him to sing vocals and do live edits of his own songs with a drum pad and keyboard.
9:00 - The set is different from the straight Worlds Live tour, but he still dives into the album extensively. He also breaks out some tracks from some other artists and older songs like "Spitfire," "Say My Name" and the anthemic "Easy."
9:15 - Robinson ends with "Language" as fireworks go off the background. Not sure if anybody can top that.
9:25 - A lot of fans were there for Porter, but most of them wanted Tiësto and it was finally his time.
9:57 - He brings out Vassy as his special guest to sing one of their collaborations "Secrets." It is somewhat disappointing that KSHMR didn't show up since he was the one who primarily produced the song.
10:10 - Heading to the back stage area, Steve Aoki is seen leaving clutching a pillow. Touring can be tough, especially when you have a long after party to attend.
10:40 - After going through all sorts of different styles and genres that Tiësto has dabbled in over the past two years from house to more mainstream pop, he gets back to his roots with the classic "Adagio For Strings." It is one for those who have been with him since the beginning. He also plays his classic "He's A Pirate" remix from Elements Of Life. He closes out the night with "Silence," which he recalls first playing in New York at the now closed Limelight nightclub.
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