Music Festival Stages That Will Blow Your Mind

Ever had that mesmerizing feeling that you’re part of a completely unique special moment during your favorite live band’s concert?

Maybe you really were at the right time in the right place and with the right people, but we bet it’s even more than that: excellent music performances are usually backed up by awesome stage effects you can’t take your eyes off.

Weather it’s light or fire shows, impressive sculptures or visual projections, some stages are meant to be unforgettable. Let’s have a look into these ten music festival stages that blew people’s minds:

STAGE 1 – ‘Giant Stories’ at TOMORROWLAND (2012, Boom, BELGIUM)

This giant stage with a storytelling theme enchanted huge crowds from over 75 countries, attending the electronic music festival held annually in Boom, Belgium.

Giant books with interactive features were displayed at the main stage. The visual projections and light shows during the DJ sets made huge heads of mythical creatures to come out of the stage and ‘talk’ to the crowds. The stage project was designed and executed by Giant Stage.

STAGE 2 – ‘Bamboo Temple’ at BOOM Festival (2014, PORTUGAL)

This small art piece stage was carefully designed from bamboo, a very light and good-looking, natural material.

It’s almost a tradition for the biennial transformational Portuguese music and arts festival to work with natural elements and put into spotlight the people’s need of reconnecting with Mother Earth. This stage is no exception, using biomimicry at its best.

STAGE 3 – ‘Alice Beyond Wonderland’ at BEYOND WONDERLAND (West Coast, U.S.)

This American electronic dance festival definitely has a fetish for Lewis Caroll’s most famous character, but imagine yourself wondering through the story’s illustrations that are just brought to life on stage. 

This stage had it all: giant magic mushrooms and caterpillars, the Cheshire cat, decorations that made you feel like a dwarf, energetic music and a costumed crowd. The prefect stage for adulthood to go back to childhood and dance like there’s no tomorrow.

STAGE 4 – ‘The Laser Portal’ at Ultra Music Festival ( Miami, U.S., 2015)

 

This EDM music stage looks like it’s coming from the Transformers film, but it’s actually better: the amount of sheer technology behind the whole thing was staggering, but even more than that, the way it all coordinated  — the music, the lights, the stage, the people — made you feel less like you were at a concert and more like you were inside the stomach of a very funky robot. The stage was designed by the famous Steve Lieberman.

STAGE 5 – ‘Back in the Old Days’ at WOODSTOCK 1969

Even though it might look pretty vintage, this stage is worth mentioning since it already went down in history. Remember, there was no hi-tech as we know it back then and everything was pretty much executed manually by incredible painters and drawing artists.

Woodstock was the home for some four thousands people in the late sixties, had a very hippie ‘Peace & Love’ vibe and stage decorations you won’t ever find in the digital era. Getting nostalgic already?

STAGE 6 – ‘Theatrical Trip’ at Defqon.1  Festival (Almeerderstrand NETHERLANDS, 2014)

This psychedelic trance festival knows how to capture the eye’s attention. This stage is epic and completes the crazy Dutch partying experience every year.

The huge theatrical mask interacted with the crowds through lights, visual projections, fireworks and mapping. Completely insane!

STAGE 7 – ‘The Skeleton’ at DOWNLOAD FESTIVAL (Leicestershire, UK, 2014)

This British summer rock and heavy metal festival stage might look scary, but it definitely had impact on the viewers.

The rockers know that there’s nothing more fabulous than listening to those electric guitar rhythms while being ‘watched’ by the all-mighty Death Lord.

Linkin Park, Dying Fetus, The Offspring or Iceman Thesis are just a few of the big rock band names that performed at Download in 2014.

STAGE 8 – ‘Metal Spider’ Arcadia Stage at BoomTown Fair (Hampshire, UK)

This six-legged beast-stage made history in the English electronic steampunk music and arts festival. Fully equipped with lasers and fire-spitting devices, the metal spider delighted the crowds.

See the crazy bastard in action:  

Anybody who has been to Glastonbury should be familiar with Arcadia and it’s giant ‘spider-stage’, with acrobats and the most spectacular fire show.

The Arcadia people have taken the stage to other festivals, but they bought the full spider to Boomtown. The added bonus of being able to watch the show from up on the hill (and away from the 5,000 or so punters dancing like crazy below) made it even more special.

STAGE 9 – Mobile Unicorn at Burning Man (Black Rock City, Nevada Desert, 2014)

Perhaps the most famous festival for art installations and stages in the United States is Burning Man. This under the radar Unicorn-On-Wheels stage, called Candy Mountain by the building artists, from the 2014 edition, looks really colorful and hilarious. Add the fire spitting horn in the desert’s sunset light and you get the idea: magical fun!

STAGE 10 – Geodesic Dome at COACHELLA ( California, Colorado Desert )

West Coast of USA always seemed an experimental and inventive corner of the world. No wonder most Californian music festivals choose alternative structure for stages and living spaces.

And when your festival happens in the desert, well, there you go: a geodesic dome is the answer. Uncovered by daytime to offer an airy atmosphere, and covered during nighttime to retain the heat, the dome is not only good-looking, but also provides the comfort artists and public need.

Which one of the ten stages is your favorite? Write us in a comment on our Facebook page.