High Ground Festival 2022 Brings High Energy to the Colorado Polo Club

On Saturday, September 10th, festival-goers kicked off their weekends with a bang at High Ground Festival 2022. With an even larger and more eclectic lineup than last year, there was a lot of excitement brewing for this year’s experience.

Lineup

Day one’s lineup included 19 groups and/or artists that performed with sets starting at 1 pm and ending at 11 pm. The lineup included bigger names like Maddy O’Neal, Elohim, Shallou, Tokimonsta, and Troyboi on the main stage. High Ground also had a second stage named the Levitate stage that featured smaller artists like LYFTD, Laika Beats, Muzzy Bearr, and Lucid Vision. The festival did an incredible job curating a diverse lineup that could provide for fans of many different genres. The diverse lineup brought in a diverse crowd with fans that loved the house, bass, techno, trap, live bands, or even were just there to discover new music. Overall, the lineup had a lot of variety and did a great job spotlighting smaller artists!

Venue

With the change of venues from last year, festival-goers didn’t know what to expect from the High Ground Festival at the Denver Polo Club. Being located in Sedalia, approximately 35 minutes from Denver, it presented a bit of an inconvenience for some festival-goers traveling from the city. Despite this, the venue was easy to enter and fairly spacious. The fields were full of green grass, which added to the experience. One of the biggest concerns at High Ground was that there were no water stations inside the venue. Because of this, security allowed for re-entry so patrons could go to their cars and get water. But if patrons were out of luck and didn’t pack any extra water in the car, they had no choice but to pay for it in the venue. This should be an improvement to consider for next year.

Vendors/Activities

Not only did High Ground Festival have an amazing lineup, but awesome vendors and activities! Vendors like Grassroots Clothing, The Wooks’ Nook, and the Eklektic Collektive were just a handful of dope food, clothing, and accessory shops at the festival. Some of the activities included learning how to make adaptogenic mocktails, learning about the practice of Reiki, and much more! There were also interactive areas, one of which allowed patrons to enter an igloo-like structure and create music on multiple instruments simultaneously. Along with these areas, there were live artists creating murals that were beautiful to watch come to life. One of the interactive art structures that especially stood out was the Qube by Diod Design. The Qube is an 8’x8’x8’ piece that strobes lights to create an audio-visual experience to the music that plays around it. It was positioned at the back of the sound booth at the High Ground stage, and patrons could also step through it as it strobed!

Production

Production-wise, festival goers were pleasantly surprised to see the detail and size of the main stage! The High Ground stage made it so that there was a good view from all angles. The top-tier visual production truly brought each artist’s vision to life. Another pleasant surprise was that both stages’ volume and sound quality were great. Even from the back of the crowd, festival-goers could still hear the music loud and clear. High Ground Festival nailed the volume and sound should always be prioritized at any festival.

Vibes/Energy

High Ground Festival had great vibes! Because many festival goers could score free tickets, they were ecstatic to be there! Many were concerned that the drastic change in weather would ruin the weekend. But to be real, when has a little cold weather and rain ever stopped any Coloradan from partying? Many showed up bundled in hoodies, jackets, and boots and still had an absolute blast. How could you not get a little hot during that fire Troyboi set? The energy at the High Ground Festival was certainly high, and it was evident that everyone was happy to be there!

Overall, High Ground Festival was a great experience! Apart from not providing water stations, the festival measured up in all other aspects! We look forward to seeing how this festival grows in the future.