REVIEW: Seismic Dance Event 2025 Was A Weekend of Techno, Surprise Standouts, and Big Energy
REVIEW
REVIEW
☆ BY SOPHIE GRAGG ☆
Photo By Miguel Muzquiz
Photo By Julian Bajsel
SEISMIC DANCE EVENT TRANSFORMED THE CONCOURSE PROJECT TO A WHOLE NEW LEVEL - This year was my first time attending the electronic music festival, and even though I go to The Concourse Project all the time as an Austin local, I was taken back by the production of the venue. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but seeing how completely they transformed the venue into a three-stage festival with massive production instantly set the tone. Across all three days, each stage had its own personality, and the crowd energy shifted in ways that made the weekend feel dynamic, immersive, and genuinely special.
We arrived a little later on Friday and caught the end of Lily Palmer before heading into Volcano, Concourse’s main indoor space, to see ACRAZE. This set ended up being one of the best surprises of the weekend. The crowd had tons of space to dance even up close, and his feel-good energy completely set the vibe for night one.
Outside at the Tsunami stage, Eli Brown drew a huge crowd. I was blown away by the production: massive screens, intense lighting, and a level of polish I honestly wasn’t expecting.
We headed back into Volcano for Cassian and then one of my favorites, Dombresky. His set felt almost tropical at first, slowly building into something heavier. Even though he’s more house-leaning and the festival skews more techno, he fit in perfectly.
While Charlotte de Witte closed out the night on Tsunami, Swimming Paul wrapped things up at Frequency. Friday ended up being the perfect warm-up: enough room to dance, a clear sense of the festival layout and a great read on the crowd’s energy.
Saturday was noticeably busier, which made sense, given the headliners and the natural weekend rush. We got there earlier and started at Tsunami with Sultan + Shepard. Their set was the perfect feel-good opener for the night.
We then made our way to Frequency for Daniel Allan, one of the sets I was most excited about. He had a breakout year last year, and his upbeat, feel-good energy fit the stage’s intimate vibe perfectly. Frequency felt more like a boutique dance floor, with the disco ball and smaller scale, it added a fresh dynamic to the festival.
Trying to get inside Volcano for San Pacho (and eventually Noizu) ended up being one of the biggest challenges of the night. The line took an hour, and not everyone even made it in. The silver lining was that we could watch the full Sultan + Shepard set from the line, which ended up being unexpectedly perfect.
Once we finally got inside, we stayed put for the rest of the night. Noizu absolutely stole Saturday for me—one of the best sets of the entire weekend. We stayed for Odd Mob knowing that if we left, we wouldn’t get back inside. While we did miss Lane 8 because of it, Odd Mob kept the energy high and the room buzzing.
Saturday was the most crowded night by far, but also the most electric.
Sunday was the day I was most excited for, and it totally lived up to the hype. The earlier start time meant we arrived while it was still bright out, giving us a better sense of the festival as a whole. We wandered through vendor rows, stopped by the Swift Fit essential oil bar, and explored the Technobus activation and the venue’s quirky seesaws and fun installations.
We opened the day with Duke Dumont at Tsunami, one of my favorite performers, and catching his set outdoors was such a dream. Then we headed inside for Ranger Trucco, who delivered an incredibly fun, high-energy set. You could tell he was loving every second, which made the room even more alive.
Back outside, Mochakk was another major highlight. I hadn’t seen him in a while, and he brought exactly the chaotic, charismatic energy I was hoping for.
We finished the night, and the festival, inside Volcano. The Blessed Madonna started a little slow, but within twenty minutes had the entire room locked in. And then came Gorgon City, who delivered the best set of the entire weekend for me. I’ve seen their name on lineups for years but never caught them live until now. They completely blew me away: dynamic, polished, and so much fun.It was the perfect finale.
Seismic ended up being such an unexpectedly great festival experience. Even though I’m not usually a huge techno girlie, I had an amazing time. The production was top-tier, the stages were thoughtfully curated, and the crowd felt positive and energized all weekend long. I left with new favorite sets, a deeper appreciation for The Concourse Project team’s vision, and a desire to come back next year.
