Words By: Scott Keller
Photos By: Canonblue Lalley

New Orleans, LA

Voodoo Music and Arts Experience

Like Halloween itself, Voodoo always offers a reason to get excited for the fall. With the 2017 festival firmly behind us but fresh in our minds, it's time we shared some of the reasons why this event is consistently one of the coolest things a music and arts fan can get get into.

Gulf coast folks are no strangers to New Orleans, and Voodoo weekend is about as good a time as any to make the short trip over to visit our neighbors. This year's event was once again graced by beautiful weather. The cool late October air made for a pleasant trip from the city into the park, where festival goers were treated to the intuitively laid out festival grounds that, while mostly similar to previous setups, still offered new places to explore for returning guests. One of the festival's defining attributes is their consistent offering of a variety of music: there's a little something for most everyone, and the music could be heard from the various stages beginning early in the afternoon. After dark is when another of the festival's defining attributes really shines through, and that is the atmosphere.

Thousands of people clad in all sorts of Halloween attire can be found making their way between the various stages, shops and vendors, but there are always areas where the crowd thins out into cozy hideouts beneath the hanging moss of the park's trees, or near the warm glow of the giant torches. Near the center of all this is the eerie Mortuary haunted house and grounds, where one might find refuge alongside a tombstone, or be stalked by a ghoul. This year's setup was particularly impressive. The house itself was a nice touch last year, but they really stepped it up this year by making the tour longer, with more corridors and frightening actors, and the addition of a particularly disorienting funhouse style tunnel room, all of which made for quite the fun trip.

When not catching a band, exploring the graveyard, wine garden, sponsor hangouts, shops or any of the other dozens of things to find on the grounds, people can be found at the other most popular gathering places: the food areas. Voodoo always delivers a huge variety of tasty treats, with a healthy dose of regional Louisiana and southern style cuisine. Guests having the ability to preload their payment info onto their festival wristbands allows them to pay for their goods with a flick of the wrist, which helps keep things moving along. Less time in line leaves more time for the good stuff, right?

This year's event was topped by headlining acts Foo Fighters, Kendrick Lamar, The Killers, DJ Snake and LCD Soundsystem, who gave great performances topped off by Voodoo's always first rate production. In one of my favorite moments of the weekend, Prophets of Rage paid tribute to their former Audioslave bandmate Chris Cornell by playing an instrumental version of "Like A Stone" behind an unoccupied, illuminated mic stand as the crowd sang the lyrics in his place. Foo Fighters- who are currently sitting among the top acts of the rock world- gave an unsurprisingly awesome performance that only added to the magic of Saturday's festivities. The peripheral stages were showcasing regional and up and coming acts as is common with the festival, and there was certainly some New Orleans style jazz and funk to be found.

Voodoo always seeks to be, and succeeds at becoming something more than just a concert. It's a fully immersive, cultural event with its own style and energy. Of the people I spoke to, some who had travelled quite a distance, the environment and hospitality of the event ranked among their top reasons for choosing to attend. Cool drinking water is provided free of charge to ensure everyone stays hydrated. The various lounge areas offer plenty of opportunities to mingle, bond and make new friends. It is worth noting as well that one of my friends in attendance had a recent ankle injury, which gave me a bit more insight into the festival's accessibility setup. The staff were quick and gracious, assisting my friend and her party through a separate entry way, providing guidance and help at the dedicated aid station, and ensuring she had prompt access to the shuttle on the way out.

The 2018 Voodoo Music and Arts Experience is set for October 26-28. Lineup information is still to come, but our South Mississippi readers can expect an event you won't want to miss!