Riding off the wave of Chemistry‘s release, Chris Lake swung through San Diego’s Waterfront Park for an event that stole the show this summer.
Death, taxes, and Chris Lake throwing down some epic sets are three of the constants in my life. During my nearly two-decade run of soaking up electronic music and attending shows, he’s been a perpetual force to be reckoned with. Chris Lake’s seminal tunes on labels like mau5trap, Ultra Records, OWSLA, and his very own Black Book Records have blared through my speakers, and he’s always a lock for a fantastic performance on any lineup.
While I’ve seen Chris Lake quite often elsewhere, there’s nothing like catching him spinning on my home turf. Recent years have brought him to San Diego for curated Black Book Records shows and other FNGRS CRSSD events, and when Black Book On The Water was announced, I knew I needed to be there.
Black Book On The Water was hosted at Waterfront Park on the same weekend as HARD Summer, drawing a line in the sand for many between the two experiences, myself included. I was curious what the experience from the CRSSD crew would be like, considering its stripped-down single-stage nature, but I made my decision between the two and didn’t regret it for a second.
From the moment I arrived, I could tell that this wouldn’t be like other experiences I’ve had at FNGRS CRSSD shows in recent years.
There were no lines to get in, the venue was expansive as ever, and to be completely honest, I appreciated it being as stripped back as it was. My only real complaint would be the lack of shade, especially considering how hot it was that day. A few more shade structures would’ve been great instead of being blasted by the sun.
We caught the end of the happy hour that CRSSD has implemented at its recent events, which is a great way to encourage attendees to arrive early. Discounted drinks and food? Sign me up, especially in this economy. Early arrival also allowed for a quick trip to the merch booth, which had a short line. I opted to pre-order my shirt and hoodie online ahead of the show, just in case, and had my items in minutes.
Drinks in hand, we glided over to the other side of Waterfront Park, where the sole stage was located. While the overall structure felt more condensed than the Ocean View stage at CRSSD Festival, it was certainly taller. A new addition for this was the GA+ area, which featured two bars, a bank of port-a-potties, and a somewhat-shaded viewing area to the right of the stage. Your mileage may vary on whether that’s worth the extra cost to you if it’s implemented at other upcoming events.
The one-stage, one-sound vibe pushed everyone toward the North end of the park, yet there was never a moment when I felt I was in a situation where it was “too packed.” In fact, I could move freely between different viewpoints, linking up with friends along the way. The sound was some of the best I’ve heard at the venue in ages, probably due to the lack of other stages. Service wasn’t too bad, either.
Musically, Black Book on the Water was perfect with a lineup that showed off the past, present, and future of house music.
I tragically missed Marco Strous and only caught the latter half of Jackie Hollander’s set, which was fantastic. She’s a gem who you seriously shouldn’t miss. From MPH on, I was on the ride of my life. The UK Garage meets bass house artist took the stage and threw down some surreal edits and original tunes that have become a signature. I couldn’t help but dance the entire time.
Then it was time for one of the hottest artists in the house scene, Odd Mob, to dominate the decks. Having seen him multiple times this year already, I had a feeling about what he’d spin, yet he flipped the script with some surprises and more along the way. It’s been great getting the chance to see him flex on his curation skills while packing plenty of his own new heat into his sets.
Direct support for Chris Lake was legendary artist Green Velvet. I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve had a love-hate relationship with his sets over the years, but this one absolutely slapped. He ran through classics and fresh gems for a past-meets-present experience that stuck with me and kept my whole group enticed.
The crowd roared when Chris Lake took the stage.
Fresh off a flight back from Ibiza, the label boss took over the decks and immediately had the crowd wrapped around his finger. He opened with his fresh ID with Skrillex before diving into “Toxic” and “In My Head,” as well as Toman’s “Verano en NY” and Andruss and Juos’ “Dame Va (Gasolina)” for a touch of Latin flair.
The crowd belted out the words to “Beggin’,” while Chris Lake layered in other tracks like Walker & Royce’s “Girls” remix, “Summertime Blues,” “In The Yuma,” and “Reach For You.” He also dropped “in2minds” with Disclosure and a wicked remix of The Chemical Brothers’ “Galvanize,” a true treat for fans of the iconic duo.
I could go on about every single tune that Chris Lake dropped during his set, but the summation here is that for two straight hours, we were treated to pure house bliss. It was unadulterated energy that you could never cram into an hour-long festival set. You’ve got to let tunes like these marinate to make for an even more delicious dish.
Beyond the music, the crowd itself made the experience top-notch.
The biggest standout aspect was the fact that everyone, and I really mean everyone, had such a positive vibe. It was almost jarring to hear people say excuse me, singing along to iconic tracks, not babbling in the crowd nonstop, and actually dancing. Yes, you read that right. People were dancing!
It left me wondering if perhaps this show’s occurrence during HARD Summer was actually a good thing. Did the sold-out festival in LA, which typically draws a younger, less mature crowd, successfully remove them from the equation that day in San Diego? Possibly. But even if it didn’t, the crowd bucked the trend of what I’ve witnessed lately here in SD.
As someone who has attended more events this year than they can count, Black Book on the Water was an absolute breath of fresh air. The smaller-sized event and its amazing vibes reminded me why I fell in love with Chris Lake (and house music) in the first place. I can only hope that there are more experiences like this in the future.
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