Apocalypse Zombieland is the festival that just kept on giving this Bassgiving, delivering unbelievable music, moments, and memories.
Apocalypse Zombieland returned to the Queen Mary Waterfront over Thanksgiving weekend for its third edition, further solidifying its place as Southern California’s premier all-bass music festival. Insomniac and Bassrush packed over 90 artists across four stages, creating an eclectic lineup that had something for everyone, from fans of riddim, dubstep, and tearout to 140, space bass, and drum and bass.
The historic Queen Mary and the Pacific Ocean set a stunning backdrop as sunny afternoons shifted into chilly nights, and the fully immersive zombie theme tied the entire experience together with detailed staging, unique art, and interactive zombie actors. Altogether, it set the stage for an incredible weekend of heavy, high-energy sets and impeccable vibes.
This was my second year attending Apocalypse Zombieland, and few festivals in the US are better for ravers who love drum and bass. As a die-hard DnB enthusiast, the stacked DnB lineup was my motivation to travel from Washington DC over the past two years, and the trip was absolutely worth it. Apocalypse quickly became my favorite US festival after my perfect 2024 experience, and I went into the 2025 version with my standards high. While I had a few issues with the offered amenities, my overall experience was amazing, and I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who loves bass music.
I stayed at the Hyatt Regency in Long Beach, and I advise staying there or at a nearby hotel for maximum convenience and close proximity to the free shuttles that take you over the bridge to the Queen Mary Waterfront. The shuttle lines moved quickly, and the drive was short with minimal traffic.
The festival grounds were easy to navigate, lines were generally short, and the amenities were mostly convenient.
I arrived at 4pm both days, the lines moved briskly, and I made it into the festival grounds in under two minutes each time. The festival was small and easy to navigate, taking only 5-10 minutes to get from one stage to the other. There was plenty of space at all stages, and the only time I found the crowds too dense was when trying to leave the festival, where the narrow exit created a bottleneck. On the first day, we opted to walk back since the shuttle lines were long, but the walk itself wasn’t strenuous, just freezing.
The food options were plentiful and diverse, although strangely enough, I couldn’t find any chicken tenders at the Quarantine Zone. I had a taco bowl, a hot dog, and a churro over the weekend. All were delicious, but the churro was one of the best churros I’ve ever had, and I’m still raving about it to people a week later.
Bathroom lines were short, and the porta-potties were stocked with toilet paper, but the sinks ran out of water and soap early on, and I had trouble finding hand sanitizer nearby.
There were three water stations throughout the festival and one in the mainstage VIP area. While I cannot speak on three of them, the lines for the water station at the Quarantine Zone were long at most times of the day, and there were only ten or so water faucets at that station. Meanwhile, there were three bar tents just in that vicinity, and the lines there were always short. Had Insomniac made the bar tent directly next to the water station smaller and expanded the water station instead, this would have eased the long wait times there. It was also inconvenient that, at the Quarantine Zone, the VIP area had no place to refill water, so I had to either buy water or wait in those lines.
One gripe I have with Insomniac is how the only water they sell at their festivals is Liquid Death. Liquid Death comes in cans, so you cannot store them once opened. It gets annoying holding them after a while when you are constantly dancing around. They’re also tricky to refill. This means people have to keep buying water. Although the containers are aluminum, they’re still lined with BPA-free plastic, so it isn’t entirely sustainable, and there’s really no benefit to this except to increase profits.
The Quarantine Zone kept the energy going all weekend long with top-notch drum and bass sets.
After entering the festival grounds and filling up my water bottle, I went straight to the drum and bass stage, where I spent 90% of my weekend. The stage was conveniently located right next to the entrance, and it was very easy to maneuver through the Quarantine Zone the entire weekend. I had no problem getting to the front center for any set, and there was so much space to dance around without bumping shoulders with fellow ravers.
Every DnB artist absolutely threw down. Bou b2b Kanine delivered a set that perfectly blended their two distinct styles in a way that worked so well together. Other highlights of the weekend were Subsonic‘s US debut and screaming along to his new collab with Sub Focus, “Roll Too Deep,” with all the homies, being on the rail for Circadian into Grafix, and other sets from artists like Mozey, S.P.Y, and Captain Bass.
The MCs who accompanied some of the sets commanded the crowd’s attention and hyped them up throughout. It was incredible catching A.M.C with MC Phantom stateside after they couldn’t make it last year due to visa issues. The crowd was truly rockin’ with the A.M.C, bouncing along for the entirety and losing our minds to every innovative triple.
One thing I didn’t like was how nearly every set I saw played some kind of double of “Go Back” by Sub Focus with John Summit. I absolutely love this song and always scream the lyrics at the top of my lungs whenever it comes on, but it got old quickly after the first two to three sets. Although it’s strategic for artists to incorporate fan favorites into their sets, it would have been nice to have more variety.
I side-quested to the mainstage to catch Illenium and Excision’s closing sets. It was very easy maneuvering up to the front left of the crowd, where there was plenty of room to headbang. However, although I am a big Illenium fan, I found his set catered too much to the heavy dubstep crowd, and I wished he had played more music in his style. It felt uninspired, and I got bored, leaving halfway through to catch the end of Nero. Dancing to old-school dubstep was the perfect way to close out the first day.
The zombie-apocalypse-themed aesthetic was immersive and elevated the experience, while the production was consistently high-quality from start to finish.
Every corner you turned, you could see zombies shambling through the crowd, forming dance circles, riding rails, and headbanging with ravers. All around the venue, massive shipping containers were used as walls and painted with zombie-themed murals, serving as perfect backdrops for photo-ops. At the back of the Quarantine Zone was a globe of death where motorcyclists rode in loops at high speeds, and pyro structures scattered across the festival grounds blasted flames into the air, heightening the overall atmosphere.
The production this year was equally impressive. The mainstage was massive, and the zombie head, front and center, gave it a striking focal point that brought the whole setup to life. The visuals were on point, but split across segmented LED panels that would have been more engaging if less so. The fireworks at the mainstage were awe-inspiring, and the lasers and pyro across all the stages were equally impressive. Some friends pointed out that the CDJs at the Quarantine Zone glitched out every set, but aside from that, the overall sound quality was transparent and balanced.
Although Apocalypse Zombieland is very well organized, the attendees are what make this festival so special.
PLUR was very much alive and well at Apocalypse this year. With the festival over Thanksgiving weekend, only the die-hard bassheads traveled to Apocalypse, and everyone embodied the ethos.
The energy at the Quarantine Zone was infectious. Everyone was always dancing, and there were so many shared moments with strangers, from dance-offs to sing-alongs. So many people complimented my outfit or said they loved my energy, and I brought home a bunch of trinkets, from stickers to mini figurines, and traded kandi several times over the weekend.
Everyone was looking out for each other, fanning someone when they looked hot or offering gum and sips of water. I saw a few guys who were too intoxicated, swaying and stumbling through the crowd, and people were quick to check in and make sure they were okay.
I truly felt so safe and welcome at Apocalypse. The vibes were immaculate all weekend long, phone use was limited, and though bad encounters are becoming more commonplace at raves, the people at Apocalypse embody the positivity, kindness, and love for music and dancing that make ravers and raving so special.
The vibes all weekend long were high but bittersweet, as Insomniac announced this would be the last Bassgiving edition of Apocalypse Zombieland for the foreseeable future.
Before Insomniac officially announced on socials, posters were laid up around Long Beach and inside the festival titled Apocalypse Zombieland: Summer of the Living Dead, indicating that they are moving Apocalypse Zombieland five months earlier to June 19-20, 2026.
This stirred mixed feelings amongst attendees, including myself. While having the dates in June means flights will generally be cheaper and people will not have to plan around Thanksgiving, it also means hotels will be more expensive, the days will be hotter, and we won’t see lasers until the later sets. Apparently, this decision was partly made to make the festival more accessible to people who couldn’t attend because of Thanksgiving, but almost everyone I spoke to said they wouldn’t be returning next year because of the date change.
Thanksgiving was the perfect time for Apocalypse — the days were sunny, and although the nights were cold, it was warm in the crowds. There were fewer attendees than typical Insomniac festivals, meaning lines were short, and there was plenty of space up close to the stages to catch your favorite artists and dance around without being packed in like sardines. The sun set around 5 pm, so the full scale of Insomniac’s production was on glorious display for most of the festival.
That said, Apocalypse is truly one of the best, most special festivals in the US for bass music lovers. While the new dates may bring about changes — some desirable and others less so — I’m optimistic it will still be an incredible time, because Apocalypse at its core is incredible.
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