I Got Moist at Splash House

For the past 100 years, Palm Springs has been the place that Angelenos go to do the things they're bored of doing in their own neighborhoods. The town brings a certain artistry to leisure. Even the KFC has art-deco architecture. In keeping with this, Splash House promised a star-studded lineup of finely curated DJs, with pools instead of campgrounds, lounging instead traipsing, and the promise of more glistening bodies than Instagram's servers can handle. And, boy, did it deliver.

The weekender is centered around three venues in the middle of Palm Springs. I rolled up to the Hacienda Pool Club first during MANIK's set and vibe was super laid back. The pool club played World Cup games in the mist-happy bar during the day, while scantily-clad-but-casual-about-it kids kicked around a beach ball during Sweater Beats' chilled out set. He did this AMA from poolside-adjacent before his set, btw, because desert pools inspire candor, ya know?

…And not an inch of back hair was to be found // Credit: Dersu Rhodes

I then dipped to The Saguaro, one of the two hotels booked entirely to Splash Housers. The hip-but-approachable party palace is the crown jewel of the whole event, and acts like Amtrac, Anna Lunoe, and Giraffage provided the soundtrack to oodles of aquatic debauchery. Most DJs played to the vibe and kept their sets tasteful, though. Nobody wants to incite a mosh pit around a pool. That shit is a liability. Also, it was really hot.

A (figuratively) cool aspect Splash House's programming is the prevalence of DJ sets from Indie acts. Little Boots, Tycho, Purity Ring, Toro Y Moi, and Neon Indian all got a chance to flex their fingers behind the decks. Also notable at Splash House is that you know pretty much everyone at least trimmed their nether regions before showing up. I respect that.

Moby closed out The Hard Rock on Saturday. The environs of the Hard Rock's pool-plaza is like some soviet-style apartment complex deep in Reseda, but It was the rowdiest of the settings and the holy bald one played to the crowd with big-ish room house.

By 8pm, the official sets are over and sunburnt revelers pour into bars, after-parties and hotel rooms. Keep in mind, everyone's been turning up during the day as if it were the night, so people are all over the spectrum from a lil washed out to straight up sloshy. THUMP fav AC Slater back to back with Amtrac at The Hacienda was a highlight, as was watching more than one person fall into the gargantuan spa at the nearby Ace Hotel.

Splash House isn't your typical music festival. It's more of a city-spanning pool party. It's a unique weekender that I can see growing into something iconic. The whole thing is like Spring Break for grown-ups, even though by day three, some of the adults have lost their capacity for higher brain functionality. But hey, remember what I said about Palm Springs? Things get weird in the desert.

P.S this guy wins:

Photo Credit: Dersu Rhodes

Keep it splashy, folks:
Pete Tong's Cheeky Interview With Moby is Absolutely Priceless
Anna Lunoe's Diplo & Friends Mix is a Genre-Stomping Machine
The 2 Bears on Pool Parties and Exploding Cocks

Jemayel looks great in a bikini - @JemayelK