I’ve been to lots of events all over Southern California, but few feel like as much of an LA Party as Jaime Jones’s Paradise in the Park. Taking place earlier this month at Pershing Square in the heart of DTLA, Paradise seeks to bring the feel of an Ibiza day party to urban Los Angeles. An eclectic crowd as varied as the city packed the urban square as house music played all afternoon and night long. Attendees across the age spectrum were present. There was a healthy mix of floral patterns and all-black, but the fun vibes permeated the weekend. LA powerhouse production company Future Primitive partnered with one of the west coast’s most respected underground electronic promoters, Framework, on this year’s edition of Paradise in the Park.
The setting was impressive, as attendees were able to bask in a full 360-degree view of DTLA. You could see the One Wilshire Building to the Southwest, the US Bank Tower to the Northwest and the myriad apartments that got treated to a free show. Getting into and out of the venue was a breeze, drink lines were never too long (I waited maybe 10 minutes during peak hours), and the food trucks were exceptional quality (although maybe could have used one or two more). The stage was simple, but still lit up the night sky. A disco ball hung above the Paradise logo as black beams made up the frame of the stage. An LED circle surrounded the logo and disco ball, featuring another LED half-circle directly below. There were also tropical vines and leaves lining the stage to give it that true “Paradise” feel.
I arrived right as Carlita was taking the stage for her hour-and-a-half sunset set. She set the vibe for the night as she played upbeat, disco-house tunes all while she bobbed up and down on stage in her bucket hat. She started going deeper once the sun started to go down, but the mood setting would be left to Dubfire b2b Art Department, who would take the crowd on a two hour journey of deep and progressive house. The two house veterans lived up to the hype, and kudos to Paradise for getting the two together. Jaime Jones closed out the night after that with a two hour set of house bangers that shows why he’s so popular on the festival circuit.
Pershing Square will be closing for major renovations over the next two years, so the future of Paradise in LA is up in the air. However, I have no doubt that the fine people over at Framework and Future Primitive will be able to cook up something that will have Angelenos dancing in Paradise in the future.
