Same Same But Different Festival brings same fun
Lake Perris event returns with weekend of jam bands, EDM and water
People cool off as they dance in Lake Perris during Same Same But Different Festival near Perris on Thursday.
Sasquatch was spotted on the shores of Lake Perris on Thursday night.
Technically, it was Saxsquatch, a musician who plays the saxophone over EDM beats while dressed as Sasquatch, but it was very real. There’s photographic proof.
The eclectic nature of a Bigfoot-like creature playing a music festival is part of the magic of Same Same But Different, which brings a mix of jam bands and EDM to the Lake Perris State Recreation Area throughout the weekend.
Here’s what you need to know about the event:
Same, but different because of COVID-19
Same Same But Different is the first multiday music festival to return to Riverside County after the coronavirus pandemic shut down live music for more than a year.
The festival was also the first in Southern California to mandate that attendees, limited to 4,000 at the large outdoor park, be vaccinated or provide a negative coronavirus test result.
Thursday, staffers thoroughly checked vaccine cards and negative test results against identification at the park’s western entrance.
Glowing vibes
Attendees took a shuttle bus or rolled wagons and coolers from satellite parking lots to set up campsites along the water.
Inside the main festival grounds along the shoreline, there were a few art pieces placed throughout the area, the most striking being an art car made to look like an anthropomorphic tree. Parked near the water, the long strands of green felt braided to look like weeping willow fronds moved as people passed under them.
Nearby, an aerialist twisted above the ground from a goldenrod-colored silk.
During the day, attendees can play in the lake, where there are a few structures set up for hanging out in the shallow water. Some campers brought paddleboards and kayaks. At night, the festival space transforms, with signage lighting up and some of the stationary art pieces glowing with LEDs.
There’s plenty of room to dance and socially distance on the sand and some people whipped glowing LED balls attached to strings around them in time with the music.
“I can tell it’s already my favorite festival,” said Mike Zickefoose, who traveled from Pittsburgh to attend his first Same Same But Different.
The music
Inland Empire-based jam band GrooveSession played an energetic, well-received set Thursday evening on the Different stage as attendees started to trickle in, ending with a cover of the Who’s “Baba O’Riley.”
They were followed by Saxsquatch on the Same stage, who played a mix of originals and covers that ranged from Wham’s “Careless Whisper” to D’Angelo’s “Brown Sugar.”
The festival’s weekend performances are to include notable acts such as Big Gigantic, Clozee, the Polish Ambassador and STS9.