AFI performed at the Observatory Festival Grounds in Orange County for their largest headline set since 2006. With support from Mareux, Kumo 99, and L.A. Witch, the three openers brought moody synths, dark rock, and hardcore beats to the stage. From Mareux’s fog-drenched synth set to AFI’s highly anticipated headline performance, all four sets were top-notch. But behind the music, a crappy layout and aggressive security left fans with a sour taste in their mouths.
I’ve had a love-hate relationship with the Observatory in Orange County for a long, long while now. It’s my home venue, down the street, where I fell in love with photography and live music. It’s definitely not the same spot where you see your friend’s band move up from the Constellation Room to the main stage. Simialr to The Echo, the venue has lost its community spirit. Perhaps, like with many once independent venues, everything changed after Live Nation swooped them up in 2019.
Over the last few years, the events at the Observatory have never really felt the same. And the large outdoor shows seem to be more of a hot mess than ever. You would think with a billion-dollar corporate giant like Live Nation, events would run more smoothly. But even a decade later, organization and security at the Observatory grounds are still a hot topic. At AFI’s concert, the bars lined the edges of the pit all the way up to the stage, and the never-ending merch line wrapped around the back entrance of the pit. The layout made it pretty difficult to navigate…