Boom-Shaka-Laka: FLOODfest Chicago Gets Physical

The Chicago Athletic Association Hotel is an old, stately building that for many years was precisely what its name suggests—an athletic club—so it’s safe to assume that the ornate scrollwork, parquet floors, and classic architectural lines have seen their fair share of sweat over the decades. But on Saturday night, while the city of Chicago basked in the afterglow of Chance the Rapper’s headlining set (and did its best to avoid yet another downpour), the packed crowd at FLOODfest brought a new level of hype to the CAA’s old gym.

The night kicked off with a barreling performance from Grace Mitchell, who celebrated her twentieth birthday in style on stage in front of a roaring, “Happy Birthday”–singing crowd after having driven fourteen straight hours from Montreal. Gus alt-J kept the party moving with a DJ set, and Sylvan Esso rained down electro thunder with a bright and brash clutch of songs from What Now. And Flint Eastwood closed out the night with a banging DJ set of their own.