Daiana Feuer on October 22nd, 2018

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Just like last year’s inaugural event, the Gorillaz-curated Demon Dayz festival featured a lineup of frontman David Albarn’s favorite artists and collaborators, many who joined the Gorillaz on stage during their two-hour, 30-song headlining performance. Saturday’s events were the culmination of a tour behind their new album, “The Now Now,” attracting diehard Gorillaz fans of every age and enthusiasm level, the most devoted dressed as their favorite member of the virtual band.

Great weather and a mariachi band playing Gorillaz covers greeted attendees arriving at Pico Rivera Sports Arena, a venue built in 1979 that typically hosts rodeos and Latin concerts. The band, Mariachi Alma y Corazón, roamed the grounds all day, culminating in a procession to the stage accompanied by giant Dia De Los Muertos puppets just before the Gorillaz started playing, which was just after the Dodgers won the National League pennant, according to a big spontaneous cheer that passed through the audience.

The festival featured two stages, one in a field flanked by food and beer offerings, and another in the rodeo ring, which was dusty but a very delightful hoedown setting for hip-hop and R&B. Aside from a chair swing carousel in the middle of the festival, large slogan-focused murals lining the path from one stage to another, and a DJ tent kept steamy by Chulita Vinyl Club, the most popular non-musical attraction at the festival were the Gorillaz merch stations — the regular merch tables were surrounded by long lines that stretched across the grounds and there was an even more exclusive merch area called the G Store. People waiting patiently in that line would gain access to some top secret Gorillaz treasures waiting behind red-lit closed doors.

East L.A. Chicano band Las Cafeteras kicked off the afternoon with a festive set of Afro-Mexican alt-folk, followed by prom-dressed Kilo Kish‘s warped pop, the eight sons of jazz trumpeter Phil Cohran that comprise Chicago’s Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Chilean-French rapper-singer Ana Tijoux (notably the MC of 1990’s group Makiza), and a funky set from Fela Kuti drummer Tony Allen, who plays in Albarn’s other supergroup, The Good The Bad & The Queen (who have a new album coming out in November), with the Clash’s Paul Simonon and the Verve’s Simon Tong.

Getting to know the Gorillaz’ favorite music throughout the day, a running theme was hip-hop experiments, like D.R.A.M., whose songs contained a steady interplay of wacky video game sounds set against lyrics about cash, sex and broccoli. He later made an appearance during the Gorillaz set, as did British rapper Lil Simz, both of whom appeared on the 2017 album “Humanz.” The high-energy Gorillaz set also included visits from De La Soul, guitarist George Benson, Chicago house music pioneer Jamie Principle, singer/producer Peven Everett, and half a dozen sassy-cool background singers. But the biggest thrill that frontman Damon Albarn delivered had to be the guest appearance from his Blur bandmate Graham Coxon, who came out during the encore for a lively performance of the 1997 hit “Song 2,” with audience-provided “Woo-hoo’s.”

There were two worries coming into this festival: One was the very strict bag policy that stipulated all bags had to be clear or roughly the size of your hand and the other was that the Internet and Erykah Badu‘s sets would overlap. As expected, it was physically impossible to peel away from Badu’s magnetic, bewitching performance. Her voice and presence came nothing short of supernaturally beautiful, even though an extremely slow line check pushed her back 30 minutes and so fans did not get all the Badu that was anticipated. A bummer of major proportions but after the release from her spell, people ran over to catch the last chunk of the Internet.

The Internet live in a magical space of their own design. Syd’s voice lies somewhere between Aaliyah and a missing member of SWV, with songs about girl problems that deliver a contact high. “Come Over” and “Girl” were favorites, but set closer “Get Away” is possibly the most unique of their songs, with a bass riff that would feel just as at home in a Black Sabbath song.

Photos by Andie Mills