When you think of outdoor concert festivals, almost everything but the actually musicians come up. Overpriced food, beer lines that seem to take an eternity (an eternity times two when you're waiting in line drunk,) tanned drugged out youth that look like they came out of a Levi commercial, and of course, the crazy heat. Even the exclusive VIP members of the crowd were still victim to the outdoor concert “nuances.” However, Pacific Coast Festival proved to offer a few more gems than one would usually find at an outdoor festival.

The obvious biggest name at the festival was Snoop Dogg. You'd have to be living under rock, or perhaps uber-white class suburbia (same thing) to not have heard who Snoop Dogg is, but the quick history of the acclaimed rapper is that he was brought up in Long Beach before being noticed by immensely popular producer Dr. Dre, and launching his rapping career.

It wouldn't be gangster if Snoop Dogg was on time, and he proved to be one of the most gangster performers at the festival, being over forty-five minutes late. Fans could care less whether Snoop was on time. They were wild for the dog pound. Fan favorite songs, such as “Drop It Like Its Hot” “PIMP” and “Gin and Juice” had the crowd going nuts with gangster love.

Another highlight came from one of the creators of the festival himself, Steve Aoki. Aoki has gained much popularity within the house music fanbase, and founded his own record label, Dim Mak records, which represents some of the most acclaimed electro house music artists, such as The Bloody Beetroots.

Aoki always knows how to bring down the house when he plays, but unfortunately this was one house that was built with impenetrable steel. It wasn't really his fault, but more of the technical problems that kept it from being a highlight of the night. The sound would go out for a minute or two between songs, killing the vibe like alcohol killing brain cells. This happening once or twice could be forgiven, but when it happens seven and eight times then someone needs to be fired. Aoki tried his best to keep the vibe alive by interacting with the crowd, but I'm afraid it was too little too late.

Many people would agree, the absolute scene stealer of the festival was none other than Calvin Harris, the acclaimed Scottish singer-songwriter and DJ who is best known for his “Ready for the Weekend” album that topped the charts in the UK. His usual epileptic light show wasn't on display, but that didn't stop the artist from enchanting the crowd with his electro music. The crowd was taken into the music like possessed hipsters; the vibe never being matched by any other performances at the venue.

Was it one of the highlights of the summer? No, and I'll even add that it's not even worth the price of admission. However, with all the technical and practical problems aside, this was still a place where music lovers could create some mesmerizing memories. The gems shined bright enough to at least make you go home not completely mad about going.