Seven years after the launch of what was then Caribbean Holidaze, the Cloud 9 Adventures destination event that’s now known as “Mayan Holidaze” is still going strong. On December 16 – 20, the latest installment of Mayan Holidaze will bring HT faves the Disco Biscuits, Umphrey’s McGee and STS9 to Now Sapphire Resort in Puerto Morelos, Mexico.
Each band will play three sets with additional acts to be named later. Mayan Holidaze packages are all-inclusive with food, drinks, lodging and the concerts included in the cost. Those who have attended Mayan Holidaze in the past will be able to participate in a pre-sale on April 23rd and 24th, while remaining packages will go on sale to the general public on April 25th at Noon ET via mayanholidaze.com.
On the final night of December’s Mayan Holidaze festival, an evening that the Mayans predicted would be the last evening before the world ended, Umphrey’s McGee honored the occasion by covering R.E.M.’s 1987 hit It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine).
A professionally-shot video of the performance has been posted to Cloud 9′s channel…
Mayan Holidaze came to a close early this morning in Tulum, Mexico after four days of performances from Umphrey’s McGee, the Disco Biscuits, STS9 and more. Each of the headlining acts played at three out of the event’s four days with all three bands performing yesterday. Umphrey’s McGee premiered two brand new covers within their five Mayan Holidaze sets.
On Tuesday, the Chicago-based sextet ended their first of two sets with the debut of Two Tickets To Paradise – a fitting cover considering the gorgeous venue on the Mayan Riviera. The second set saw the band split Puppet String with a Mulche’s Odyssey that contained a Carol Of The Bells jam and Resolution. Wednesday’s sets saw UM dust off their The Way You Rule The World mashup and bookend the first set with Bridgeless after opening with the instrumental There’s No Crying In Mexico. For their lone encore of the fest, Umphrey’s worked Hangover into the middle of August. Then, last night, at their Mayan Holidaze finale, Umphrey’s referenced the predicted apocalypse by ending their set with the debut cover of It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine) by R.E.M. They also played a few other songs that referenced the end – The Police’s When The World Is Running Down You Make The Best of What’s Still Around and their own Andy’s Last Beer.
Here’s all three Umphrey’s @ Mayan Holidaze setlists via All Things Umphreys…
Over the past few years Cloud 9 Adventures have held their Mayan Holidaze destination music festival featuring the Disco Biscuits, Umphrey’s McGee and STS9 in January, but that will change this year as the next installment of the event will take place in December. From December 17 – 21, the three groups will each play two full shows plus a special set over the course of the four nights at the all-inclusive Dreams Tulum Resort and Spa located on the Mayan Riviera in Mexico.
[Photo by Tammy Wetzel]
December 21 marks the date on the ancient Mayan Long Count Calendar that ends the 13th 394-year period called a Baktun. Allegedly, The Mayas predicted that their god would return at the end of the 13th Baktun at which time “the date will reset to zero signaling the end of humanity.” STS9 will perform at midnight on December 21st to mark the beginning of the first cycle of the new calendar. Additional acts, the special sets and more details about the sixth installment of Holidaze will be revealed in the coming months.
Festival attendees will be given the choice to stay off-site this time around. So, you can stay at Dreams Tulum Resort and Spa or you can purchase a 4-day pass for $995 which allows you to attend all the concerts and the all inclusive amenities of Dreams from 9AM to 4AM each day while you stay at the accommodations of your choosing in the Hotel Zone in Tulum or elsewhere. Less than 400 rooms at Dreams will be available for sale to the general public. Those who have attended Holidaze events in the past will be able to book their rooms as part of a special pre-sale on March 28 & 29. The general public will get a chance at any remaining rooms on March 30 at 12PM ET via MayanHolidaze.com.
One of the most interesting parts of today’s announcement is the inclusion of the Disco Biscuits. Since the jamtronica pioneers left the stage at January’s Mayan Holidaze there’s been no word on the band’s future touring plans. Outside of Camp Bisco, which the group is expected to headline, of course, there were no scheduled Disco Biscuits shows. So we expect this news comes as a relief to tDB’s fans.
From January 26 – 30 music fans from around the globe gathered at the Now Sapphire resort on Mexico’s Mayan Riviera for the latest installment of Cloud 9 Adventures’ Mayan Holidaze. Headliners Umphrey’s McGee, the Disco Biscuits and STS9 each performed lengthy sets at three out of the event’s four nights and were augmented on the bill by Big Gigantic, Wyllys and JHa, The Polish Ambassador/Ample Mammal, Dr. Fameus, Michetti, Lance Herbstrong and Umphrey’s Brendan Bayliss, who played a poolside acoustic set on Sunday afternoon.
Photographer Tammy Wetzel has been to four out of the five Holidaze events and felt this year’s installment was the best. She has provided a full set of pictures which not only shows off the music that went down at Holidaze but also the people and the scenery that made Mayan Holidaze 2012 so special.
Here’s a full gallery of Tammy’s Mayan Holidaze photos…
Back in January, HT faves Umphrey’s McGee, the Disco Biscuits and STS9 teamed up with a few other acts for Mayan Holidaze 2011. Many attendees raved about the site of the event, the Now Sapphire Resort & Spa in the Mayan Riviera, and today the festival’s promoter, Cloud 9 Adventures, has announced Mayan Holidaze 2012 which will bring all three bands back to the high-end resort from January 26-30.
Those who have attended either Mayan Holidaze 2011 or previous Holidaze events are eligible for an exclusive presale that takes place on March 15th and 16th. If any rooms remain, they will go on sale to the general public on March 17th at 12PM ET. While it’s tough to plan vacations so far in advance, Mayan Holidaze 2011 sold out immediately, so take the next few weeks to decide if this trip is for you. Here’s the trailer…
We’ve got an interesting clip from Mayan Holidaze to share which features Umphrey’s McGee tackling ZZ Top’s Cheap Sunglasses. Three cameras were used on this shoot – one was attached to Jake Cinninger’s axe, another was attached to Kris Myers’ drum kit and a third was at the soundboard.
From January 20th – 24th, Umphrey’s McGee, STS9, the Disco Biscuits, their fans and a few other acts took over the Now Sapphire Resort in Puerto Morelos, Mexico for Mayan Holidaze.
In a previous edition of Last Week’s Sauce, DaveO went over some of the the musical highlights from the first-ever Mexican edition of Holidaze and today you’ll get the visual side of things from one of our favorite photographers in the scene, Chad Smith. Chad, who makes his Hidden Track debut this morning, has shared not only pictures of the bands in action, but also a number of shots featuring festival attendees getting down.
Each of the last three years, Umphrey’s McGee and the Disco Biscuits have combined forces with Cloud 9 Adventures to throw a festival down in Jamaica called Caribbean Holidaze. For the next Holidaze event, the two jambands will welcome STS9 to the fold for a five day event on January 20 – 24 on the Mayan Riviera in Mexico called Mayan Holidaze. Cloud 9 promises more details on May 5 with all-inclusive early bird rooms on sale May 12.
STS9 seems like a natural fit for the event as both the Biscuits and Umphrey’s have paired up with the Tribe to play bigger venues.
What do you think about this bill? Will you be heading down to Mexico with UM/STS9 and tDB? Let us know your thoughts by leaving a comment…
