Three years apart can feel like an eternity when referring to somebody or something that you love. iMatter Festival was last held in 2019 due to COVID-19 restrictions, with 2020 promising to be the biggest yet as both Knocked Loose and Motionless in White were set to headline the yearly festival who's "mission is to eradicate death due to suicide and substance abuse by transforming our culture to one of unearthed value, unveiled purpose, and defiant hope."
With the vision of iMatter Festival growing annually, that unfortunately could not be the case this year as the location of years past was not allowed along the lines of public gathering restrictions. With the ultimatum of postponing for a third straight year, or finding another location, the decision was made to hold this year's one-day festival at The L. Located at 116 Breesport Rd in Horseheads, NY, The L is a local music and events venue that is coming up on its one year anniversary of hosting shows that have included musical legends, upcoming stars, and local talents such as Lita Ford, Stryper, Buckcherry, As I Lay Dying, August Burns Red, Fit For A King, Rivals, The Rooster, 7 Mile Drive, Jeremy Edge, Burden My Surrender, and many more. The plan was now in place for a reset.
One could not ask for a more perfect day at the end of July in the southern Finger Lakes region of New York than what the festival-goers received for this year's highly-anticipated return of a local favorite annual event that attracts musical acts and fans from all across the world. With a capacity of around 1,800 in total, the number of attendees was drastically restricted as over five thousand were easily expected to originally attend the festival in 2020.
This year's event was packed full of fans as young as two years old to metal heads many years into enjoying retirement who all had the intentions of having the times of their lives- and it was evident that many left iMatter Festival having had one of the best experiences of their lives. Festival goers as young as two could be seen stage-diving into the crowd during PRISON's set, young children learning correct mosh-etiquette during some of the heaviest tracks from EIGHTEEN VISIONS, witnessing ATTACK ATTACKs iconic crab-core thrashes, and even the lead vocalist getting out in the middle of the crowd like RIVALS. Heck, even some staff and security could be seen moshing and crowd-surfing at times. Talk about volunteering!
Every act that performed put on amazing performances, sharing heartfelt messages and personal stories of perseverance as suicide prevention is the overall objective of the annual event. This year's lineup included FOR THE BETTER, GUILT IN BLOOM, KEPT CLOSE, SOMEDAY YOU'LL KNOW US, DESOLATE, UNWILL, CHAMBER, DEAL WITH GOD, WRISTMEETRAZOR, ACROSS THE WHITE WATER TOWER, RIVALS, FURY IN FEW, ATTACK ATTACK!, PRISON, THE RED JUMPSUIT APPARATUS, I SET MY FRIENDS ON FIRE, SEEYOUSPACECOWBOY, ROOKIE OF THE YEAR, CARLY COSGROVE, HOPESFALL, SUPER AMERICAN, EIGHTEEN VISIONS, ANTHONY GREEN, ANBERLIN, and headline act THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA. Check out the photo gallery below for highlights of this year's iMatter Festival (UPCOMING).
Altogether, we always highly suggest attending iMatter Festival. It's absolutely evident that this year was a one-off event that had a massive amount of planning and hard work behind it to pull off after having to change plans and overall layout. The staff and volunteers are hospitable, genuine, and joyful to encounter as their goal is to ensure each festival goer is having a memorable experience. We enjoyed relatively low-priced food for a festival, that included alcoholic beverages as low as $5, hot dogs under $4, and even free water refill stations. Parking options for this year were either $50 on-site or $10 off-site at a location with shuttle service to and back, as well as the option of being dropped off and picked up at the front doors. iMatter Festival is easily the best festival bang for your buck, and quite possibly most importantly, the most life-saving.