Tyler Church
Audio By Carbonatix
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The saddest beach in Texas, Panther Island Pavilion in Fort Worth, will transform the grassy, sandy banks of the Trinity River into a strobe-lit, trippy Atlantis for Ubbi Dubbi. The annual EDM festival, entering its seventh year, carries the theme “Into the Abyss” and will send ravers into another world April 24 and 25.
This year’s Ubbi Dubbi lineup boasts recognizable DJs such as Xandra, Loud Luxury, Zedd and DeadMau5, but deeper cuts like Joyhauser, Bunt. and Kai Wachi will also bring arhythmic sound waves to Cowtown. The massive electronica rave is only a small portion of the workload for the masterminds behind the festival, Disco Presents. The production team founder, Donnie Estopinal, also owns SILO, an upscale EDM club in Dallas that hosts year-round sold-out techno shows. For most, producing back-to-back events all year would be an impossible feat, but for Estopinal, who is affectionately known in the scene as “Disco Donnie,” it’s business as usual.
After this weekend, Estopinal will focus on the next moves for SILO, which include expanding the venue’s capacity, opening a pizza and record shop next door and cutting the ribbon on a second location in Houston this fall. It sounds like a lot, but Disco Presents has produced more than 19,000 shows, sold more than 19 million tickets across 100 cities, and raised more than $2 million for charity since 1994, so they’re qualified. The production company is also responsible for EDM festivals Freaky Deaky in Austin and Shaquille O’Neal’s Bass All-Stars in Fort Worth. They just acquired Dallas’ Lights All Night. Estopinal is something of an EDM music mogul, and his company has quickly become the largest independent promoter in the state.
In fact, Estopinal’s devotion to nonstop partying landed him in hot water when 2021’s Ubbi Dubbi, only in its second year after canceling the 2020 production, took place just two months after mask mandates in Texas were lifted. The festival required masks to be worn and reduced capacity to 50%.
“Ubbi Dubbi in Ennis, Texas, at the Texas Motorplex was the first festival coming out of the lockdown,” Estopinal says. “We had COVID sniffing dogs. CNN and BBC were coming after me, and honestly, if it didn’t go well, we could’ve crashed the market. But we were diligent about testing, and the numbers were good. It was a success, which was a huge relief to us and the EDM industry.”
Estopinal is a man of the people in an industry that’s always fighting to manage its reputation. But Disco Donnie runs a customer-centric business, ensuring customer satisfaction first.
“We reverse engineer all events and always start with a fair ticket price, and it’s important to us that we have the lowest ticket prices in the country,” Estopinal says. “I came from the dance floor, and I don’t want anyone to miss a show because of money.”
What to Expect of the Festival
Every good party has a theme, and this year’s nautical dream will stretch across the entire pavilion. To achieve subaquatic conditions, Panther Island Pavilion will be decorated with LED bubble tunnels, a glowing reef structure, projection-mapped environments and anything else that might please the inebriated brains of EDM enjoyers. There are three stages at Ubbi Dubbi: the Ubbi stage with house and techno, the Dubbi stage with more bass-heavy sounds and the Zoom Room, which will host harder, more banging techno, trance and hardstyle.
Beyond the beats, Ubbi Dubbi offers interactive experiences and lifestyle programming, including a festival-wide treasure hunt. There will be local food options from Al Forno Pizza, Island Noodles and Festi Bowls alongside retail vendors such as Cosmic Energy, Dreamland Studios and live paintings from Morphis Art. Ubbi Dubbi is the start of the spring season for the Disco Presents machine, but it never stops. SILO opened Ductwork, a techno speakeasy, last summer. The smaller room in the back was initially intended for storage, but now hosts intimate, midweek shows. It will host the official Ubbi Dubbi pre-party with Æon:Mode on April 23.
Top 40 hit-maker Alesso will play a sunset show, 2010s techno sensations Deadmau5 and Kaskade will team up for a set under the name Kx5, but of the more exciting sets is San Holo, who will play a “wholesome riddim set.” Riddim is a subgenre of techno characterized by heavy bass and repetitive, wave-like sounds.
“For me, my wholesome riddim set is riddim for introverts,” San Holo, whose legal name is Sander van Dijck, says. “It has the beats and bounce of riddim, but the flow and vibe are more wholesome and colorful. It’s my inspiration from dub and riddim, but more emotional. I think riddim can be dark and heavy, but I try to make it colorful. I added chords, melodies and sparkles.”
Van Dijck arrives in Fort Worth armed with his fourth album, True Love in a Made Up World, which drops on June 5th. And much like Disco Donnie, Van Dijck also seems to be in the dance music industry for the right reasons.
“I will never compromise with my art, and I’ve been asked to,” Van Dijck says. “The music industry is made-up, but my music is my true love, and my truth is in my music — my way. I think the world is becoming increasingly made-up, especially with AI. I hope that people can see it and feel it.”
Estopinal’s dedication to curating an experience trickles down to the DJs and into the attendees, certifying a memorable experience.
“Disco Presents really cares about the experience from start to finish,” says Honeylov, a house DJ recognized for her identifiable soul-influenced sound. “It’s not just about stacking a lineup, it’s about the energy in the room, the flow of the night, how the crowd feels when they walk in and when they leave. As a DJ, that matters because I can take people on a real journey instead of just playing moments. It gives me space to be intentional and actually connect.”
Gates for Ubbi Dubbi open at 3 p.m. on April 24 and 25 at Panther Island Pavilion (395 Purcey St.) in downtown Fort Worth. The final set each night will end at midnight. Single-day tickets start at $110. Two-day general admission passes are available for $210, with a few VIP options remaining. Additional information is available on the festival’s official website.
