Photos and review: Lights All Night electro-dance party at Dallas Convention Center (December 30 and 31)

We're already ready for next year.

Lights All Night at Dallas Convention Center (December 30 and 31)

Photos by Josh Hogan

We normally hate when the holidays are stretched out on the calendar. You know, like seeing a Christmas tree in November. It’s just a little ridiculous.

But some special occasions are best served with a side of over-the-top. That must have been what the folks behind Lights All Night were betting on when they decided to turn last year’s most talked about New Year’s Eve party into a full blown two-night extravaganza to ring in 2012. A New Year’s Eve party that spans 48 hours was a bit much, but it also was pretty much perfect.

Crowd at Lights All Night

Lights All Night attendees lose it in the front row. Cue the dude in the headdress.

People from across the nation descended upon the Dallas Convention Center to catch some of electronic music’s biggest acts Friday and Saturday night. Tiesto, Girl Talk, Neon Indian, Diplo, and Zed’s Dead, just to name a few, all took the stage for what has to be considered one of the most exciting New Year’s Eve events in the country. We spoke with a couple who drove from New Orleans to catch the show. They said there was “nothing else like it” nearby.

They were right. The convention center was the perfect choice of venue, with three massive rooms for each stage, a ton of space for walking/dancing around, and short lines at all the restrooms. Attendees had little to complain about with the set-up and organization, and certainly nothing to complain about when it came to the music.

It was a banner year for electronic music, a sentiment expressed by the duo of Zed’s Dead at the end of their set. So it seemed fitting to pay tribute to it by counting down the final moments of 2011 to the sound of some of the best electronic musicians around.

But now we look ahead to the New Year – a 2012 with new discoveries, possibilities, and uncertainties. One year from now, there’s no uncertainty here, because we know where we'll be: Lights All Night.