INZO entrances San Diego with bright lights in the Mirrorverse

Let me preface that I’m a not a basshead. Nor am I a candy kid. I’m not a categorical anything, let alone a ‘raver’… my Spotify listed my listening age as 78 for 2025. I like a bit of everything, so when I saw INZO was coming to The Sound in Del Mar, I was intrigued but not necessarily the biggest fan.

I just wanted to experience INZO, without overthinking it.

See what I did there? Already possessing tickets to the Banksy exhibit at the same location on that same night had very much to do with my decision to cover the show, as well. With $25 for parking, might as well get a two-for-one special!

We checked out Banksy first. And, within the five-minute walk across the parking lot of the Del Mar Fairgrounds, we went from anarchist street art installments to crunchy rave culture — it was a wild crossover. Inside, I immediately regretted not rocking my furry bucket hat I bought in Amsterdam; it would’ve blended right in, especially if I clipped some leaves and twigs to it.

The audience was split between EDC and Burning Man types, with weird being the central theme.

Walking in, OkayJake was already spinning, meaning that we missed Spenny’s and Blookah’s blocks. Our b. Had to go look at a different form of art first. The visuals and dance floors picked up a bit for direct support deejay Late Night Radio, spinning vibey bangers like “Tree Trunks” and the hauntingly hip hop-influenced “Blindfold Yourself” (originally featuring Daily Bread).

Before long, it was time for the main man himself. Smoking a joint, INZO walked out to a screaming crowd — like, literally, rail-bangers going absolutely bananas at the sight of him. Behind four upside down triangles, INZO launched into his Mirrorverse Tour set, promoting his latest single of the same name. The intro to his set played the track in full, just dropped on January 16th, building slowly before exploding about a minute-and-a-half in with lights, lasers, and a booming base drop.

INZO ignited the entire venue with light, criss-crossing colored laser beams concurrent to the sounds.

The ebbs and flows, the pullbacks and the bass drops — they were all a coordinated effort. And, if you wanted to be a part of the show, attendees could purchase little leafy hair/hat clips with gems that lit up in sync to the music. The whole experience, paired to mesmerizing visuals on the screen behind INZO, was incredible (even if you weren’t on drugs, cough, me).

And it wasn’t just the presentation, it was who INZO attracts to his shows. The display of human generosity, geniality, and general playfulness that I witnessed was something I don’t see every day. If someone dropped their ear plug (cough, me), people noticed the distress, dropped what they were doing, and asked “what do you need??”. If someone needed water, a stranger they didn’t know asked the security guard for it (which was handed out free of charge). A group of guys next to me had made a whole bag full of finger-sized beanie hats with googley-eyes and poms glued on them, in which they handed out with glowing rubber duckies to anyone who was DTD — down to duck 🦆.

I haven’t had this much fun at a show in a long time, on top of being very impressed with the artists and the venue staff. Cheers till next time, INZO, you’ve now got a lifelong fan in me.

Photography by Kristy Rose

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