Power Trip 2023: The good, the bad, the heat on Day 1 of metal festival

The first day of Power Trip began with many of us waiting — some for over 40 minutes — in 102 F heat for the gates to open, but it ended with a fantastic performance by one of the world's most iconic bands: Guns N' Roses.

Welcome to the Jungle, I guess.

Here were our three favorite parts of the day, as well as our three least favorite.

The lows

Let's get these out of the way.

1. Seems obvious, but the heat. Us desert dwellers know summer isn't over until several weeks after the fall equinox, but there's something about triple-digit temperatures in October that always stings a little more. While my loved ones back home in the Midwest were wearing sweaters today, I was standing in the heat sweating for over 40 minutes waiting for the gates to open. When you see grown men in denim vests hiding in a bush to get away from the sun, you know you've got a situation on your hands.
2. The food. I'm hoping I just chose the wrong thing for dinner, but I'm going to be honest, my meal today was the worst I've ever had at Goldenvoice event. I didn't think you could mess up a grilled cheese sandwich with popcorn chicken (random combo, I know, but I was very hungry and it sounded good at the time), but somehow the stand I went to did. After I made myself eat about 75% of the meal and tossed it, however, I walked around and saw some intriguing things to try tomorrow, so I'm hopeful I'll find something better.
3. The layout. Although I noted in our first look story that it's nice how spacious the festival is and how there aren't unecessary structures like vendor booths to block your walking path, I realized the downside is that figuring out how to get from one side of this festival to the other is no simple task. I also felt bad once I realized that nearly 50% of the festival is only accessible if you have a reserved seat, meaning those in GA had half the food and drink options that I had today (I'm #blessed, I guess).

The highs

Now, on to the positive stuff.

1. The general vibe of the festival. It was a bit touch-and-go there when organizers opened the gates nearly 20 minutes late, but once we made it through the security line, the vibe of the festival was honestly really fun and lighthearted. I saw a bunch of couples of various ages but I also saw a lot of families with their adult children (and even one woman carrying a baby, who somehow slept through "Live and Let Die"), and I loved the cross-generational feel to the whole event. Unlike the last festival I attended here, Stagecoach, the fans also don't let politics get in the way, which I loved (no political flags or t-shirts of any persuasion in sight).
2. Slash. I mean, come on. The man is a legend and every single guitar solo quite truly blew my mind. I don't even know what to say other than it makes sense why he's considered one of the best guitarists of all time. All the close-ups broadcast on the big screen of his fingers dancing across the fretboard just don't even seem real — how does he move his fingers that fast?!?!
3. Bruce Dickinson's onstage antics. This man clearly had a ball up there tonight. Some of the things he was saying to the crowd cracked me up — he encouraged us to "get f---ed up" several times — and he basically had a whole conversation with a man in the crowd about how many Deloreans said stranger owned. He's also more raunchy than I thought he'd be - I won't tell you exactly what he did, but he used his hand to make a gesture in the below-the-pants region that I nearly caught on camera by accident and I think I audibly gasped.

Power Trip live: AC/DC tattoos, parking nightmares, Guns N' Roses deliver hits, Iron Maiden review

Niki Kottmann is the features editor for The Desert Sun. She oversees the paper's arts and entertainment, education, health and business coverage, and loves to write the occasional arts & entertainment story. You can connect with her on Twitter @niki_mariee.