At the Dell computer tent, people lined up for airbrushed temporary tattoos of lightning bolts and raised fists. In a tent shaped like a geodesic dome, sponsored by Kyocera, people lounged on blocks of grass while charging their cell phones. Donnie Bull of Salisbury sipped a beer while pedaling a bike that powered the phone chargers.
Some patrons, like Jeff Buttaccio, opted for new hairdos in the Dell tent.
"I want to look like I'm from the '80s," said Buttaccio, as Jade Gorman, a Morgan State University English professor, teased his brown curls and doused them with hair spray.
Beehives were especially popular, but many girls said, "Just make me look pretty," according to Siobhan Lettow, who had hot pink hair.
Cameron Babcock and Tanya White drove down from Ontario, Canada, for this weekend's festival. They went to the Virgin Festival at Toronto Island Park last year and said this one beats it hands down.
"It's set up way better," said White, 25. "It sounds good, and the stages are a lot closer. ... In Toronto, it's on an island. At least here, you can park your car and walk in."
The festival's lineup spans multiple musical genres, including hip-hop, rock and techno. At one point, music group Gogol Bordello churned out high-energy beats on the South Stage, disc jockey Erol Alkan unleashed thumping bass in the dance tent, and soul singer Duffy sashayed across the North Stage.
"It's definitely the most eclectic mix," said Richard Barlow, 37, who lives in Durham, N.C. "I love bands and I love DJs. It's the only festival where I can satisfy both those needs."
Barlow has been to all three Virgin Festivals and said he liked how organizers kept the layout largely the same over the years.
"Once you've done it a year, you know where the important stuff is," he said.
Barlow's biggest challenge will be deciding whom to see tonight, when headliners Nine Inch Nails, Kanye West and Armin van Buuren take different stages at the same time.
"That's a tough one," he said. "All three of them are good artists."
sam.sessa@baltsun.com
Sun reporters Julie Scharper and Justin Fenton contributed to this article.
