On perhaps the most stacked evening of the world’s biggest club festival, we criss-crossed the town from Roest Warehouse to the iconic Gashouder complex for hands-down two of ADE’s most anticipated showcases.
First up was the premiere of Dubfire’s debut live show, ambitiously titled Dubfire:Live – Hybrid. Reinventing the concert experience by seamlessly weaving together elements of 2D and 3D animation with live audio and lighting, the performance was a breathtaking exploration of the intersection between science and technology—of man and machine—and their resulting evolution and inevitable fusion.
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We don’t exaggerate when we tell you the event was unlike anything we had previously seen or heard before anywhere, let alone at ADE.
And then it was onwards and upwards to Awakenings for a lineup curated by Drumcode, featuring heavy-hitters from the label like founder Adam Beyer, Joseph Capriati, Alan Fitzpatrick and Nicole Moudaber.
The long-running Awakenings platform has always promoted an exhaustive list of the names making it happen in techno at the moment. This rip-roaring affair was no different. Taking into consideration the venue itself—a large, pillar-less chamber under wrought-iron roof construction in an industrial gasworks structure—it all added to a party we won’t soon forget.
Once again, THUMP had photographer Alec Thomas on the scene to capture the sights, lights and spirit of the festivities for our readers.
Amsterdam Roest is like an oasis in the city—an environment where you can relax, dance, create, enjoy and get inspired by art, film, music or theater. The space is an experiment that is open to innovative ideas.
Dubfire has always intended for his music to be performed live and supported by the latest advancements in music, stage design, lighting and sound technology.
It took Dubfire years to build up a body of work that he was proud to stand behind and to find a team that could create the HYBRID show.
While some artists chose to be merely content with status quo, others like Dubfire constantly look for ways to reinvent themselves and evolve.
The crowd being taken down the rabbit hole and they aren’t looking back.
To put it simply: this is next level stuff.
Mesmerized.
En route from Roest Warehouse to Gashouder, it never ceases to amaze how Amsterdam springs to life at night.
Backstage at the most distinctive building on the Westergasfabriek site.
Awakenings with a view.
The Gashouder is a place of extremes. If you’re thinking big, if you’ve got daring plans… then it’s the venue for you.
Alan Fitzpatrick flexing his trademark tough, hooky grooves and incendiary beats.
Lasers in the night.
Techno’s breakout star of the year showing the Gashouder audience why 2014 belonged to Joseph Capriati.
Lost in the thrill of it all.
Alec’s portfolio can be located by clicking here and you can follow his work on Instagram at @alecreidphotography.