One day in 2006, a wide eyed, wanderlust fueled, dream weaving music maven was thrust into the world of electric skies and daisies, unabashed personalities paired with unapologetic beauty, a mixture of hefty bass and ethereal trance with what felt like an unlimited supply of good vibes and good times. Now, a decade later – the young woman that evolved from the chaos of the last few years will be entering a new adventure: diving down Insomniac’s fabled rabbit hole and into my first Beyond Wonderland.
Returning for it’s 6th year, Beyond Wonderland and it’s headliners return to the San Manuel Amphitheater and Grounds in San Bernadino, California for an epic adventure into the heart of dance music. Between the interactive art installations, costumed creatives roaming the grounds, free hydration stations and an incredible array of performers on four stages spread out among the grounds – Beyond Wonderland has something special up it’s sleeve for all in attendance.I can tell you right now that my Trance Arms are ready and roaring to go for the Outer Realm hosted by Dreamstate where FERRY CORSTEN will finally debut his live GOURYELLA set on Friday, and then I’ll be right back again the next night for some Bass and booty shaking with DOCTOR P and DELTA HEAVY. Check the set times (and potential conflicts!) below.
Even though Insomniac’s events were where I evolved into the audiophile I am today, I actually haven’t been back to San Bernadino since How Sweet It Is 2009 – when HSII still existed; and I haven’t been to an Insomniac festival since their first EDC in Las Vegas back in 2011. I can’t wait to be back, back with my neon brothers and sisters in a vibrant setting surrounded by fantastic music.
In the past few years, Insomniac has paved the way for some festivals to transform into camping utopia’s for festival squadrons from near and far – this year at Beyond Wonderland is no different! Dare to dream and wish upon a star in the decorated nooks and crannies of the campground, including access to morning yoga and a Silent Disco.
To enter the camping areas, you must have a valid festival ticket and be over 18. The tent areas measure 10′ by 10′ and there is a maximum of 5 party people per tent. Though you can park remotely and walk in, note that there’s a free lot specifically for tent camping purposes and the lot is limited to 1 car per tent spot.
“These Wonderland events were born and raised in Southern California, and so much of their unique style is inspired by the Headliners who attend them…the magical spirit of our Headliners continues to make Beyond Wonderland a special experience.” – Pasquale Rotella, Founder and CEO of Insomniac.
Feeling the festival FOMO yet? Don’t fret, there’s still time to join in the fun!
According to the Chinese Zodiac, 2016 is the year of the Monkey – so it’s only fitting that it’s the year Ferry Corsten’s trance monikercomes to life on the big stage. Tried and true Trance fans, raise a glass and rejoice – and prepare for an unforgettable musical journey. Originally a creative collaboration with Tiesto from 1999, the Gouryella side project released only a small handful of highly acclaimed tracks, only to dissipate in the early 2000’s. Don’t be confused If you’ve never heard of Gouryella, you (a) are not alone and (b) probably unaware that he’s produced music under over 20 other pseudonyms, transforming Ferry Corsten into the man of many musical masks.
He’s produced solo albums under three other names, System F, Ferr and DJ Sno-White to produce the currently seasonal Santa’s X-Mas Dance Party from 1996 (yes, almost 20 years ago), while his solo projects range from East West, Festen, Lunalife, Zenithal and Skywalker to collaborations
like Vimana with Tiesto, New World Punx with Markus Schulz, FB with Benny Benassi, and Veracicha with Vincent De Moor not to mention, over a dozen with Robert Smith like Double Dutch, Blade Racer, Starparty and Sons of Aliens. Earlier this year, Ferry Corsten revived the Gouryella alias to release the deliciously driving single Anahera, and you could say that from there – the rest is now history.
“’ve always loved the musical qualities that make up the Gouryella sound, and in the time when so much trance is swaying too far to EDM, I want to bring big melodies back to a scene I’ve spent my entire career championing. Gouryella will allow me the opportunity to exercise not only my desire to bring back a sentiment to the scene that I think is lacking in some parts, but equally deliver a new live concept that will represent both the music and visuals, as well as enable me to detail further the mysterious naming which has always made up Gouryella and the titles of the singles.”
From the moment I was introduced to his music, I was enthralled and entranced (pun intended) by the musical landscape and auditory adventure provided by both individual songs and his elongated club and festival sets. First it was his phenomenal closing set at the fabled Together As One of years ago, when Insomniac and GoVentures still partnered on the event; Ferry played a passionately playful closing set, extending it an extra half hour for the glowing crowd at The Shrine. Then within the next four months, I was lucky enough to witness him play an intimate, maybe 100 person show at Santa Barbara’s then up and coming dance nightclub – Statemynt. The goosebumps from hearing now classic tracks like ‘Beautiful’, ‘Fire’ and ‘Brain Box’ from right next to the DJ decks are as real eight years later as they were back then.
The announcement of his Gouryella tour comes right before the release of #HelloWorld Part 3 EP, out on his own Flashover Records imprint December 11th.
Skyrocketing to the top of the dance music circuit over the past decade, classically trained Gareth Emery boasts production skills that refuse to be reduced to a single genre. Crossing over effortlessly between Progressive House to Trance, Emery has produced hit after hit, including 2012’s Concrete Angel is the definition of perfection, a timeless track transporting me back three years ago to when it first trickled into my ears. Fast forward to 2015, and Emery has over 50 episodes of his ‘Electric For Life’ podcast under his belt – bringing the shows mantra ‘a good melody can change the world’ to life.
For the past several months, Gareth Emery has taken his immersive and audio-visually seductive show on the road, appropriately called the road to EFL in preparation for key stops in New York City, Los Angeles and London. Thrown in conjunction with LED Presents and Goldenvoice is pleased to host Gareth Emery’s Electric For Life Tour at the Los Angeles’ Shrine Expo Hallon Saturday, November 21st 2015. Unlike previous shows that boasted a mere 2 or 3 hour set, Emery sets the stage for sonic storytelling over the course of a meticulously plotted five hour set featuring special guest Emma Hewitt in all of her pixie perfection.
For a taste of the magic, dive ears first into his delicious and unprecedented six hour set at Vancouver this past August.
For the tried and true Trance fans, The DJ List is home to an exclusive giveaway for Gareth Emery fans – enter our contest on for an amazing opportunity: a 4 pack of tickets to the 11/21 Gareth Emery show in Los Angeles plus some stellar swag from none other than Electric Family!
Enter our contest HERE to Electrify Your Life with Gareth Emery!
For more on Gareth Emery, LED Presents or Goldenvoice head to their socials:
In partnership with Time Warner Cable, Above & Beyond – America’s favorite Trance trifecta – are bringing their signature radio show ABGT to New York City to celebrate the 100 episode mark! After last year’s epic show for ABGT50 at London’s Alexandra Palace, the bar will definitely be raised for the group – but that’s nothing they can’t overcome. And, for their century episode they’re doing it big – broadcasting live from Madison Square Garden, the world’s most famous arena, and it’ll be their largest show in America to date.
Pre-sale registration is open now until 4/28 at Midnight. If your ‘Sticky Fingers’ are itching to say ‘Hello’ to A&B in NYC, you’ll want to register ASAP. Pre-sale for registered members begins at Noon EDT on 4/30 and could easily sell out, sale to the general public begins on 5/1 at Noon EDT.
Looking back at my posts from the last year, one that stands out the most to be is my 2012 Year in Musical Review. Partially, because it’s catalyzed my writing career on multiple fronts – but mostly because music, especially kickass live music, is something I truly care about to my core. Music influences our moods, our personalities and even our daily interactions. Unless there’s something highly important and technical that I have a deadline for, I’m literally submersed in music 24/7 – from the time my alarm and I wake up, to my morning runs, to the drive to work, you get the picture: I more or less have provided myself with a soundtrack to my life. With my attention span as short as it is (…squirrel!…), I constantly refresh my collection of original jams, remixes and singles and try to take in as much live music as I can.
I’ve been leafing through the ticket stubs and reminiscing about the excellent year in music that I just had. From attempting to co-start a music forum site and to with The DJ List, my daily extra-curricular activities have always circled around new music, fresh artists and the latest and greatest they have to offer. Somehow, even though I’ve managed to be busier than I’ve ever been I’ve definitely managed to fit in some quality R&R (Rave & Relaxation) into the mix. So, without further ado – here are my musical musings for 2013; enjoy!
Truth be told, I’m sitting here trying my hardest to even place Cosmic Gate in second place because Above & Beyond’s sunset at Avila Beach was just so spectacular! It was a small crowd with unexpected surprises in store for everyone in my friend group – we each found someone at the event from out of town (LA, Riverside and SF) that we didn’t know was in attendance and were all simply wowed by the musical prowess the group possesses. But Cosmic Gate is not a team to be underestimated, during the live show they brought out my favorite pixie blonde vocalist, Emma Hewitt, and Jonathan Mendelson who gave a phenomenal first live vocal performance during Nic Chagall’s ‘This Moment’.
Best D&B show: Modestep at the Nokia Club, High Contrast w. Camo & Krooked at Dim Mak Studios
Best Deep / Tech House Show: Kaskade @ Focus OC’s 10 Year Anniversary
Best Progressive House Show:Eric Prydz / Pryda / Cirez D @ Create
Best Electro House Show: Gareth Emery @ XIV
Best Festival: Lightning in a Bottle
For the last six or seven years I’ve been a self-professed seasoned festival go-er and have a host of Insomniac, HARD and GoVentures events under my EDM belt (almost 40 if you want to get specific), but truth be told last year I only attended three festivals, one of them being Sea of Dreams on NYE. For as much as the lineup to HARD Summer thrilled my pants off, the event didn’t…however, Lightning in a Bottle and Sea of Dreams surely did. Each was musically right in their own right but on a more personal level, I truly felt bonded to the community that LIB and Burning Man cultivates and have actively been seeking out similar events ever since.
Best Festival Set:Keys n Krates, Dillon Francis, Alex Metric ((HARD Summer)) HeRObust, Pumpkin, Rusko, The Polish Ambassador, Odeza, Andreilien ((LIB)), LowRIDERz, A-Trak, Thievery Corporation ((Sea of Dreams))
Best Venue: Sea of Dreams @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium | NYE was one of the most amazing musical experiences I’ve ever had, everything about the night was golden and a lot of that is due to the venue and soundsystem that came with it; top notch.
Weird but Rad Venue: Lightning in a Bottle @ Lake Skinner, Temecula, CA | I was tempted to give LIB the gold star for ‘Best Venue’ but after the all of the shenanigans with the county and residents of Riverside, I’ll wait until next year to grant the festival that award. Basically, I want to see it shine in all of its glory; not just in my personal experiences but for the greater community in attendance as well.
Best Pool Party: Daylight
Best Party:Sea of Dreams
Best Up and Coming Venue:Sound in Hollywood
Favorite Reopened Venue: Create (previously, known as Vanguard)
Best Crowd: DoLab shows –Avalon | If you only remember one thing about the music scene in LA, let it be this: the Do Lab will always do you right. I always look forward to the art infused musical events they throw. Whether they’re at the Nokia Club, King King or out in the middle of nowhere Riverside – they make sure to cater to all of your senses and the people who show up are some of the nicest friends you hadn’t met you.
Douche-iest Crowd: XIV by Hyde, Greystone Manor, Sutra | I still hold by last year’s statement about Sutra, but now that I’ve finally attended events at Greystone and XIV I can easily bump those two to the top of the list. Maybe it goes hand-in-hand with my appetite for all things Do Lab and underground, but I can’t wrap my head around wearing 3″+ heals to a club and cozy-ing up to people just snag an extra drink (or five). I prefer the let-your-freak-flag-fly mentality of other events and prefer stomping around in flats to trying to maintain a proper demeanor in an outfit that’s definitely not meant for dancing.
Best Lasers:Create and Exchange have most definitely stepped their laser game up in the last year, far surpassing anything that Avalon has ever done (sorry guys – not knocking the place (it’s still rad!) but it’s true).
Ferry Corsten @ Exchange Hit us with those laser beams *pew pew pew*
Artists
Favorite Set/Act of 2013: Above & Beyond in Avila Beach
Best Surprise of 2013: Crywolf, Mitis, Kill Paris, Disclosure, Keys n Krates, Flume
So Glad I (Re-)Discovered: Bonobo, Emancipator, Shpongle, The Magician,
Remixes So Nicely: SubFocus, Flume
Best Remix-er: Boy Noize, Dillon Francis, Cazzette
Favorite Vocalists: Jonathan Mendelson, Alex Clare, Annabel Englund, MNEK, Chet Faker, Florence Welch, Emma Hewitt
Most Disappointing: Daft Punk everything; maybe because it was directly juxtaposed to Keys’n’Krates with their live instruments, but Duke Dumont was also pretty underwhelming live and looked like he was just pressing a button; last but not least, Cedric Gervais did absolutely nothing for me.
Vocalists Who Shouldn’t Perform Live with DJs: Danny Brown
People Who Should Be Reminded They’re Not DJs: Will.i.Am, Paris Hilton
Songs:
My Top 10 Songs of the Year
Depeche Mode – Soothe My Soul (Steve Angello + Jaques Lu Cont Remix)
Darkside – Papertrails
Oliver – Night is On My Mind (Dillon Francis Remix)
Disclosure – You & Me (Baauer Remix)
Seven Lions + Myon & Shane 54 – Strangers
Minnesota – Stardust Redux (Crywolf Remix)
Maya Jane Coles ft Karin Park – Everything
Thomas Jack – Booka Shake
Flume ft Freddie Gibbs – Holdin’ On (LKids Remix)
Lane 8 – Be Mine
Mat Zo – Lucid Dreams – (M Machine Remix) [runner up]
“I don’t want to be at the mercy of my emotions. I want to use them, to enjoy them, and to dominate them.” ― Oscar Wilde
Though I’m sure my parents would readily disagree with this statement – I don’t consider myself much of a whiner or a complainer; the fact of the matter is that I’m an only child – and twice over at that with divorced parents. But that’s totally a story for another day – bottom line: the only type of wine I like comes in a glass and is paired with cheese. That said – BLAAARG: <y Aunt has been at Mass-Gen with some rare, tropical illness that no one’s ever heard of or knows how to treat and – this isn’t me exaggerating to get my point across, or get your sympathy – she would’ve died last week if it weren’t for the quick thinking and overwhelming concern from a family friend. When ten of the best specialists in the world are running around like chickens with their heads cut off asking for “Dr.House” you know you’re in for a hell of a ride; thankfully, my family is rock solid and we’re sending all of our energy to get her better. To boot, I’ve had a whale of a time dealing with a misanthropic apartment “manager” on various different issues and it literally makes my head want to explode and implode simultaneously. So this is me; trying to be calm, content and in the present. This is me being constructive and moving forward. And this is me, understanding that I can only control what is in my power; the universe has it’s own plan for all of us.
So, that being said – I’ve been in search of an escape. Most people view escapism as something external: somewhere you go or a new place to rest your existence. But, why limit yourself? To escape is to literally break free of confinement, control and convention – did you ever stop and think that all those mechanisms exist in your mind? This weekend ended up being about an internal escape, a sort of manifest-destiny of the mind of you will. I had great company, good food, roamed the streets in the sunshine and had at least 8 hours of sleep each night; suffice it to say, I forgot how amazing detoxing can be! But now that we’re here – at Monday – again, I need something to pick me up. I was diagnosed with a fainting disorder a few years ago so with no caffeine in my diet, I leave it up to music to soothe my soul – here are some of my go-to, feel-good jams that make you just want to dance, love and break things (in the best of ways, of course!). Enjoy, and I hope your Monday is just as manic as you need it to be.
Playlist:
Depeche Mode – Soothe My Soul (Steve Angello & Jaques Lu Cont Remix)
Empire of the Sun – Alive (Zedd Remix)
SubFocus ft Alex Clare – Endorphins (Tommy Trash Remix)
Above & Beyond – Walter White
Disclosure ft Eliza Doolittle – You & Me (Baauer Remix)
The Partysquad – Lighterman (Krafty Kuts Skank Remix)
MitiS ft Collin McLoughlin – Born
J Majik & Wickaman – Life Me Up
Duke Dumont – Lean N Bounce
Armin van Buuren ft Trevor Guthrie – This Is What It Feels Like (W&W Remix)
Maison & Dragen – Wet Dreams
Hard Rock Sofa & Dirty Shade – Collapsar
Submatik – Stories Can Wait
Will Sparks – Ah Yeah (TJR Edit)
Wallpaper. – Good 4 It (Laidback Luke Goes Melbourne Vocal Mix)
After being in the Electronic Dance scene for the better part of the last decade, I have one small confession to make: though we get epic onslaughts of DJs, Festivals and all night dance-a-thons in Los Angeles, there’s just something about going to Miami for Winter Music Conference and Ultra that I just have to do. I’ve had friends go for the past three years and tell me that it was the time of their life – problem is, living in LA, the mecca of most things EDM in America it’s incredibly hard to justify spending all that money for a weekend in Miami. But, One of my best friends went with her boyfriend and I had the pleasure of living vicariously through them and their friends all weekend; and I have to say, I’m insanely jealous! Now that I’ve gone through the live streams, the sets, the Instagram feeds and through Facebook I feel the need to take part in this epic debauchery; thank goodness there’s always next year!
There are a few great blogs that capture the moment and the music of festivals in an A+ fashion – specifically, Dancing Astronaut – and they definitely didn’t disappoint when it came to Miami Music Week – here are some of my favorite sets from this past weekend; they’re doing a proper job of getting me through my day so hopefully they’ll do the same for y’all.
Enjoy! ♥
P.S. Looks like dates are already set for Ultra next year – March 28-30; you can bet your bottom bassline I’ll be thre!
Even though Insomniac’s events were where I evolved into the audiophile I am today, I actually haven’t been back to San Bernadino since How Sweet It Is 2009 – when HSII still existed; and I haven’t been to an Insomniac festival since their first EDC in Las Vegas back in 2011. I can’t wait to be back, back with my neon brothers and sisters in a vibrant setting surrounded by fantastic music.
The Bouncy Kitty 
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