Awakenings ADE 2019 - Bart Skils & Layton Giordani
The Amsterdam Dance Event is that special time of year when every single person in the smoking area claims to run a boutique label. It's wall-to-wall industry folk pretending they aren't completely exhausted, nodding thoughtfully to the kick drum while checking their emails. But once you push past the networking try-hards, the deep, cavernous acoustics of this room are ready to tear your head off. This Bart Skils & Layton Giordani live set is a massive chunk of proper Drumcode Techno, cruising at a relentless 130.8 BPM.
The technical synergy between the two is brilliant, riding the 12A Camelot key for the vast majority of the set, creating a monolithic, rolling energy arc that never dips. The mixing is incredibly smooth, layering thick low-end frequencies without ever muddying the waters. The Bart Skils & Layton Giordani Awakenings ADE 2019 tracklist is packed with certified dancefloor weapons. The crate digger in them shines by dropping Mark Reeve's 'Serum' and CamelPhat's 'Witching Hour,' but sneaking in Green Velvet's classic 'La La Land' is the masterstroke that sets the room off.
The journey is an absolute powerhouse. They launch into the darkness with an unknown opening track, build the tension to a breaking point with Layton's own 'System Majority,' and finally let the crowd breathe with 'The Green Martian - Industry' as the closing track. Proper job.