Awakenings ADE 2021 - ANNA
There’s always that one set at a major festival where the DJ decides to completely take the piss, and the crowd of chin-stroking techno purists simply doesn't know how to react. Half the room is trying to maintain their grim, Berghain-approved scowls, while the other half is absolutely losing their minds to trance anthems from 1999. The cognitive dissonance is palpable, and frankly, it’s glorious to watch. The ANNA Awakenings ADE 2021 set turns the colossal Gashouder into an unhinged, high-octane time machine with lasers cutting through the thick Dutch fog.
This ANNA live set is a relentless, driving force, clocking in at a breathless 138.1 BPM average. Sticking mostly to the 12A and 3B Camelot keys, the Techno energy arc is completely unhinged, bouncing from deep sub-bass rollers to euphoric, hands-in-the-air breakdowns. Her mixing style is fierce and unapologetic, slamming tracks together with the kind of chaotic energy that keeps you entirely on your toes. The ANNA Awakenings ADE 2021 tracklist is an absolute riot of a crate-digger expedition.
Who else has the brass neck to drop Tiësto's "Adagio for Strings" right next to Extreme Trax's "Final Fantasy"? Pure madness. Launching out the gate with an aggressive "Unknown" opening track, she immediately sets a furious pace. The absolute peak of the night—and a moment of sheer cultural whiplash—comes when she actually drops Darude's "Sandstorm", causing a collective meltdown. She finally wraps the carnage with the closing track, Duncan Newell's "Sand Angels", leaving everyone properly bewildered and ecstatic.