TuneLab
Tomorrowland Belgium 2016
Steve Angello
Steve Angello on the Tomorrowland Belgium 2016 mainstage is a lesson in progressive house grandeur, a set built on the scale of a blockbuster film score. The vibe is one of collective uplift, with thousands of hands in the air riding every sweeping melody and thunderous kick. This is progressive house at its most anthemic, cruising at 127.2 BPM and harmonically anchored in the uplifting, major territory of 12A. The energy profile is telling—a massive low-end average of 0.75 creates a wall of sound that feels physically immense, while the restrained mids and highs allow the soaring lead synths and vocals to cut through with cinematic clarity.
Angello’s mixing is patient and dramatic, building narratives over extended tracks like the 20-minute ‘Children Of The Wild’. The tracklist is a hit parade from his ‘Wild Youth’ era and beyond. The opener ‘Auvic - flowers’ is a beautiful, delicate build, while ‘Steve Angello - Rebel Nation’ is a roaring, festival-sized call to arms. Dropping Hardwell’s ‘Louder’ is a savvy mainstage crossover, and ‘Rave ‘n’ Roll’ is a pure, piano-driven joy bomb.
The inclusion of classics like Sebastian Ingrosso’s ‘Reload’ is a heartfelt nod to the Swedish House Mafia legacy. The journey is epic in scope: from the orchestral intro of ‘flowers’, through the emotional climax of ‘Children Of The Wild’, to the final, defiant statement of ‘Payback’. It’s a set that makes you feel ten feet tall, if only for an hour.