Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I believe beauty is in Kaskade’s music. For a decade now Ryan Raddon has been on a mission to produce great music that moves people – moves their souls and moves their feet. He has successfully been able to fulfill that dream of his.

When Sunburn announced that Kaskade was going to be performing at their Season Opening Party, most of Kaskade’s biggest fans must have felt the exact same way I did. My excitement level peaked, this speaks volumes of how in depth and mesmerized I am by his music. Mumbai was the last city on Kaskade’s India Tour, we all waited patiently for this day and controlled our emotions.

Kaskade in Mumbai was initially going to be at Mahalaxmi Racecourse, the iconic venue where some of the biggest shows in Mumbai have taken place – Swedish House Mafia, Tiesto and Armin van Buuren to name a few. Due to various circumstances it had been shifted to Blue Frog, a great venue just not my ideal venue for an artist as magnificient as Kaskade. I will admit I was a tad bit disappointed. But I knew deep down inside that it was Kaskade and his music touches!

On the 25^th of August 2013, electronic dance music lovers in Mumbai were going to be treated to the USA’s finest DJ! The 25^th of August has been a meaningful day in my electronic dance music journey – last year I attended Creamfields and got to witness a festival unlike any I’ve been for. I had high hopes for the 25^th of August 2013. I expected a lot. Before you read my review, I want you to know that my expectations were probably way above the Exosphere.

Ankur Sood has played at many Sunburn & Sunburn Campus events. He is very familiar with the drill and knows exactly what’s required to thrill the audience. He started off Sunburn’s Season Launch Party in Mumbai and was later followed by Clement. The true dance music fans were the ones right up front from the start of the show connecting to all the tracks that were being played and appreciating the increasing tempo.

Clement has been supported by Sunburn for a few years now, we saw him last at BlueFrog when he opened for Shaan at his birthday gig a couple of weeks ago. His set was subtle at the start, he then moved on to play big commercial hits like “Your Love” by Mark Knight, “Don’t You Worry Child” by Swedish House Mafia & “Adagio For Strings” by Tiesto. By then Blue Frog was packed to it’s capacity and maybe a little more than that as well, walking around was a problem, dancing was a bit of a tedious job as well.

On the dot at 11pm Kaskade walked on to the Blue Frog stage and looked around at all his fans in Mumbai who gathered to witness his magic. They say silence speaks louder than words; the silence before Kaskade started his set filled the room with energy, emotions & anticipation. This silence was greeted by “Atmosphere” which started the night that many will remember.

Kaskade gave us a listen of his remix of Lana Del Rey’s “Young & Beautiful” which was released on his Soundcloud page after the gig – I’d like to think he treated us with yummy sweet candy by playing that track. If you’ve ever been to see Kaskade before or heard any of his sets you’d know that they always have the best mash-ups and this one sure did! It started off with the mash-up of his track “4Am” and Hard Rock Sofa’s “Quasar”, he also played “Turn It Down” featuring Rebecca & Fiona vs Martin Garrix’s “Animals”, his collaboration with The Cataracs’ “All You” vs Sander van Doorn’s “Joyenergizer” and my favourite his very own “Dynasty” vs Arty’s track “Together We Are” featuring Chris James. Kaskade drifted back and forth with his hypnotic mash-ups slamming us in the face everytime.

His music does not require you to fist pump the night way, it is smooth and the airwaves sway your body in the direction it pleases. There is a reason why many adore Kaskade, his music comforts and soothes, and yet has the desired energy to keep you on your toes dancing, making sure that you enjoy yourself. Kaskade’s set would not be complete if he hadn’t played “No One Know’s Who We Are” and crowd favourites, featuring Deadmau5 “I Remember” and “Move For Me”. Everyone sang these tracks in unison, at one point maybe even louder than the music coming through the speakers. Kaskade sticks to his roots even though he plays a whole assortment of tracks and remixes.

The highlight of the night for me was “Angel On My Shoulder” and Gregori Klosman’s remix of “Room For Happiness”. Though not his recent releases but ones that speak to you, tracks that mean something. Kaskade has sold out shows all over the world, his albums have topped charts globally but the one track that makes everyone come back for more is definitely his track featuring Tiesto “Only You”. When his set ended everyone had a fulfilled look on their faces. Kaskade stands out as a DJ because of his ability to bring together dance music bangers and his classics that everyone loves.

Shaan went up right after Kaskade. I am sure it is a scary feeling to play after a legend but Shaan’s sets always have maturity and youthfulness exuberating from them which kept everyone dancing. He has been sampling his new tracks during his Bharat Tour few days ago and did so here as well ending the night on a good positive high! Must admit the visual programming was one of Sunburn’s best for a club gig.

Special Thanks to Sunburn and Kaskade, we will always remember this night!

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Reviewed by: Angelica Syiemiong Pereira