Gig Review: Sunburn Campus with Ilan Bluestone at NM College, Mumbai

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We all remember our college days, when we weren’t yet tied down with the labours and deadlines of work. Before we had any real responsibilities. When we were free to do pretty much what we wanted. Most of all, we remember the joy of a college festival. It was one of the things most of us would look forward to all year.

Back then, a Dance night at a college festival would include inviting a college student who owned a mixing console, or someone who knew how to mix. And we would all go crazy dancing the hits that did the rounds back then. How things have changed now, obviously for the better.

On Friday the 16th of August, Sunburn hosted it’s first edition of Sunburn Campus  for their Season 7in Mumbai, during the Narsee Monjee College of Commerce’s Annual festival, “Umang”. The concept, in itself, is a brilliant way to give to college students a gig that they probably wouldn’t have been able to attend otherwise due to monetary or age restrictions. What’s more, they had signed on Anjunabeats’ fastest rising star, Ilan Bluestone, as the headlining act at their Jashoda Rang Mandir Stage.

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Opening for Ilan was DJ Clement D’Souza. DJ Clement, is one of those rare talents to have emerged from the electronic dance music scene in India. This self-taught DJ, with his eclectic style of mixing House, EDM, hip-hop and even Bollywood music, has generated a huge fan following. He’s one of the best; most versatile DJs India has to offer. His goal in life is “To Make People Dance” and this holds true at each and every one of his gigs. Rated as India’s best House DJ by VH1 MYFAVDJ.com, Clement has shared the console with some of the biggest House DJs to grace India.

Starting his set at around 7pm, he dished out hit after hit, and mash up after mash up. Most notable of which were Knife Party’s LRAD mixed with Linkin Park’s Numb, and an epic crowd favorite, an electric mix of Swedish House Mafia’s “Dont You Worry Child” and One Republic’s “If I Lose Myself Tonight”.  He even played club bangers like David Guetta’s “Work Hard, Play Hard” and Dada Life’s “Feed The Dada.”

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After an hour of a barrage of dance floor destroyers, It was time for Ilan Bluestone to take to the decks. In the last year, London-based producer Ilan Bluestone has gone from unknown newcomer, to one of the most promising new acts on the international dance music scene. He discovered his love for music at an early age by self-teaching guitar and keyboard, which resulted in a passion for that ‘progressive’ sound he builds on today.
With recent releases Namaste” and Capetown on Anjunabeats, Bluestone has become a permanent fixture in Above & Beyond’s recent DJ sets as well as gaining comprehensive support from other international DJ’s including Tiësto, Arty, Gareth Emery and Myon & Shane 54. “Capetown” received an overwhelming amount of love from DJ’s and dance music lovers around the world, He’s most noted for his most recent chart topping collaboration with Jerome Isma-Ae on “Under My Skin”

He walked on stage to a roaring crowd of hundreds of college students, with a beaming smile on his face. One could tell he was really enjoying the adulation. Meanwhile the crowd was literally jumping uncontrollably with the anticipation of being blown away. I, for one, had been dying to see Ilan Bluestone play live ever since I heard “Capetown” on Above & Beyond’s Radio Show, Trance Around The World.

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He had started off with a track perfectly fitting the Indian atmosphere, and one of the first tracks that put him on the radar, “Namaste.” A warm mellow riff and build up that gave way to a massive uplifting progressive beat. He then switched over to Prog Trance veterans Super8 & Tab’s LA.  The electricity in the air was now building up as the crowd had begun to lose themselves to his euphoric tunes.  Riding high on that wave of sheer energy, Bluestone switched over to his infamous Sinai.  And at the breakdown, every single member of the audience had their hands in the air in surrender to the mystical entrancing vocals in the track. And once it built up, we were all ready to rage again.

From this, he switched over to his brilliantly composed rework of BT’s emotional Skylarking. This had everyone, including Ilan with his hands in the air, miming out the extraordinary riff to the song.  At this point one could sense that there was nothing but pure joy all over. The crowd reflected Ilan’s vibrancy, and he in turn fed off of that reflection. It was a fair trade of pure energy.  He then switched to emotional Trance experts Above & Beyond’s historic love ballad, Sun & Moon. This had literally everyone echo out the lyrics in complete unison. Feeling the entire vibe of all the love in the air at that moment, he switched over to his remix of Lana Del Rey’s Summertime Sadness. After which, he dropped Capetown, through which we were sent deeper into Bluestone’s emotional sojourn of entrancing music.

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All the while during his set, Ilan kept coming to the front of the stage to connect with the groups of starstruck kids that were literally forming packs to meet him. You could really tell, that more than anything he was having a blast.  He was really having fun playing for an army of college students, who were just bouncing with pure energy. He then moved on to play a very bouncy/groovy Waves of LA, one of his own productions, after which, it seemed as though he wanted to send love around the hall again when he dropped his collaborative remix with Maor Levi on Emeli Sande’s emotional Heaven. From there he switched to another collaboration with Maor Levi, their remix of Paul Van Dyk’s smash hit, I Don’t Deserve You, and then again, he dropped the beautiful club mix of Thing Called Love, by his favorites, Above & Beyond.  From here he moved on to a banger trouse remix of Above & Beyond’s Love Is Not Enough, again remixed by him and his friend/mentor Maor Levi.

After that smashing dosage of Above & Beyond, when it seemed things couldn’t literally get any more joyous, we were reminded of A State of Trance 600, when he had dropped the stupendous collaboration between Arty & Armin Van Buuren, Nehalennia, a song, which Ilan later told me, he’d find a way to incorporate into every one of his live sets, as he absolutely loved it.  It was now time for him to end a smashing, emotional and a purely upbeat and exuberant set.  That’s when he finished with the song that almost everyone present was waiting for. The song that had crept in to all our minds from the moment we had heard it.  It’s even one of our favourites back at Bangin HQ.  That song was his collaboration with the magnificient Jerome Isma-Ae, and it’s called Under My Skin. What drove us way beyond the edge though, was the fact that he had played an unreleased vocal edit.

And with that, he’d ended what could only be described as one of the most memorable nights for everyone present. For most it was because they had never witnessed something as big at a college festival before. It wasn’t short of an arena gig in any respect. It had it all; the lights, stage effects, the works.  By the time it was done, every social media platform was filled with indication of how epic the night was for everyone present.  We were literally spent from all the raging. And what’s more it was just unadulterated, uninfluenced, pure energy. Being a college festival, obviously there was zero alcohol or any other intoxicants of the sort. But the energy level at the venue was off the  roof.

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In my opinion, that’s exactly what dance music should do. Without intoxicants, without any influence, entice each and every member of the audience to just resonate with energy.  A huge mention should go out to the Sunburn team, and the guys at NM college for putting this together and making it happen. I’m sure i speak for a huge portion of the Youth Dance Music fraternity when I say “Thank you so much for one of the best evenings ever.”

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Special thanks to Sunburn & the Shark & Ink crew!

Reviewed by Shule Puri.

Edited by Angelica Syiemiong Pereira.

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