Sometimes a journey within yourself is discovered when you’re willing to travel outward. A dance music journey takes you to unknown places within the corners of your mind. A journey into the folds of your soul which rejoices, elevates and finally drops in a massive expansion of beautiful beats and unimaginable temples of pure electronic bliss. Once there is a gathering to celebrate and rejoice this musical journey it gets even better and absolutely etches into one’s memory forever. This was the journey of this years instalment of Sunburn Mumbai which took us to beautiful destinations of dance music love in our hearts and minds.

Popular as pioneers of innovation and one of the biggest entities in the dance music industry in India, Sunburn have many iconic gigs and memorable festivals to their credit, starting from the very first one in the place where it all began Goa. In its seventh year, Sunburn has risen the excitement level manifold owing to an extent to the fantastic production and stages (Space Jungle & Space Station) which match the benchmark set by global standards giving dance music fans in India a real treat.

This years instalment of Sunburn Mumbai promised to give the maximum city a maximum festival and over its course of two days gave fans a massive line up of both known and growing artists which made many a fan bubble with anticipation for the festival to commence.

Among the line-up on Day 1 were world renowned names such as Paul Van Dyk, Fedde Le Grand, Showtek and Orjan Nilsen along with leading domestic acts of the likes of Anish Sood x Lost Stories, recent Blackhole Records signing, Sartek, NDS & Blue amongst others. Hit past the break now to read up on our take of what went down during ‘Day 1′ of the mammoth festival now!

When the day finally arrived, on 17th December 2013 we entered the venue,  Mahalaxmi Race Course in Mumbai waiting to be hypnotized and bamboozled by amazing performances. Festival goers rather die-hard dance music fans very strolling around flashing their glow sticks. As we stopped by to grab a bite to eat before the madness unfolded, we saw happy, smiling faces with joy and determination to experience a musical journey embarking on route to Planet Sunburn!

Day 1

Space Jungle Stage

We entered the venue to find Delhi based producer/DJ, Sartek, hard at work behind the console. Having recently been in the limelight for having signed on to Black Hole Recording‘s Magik Muzik sub label, he didn’t waste this opportunity to make sure the Mumbai audience got familiar with his signature sound. He played an eclectic mix of original productions teamed up with recent dazzling electro hits. Warming the crowd up with Zedd’s remix of Empire of The Sun’s Alive, he continued to play tracks like We Are by Carl Nunes & Jake Shanahan ft Shaun Frank and Purple Lip by Jake Shanahan. However, what was most overwhelming to see was that what really got the crowd jumping with was when he had dropped his original production, Apocalypse.

Next up we had a duo who have been making waves ever since they decided that dance music was their sphere, NDS & Blue. These boys were exceptional behind the decks by way of the innumerable number of mashups they had dropped. Starting with Dada Life‘s Boing Clash Boom, they moved on to a powerhouse remix of Eric Prydz’s Proper Education which was followed by Vicetone’s remix of Nicky Romero & Krewella’s hit collaboration, Legacy which was met by an immense uproar from fans. Another moment we can not forget was when they dropped an intense bass heavy moombah remix of Zedd’s Clarity. Playing brilliant mash-ups and wondrous re-works of today’s favourites, you could easily see why the audience kept lapping up every hit they dished out.

Following NDS & Blue, was India’s youngest DJ (S)haan. Shaan had been tweeting about how he was going to play a set that was primarily comprised of trance with a few electro/big room numbers thrown in before the festival, and that’s exactly what he did. It’s very evident that Shaan possesses talent way beyond his age. He played his collaboration with the aforementioned duo, NDS & Blue Bharat and Bassjackers’ widely popular track Zing amongst other stompers. The crowd at the ‘Space Jungle Stage’ had now started growing even larger.

It was only a little while after that when Shaan gave way to Norwegian superstar Orjan Nilsen. Having just launched his own label, In My Opinion. The stalwart DJ/producer coming fresh after the release of his versatile album “No Saint Out Of Me”, had created quite a buzz amongst his Indian fans, when it was announced that he’d be one of the performers at this years edition of Sunburn Mumbai. His set was bundled with energy, as his classical Trance riffs could be heard all over his set.

Playing with the sky painted a delicious orange, Orjan’s playlist included the likes of the massive Blueprint by Dannic & Sick Individuals, Armin Van Buuren‘s Pulsa and the energetic Supreme by Mercer. Besides dropping some heavy trance anthems, Orjan’s dived into his own wide portfolio finding all the arsenal required to get the Mumbai crowd in a daze as the sun set. With tracks like Mafioso, Fable and his remarkable collaboration with Christina Novelli, Hurricane. Orjan’s set proved to be just the perfect platform for him to share his musical journey with his Indian fans. Dropping the  trance beauty Amsterdam followed by the anthemic Xiing! in a matter of minutes from each other, Orjan showed his prowess as a DJ.

Other productions from his expansive portfolio included the likes of Violetta, Viking, Knobtwister and the trance classic La Guitarra. Orjan’s homecoming was a grand success as the crowd showered love and praise over him.

Headlining the ‘Space Jungle’ stage was dance music legend and pioneer Paul Van Dyk. The German Trance legend has graced India many number of times, however there was something heartily ceremonious about the occasion. Wearing a black tee and a permanent smile fixed on his face, Paul began his set with sparkling trance anthems. With a thundering applause from the crowd, he launched into Maarten De Jong‘s remix of Rapha‘s Nice and followed it up with Andrew Rayel‘s rework of Dash Berlin, Go It Alone. Going about his business effortlessly, he played dazzling melodic and uplifting trance hits which transcended across all boundaries and took us all on a magical adventure which would only end at the end of the German superstar’s fascinating set.

As his power-packed set progressed he let loose some beautiful crowd favourites for all of us of the likes of, his collaboration with Wayne Jackson‘s The Other Side playing at the backdrop. He added an Indian touch to his performance when he came forward in a shimmering Kurta and began to dance and interact with the fans up close, much to joy of a number of his fans! He then danced for the remainder of the night dressed in the same attire, and dropped his surreal collaboration with Arty The Ocean which seamlessly transitioned into Kyau and Albert‘s What you know.

Words like ‘magic’ and ‘fantasy’ formed a part of the descriptions of his magnificent set  by different people in the crowd as he dropped Super 8 & Tab‘s remix of Nothing But You, his collaborative effort We Are Tonight with Christian Burns and Pedro Del Mar & DoubleV‘s remix of his massive collaboration with Arty and Sue McLaren The Sun After Heartbreak.

Something crisp and delightful about his set which simply is impossible to describe in words was Paul’s enthusiasm, and his energy as a performer was humbling. We were all in the awe of his sheer greatness, as the trance mogul that has inspired countless DJ’s over the years to be part of this musical fraternity, dropped his hallmark of fame For An Angel only to have it uniquely transition into Swedish House Mafia‘s anthemic release, One. Paul Van Dyk’s set not only matched up to its billing, it added a new benchmark to the quality of music and set’s he’s come to be known for. Taking us on a spectacular journey in a short span, he ended what had been a breathtaking set with Jordan Suckley‘s remix of Binary Finary‘s classic 1998. Ending Day 1 with a glorious performance such as Paul’s was easily every dance music fan’s dream, and we have to thank Sunburn for bringing it to life!

Space Station Stage

Proceedings were kicked off by domestic DJ/producer Kash Trivedi. He spun a set of composed energy comprising of refreshing deep and tech tracks. Curated just like the smooth Kai Zen by Save The Robot, played towards the end of his set, the hour gradually built up to an insurmountable surge of energy – the kind perfect for the next act to perform! Indian electronic stalwarts, who have made their onstage B2B project a frequent occurrence, Lost Stories and Anish Sood turned the dials around and bought the familiar festival ambiance to the crowd. Their high octane set was loaded with remixes and mash up’s with the likes of Summertime Sadness(acapella) vs What’s up Suckaz by Lana Del Ray vs TJR and a thundering mash up of Zedd‘s remix of Alive by Empire Of The Sun and Torro Torro‘s remix of 2edit’s track, Datsun Tropicalia. Bursting with energy, the duo of Anish Sood and Rishabh Joshi jumped and enticed the crowd while dropping chart bangers such as MAKJ‘s Springen and Sultan & Ned Shepard‘s remix of Bruno Mars chartbuster, Locked Out of Heaven.

While Shaan curated a special set of his own 200 meters across at the ‘Space Jungle’ stage, the ‘Space Station’ stage had its own colourful tones of mayhem as Botnek‘s remix of Mat Zo & Porter Robinson‘s Easy was infused with the triple mashup delight of Lana del Ray vs Alesso & OneRepublic‘s Young and beautiful (Acapella) vs. If I Lose Myself (Alesso Remix), Swedish House Mafia’s vs. Avicii‘s, Don’t You Worry Child vs Wake me up and Pendulum vs Sebastian Ingrosso, Tommy Trash & John Martin‘s, Island vs Reload got everyone in a ceremonial mood celebrating their favourite anthems together. Wrapping up their set with their very own How You Like Me Now, Lost Stories took the assistance of Anish Sood to end their massive set with the crowd favourite, Years by Alesso and Matthew Koma.

Next up were festival favourites, Showtek. They began their set by getting the enthusiastic crowd to cheer for themselves and got them cheering the festival chants. Speeding off with TJR‘s What’s Up Suckaz followed by Henry Fong‘s bootleg of Fatboy Slim & Riva Staar‘s worldwide smash hit, Eat Sleep Rave Repeat, they dropped Mercer‘s recent release, Supreme and Deorro‘s highly acclaimed track, Yee.

From their own impressive discography they treated fans to their original production, Slow Down, their collaboration with Justin Prime, Cannonball and their widely successful collaboration with We Are Loud & Sonny Wilson, Booyah! Their set was furiously aggressive and they rarely put the brakes on, as the crowd seemed to be raring to go for one drop after the other! Besides treating the crowd to their ever popular sit down, they got the crowd jumping with an explosive tracklist including the likes of Hardwell‘s edit of Blasterjaxx‘s Fifteen and Go Down by Dyro.

A hapless crowd found the charms of the Dutch brother duo simply irresistible as they dropped other floor rockers such as DJ Snake vs Junior Senior‘s Move Your Feet (Parisian Vision), Hardwell & MAKJ‘s Countdown, Wizard by Martin Garrix & Jay Hardway and an innovative mash up of Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike & Moguai and Afrojack & Steve Aoki‘s originals Mammoth and No Beef.

Next up was the House legend, Mr. Detroit himself. Fedde Le Grand has made himself synonymous with the ever evolving house music scene as he has always been at the forefront of dance music for over a decade. Starting things off with his recently released production Rockin’ N’ Rollin‘ and his collaboration with Michael Calfan, Lion (Feel The Love), he dropped some heavy sterling anthems too such as D-S7‘s mash up, Marco V vs. David Guetta feat. Ne-Yo & Akon, Play Hypergenic, Hard Supersonic, Prototype by Don Diablo & CID and New World Sound vs. Ryan Kristo‘s Cube.

Known world over for his chart topping productions, the Dutch showman is an equally creative beast behind the decks. Big drops and throbbing basslines adorned the night sky, as Kryder‘s bootleg  of Nicky Romero & Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano vs. Breach‘s Let’s Jack Underground, Icona Pop and Charli XCX‘s, I Love It (Sick individuals Remix) and DVBBS & Borgeous‘s monstrous track, Tsunami gave the crowd more reason to celebrate the epic festival!

As one stage offered an escalator ride to the heavens, the other dug deep into the dancefloor and made sure no one was left alone standing by as LRAD by Knife party and Nanana by Alvaro & Moti made the energy palpable. A very special intervention by Fedde Le Grand was the innovative mashup between Jewelz & Scott Sparks Flashbang with the acapella of Oasis‘s Wonderwall. No one expected those delightful vocals to be part of such a smashing set.

The lights flickered on and the atmosphere turned mellow as those unforgettable vocals stretched out our hands to get hold of the one we hold most dear, all before a storming breakdown crashed down on us and brought us back to the party! Ending his set and a magical evening with his collaboration with DI-RECT Where We Belong, Fedde proved through his set all that house music stands for is, uniting people who just want to have a good time and want to dance till they drop!

With that what had been a highly entertaining ‘Day 1′ came to a close, leaving us in anticipation of what the next day would hold for us! Stay tuned for our take on ‘Day 2′ of the festival.

Read up on all the action during Day 2 of this insane festival! Click here.

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Reviewed by: Hamed Khalidi & Shule Puri

Edited by: Aditya Seth & Shule Puri