MARQUEE NIGHTCLUB & DAYCLUB, LAS VEGAS, USA
Armin van Buuren
Kaskade
here. But there are a few people pushing it, and I think eventually it’ll click and catch on. Things are just beginning here. As people learn to love the music more, they won’t need hit after hit, they’ll be happy to roll along to something different.”
Tonight, however, Marquee’s crowds — wearing white, as is the tradition on Memorial Day itself — are more than happy to roll along to Gareth Emery and Armin van Buuren, and with good reason, as both deliver absolutely solid sets. Emery’s brand of uplifting trance is mixed with an electro sentiment to give it an extra kick. As the set progresses, the melodies and vocals give way to a harder edge, which is the perfect cue for van Buuren to take over.
No messing here — it’s straight into hard, techy, trance-rooted house. The crowd react well and he continues to pick up the pace, working through techno and jittery electro progressions, even throwing in a blast of ‘Higher State Of Consciousness’. During various euphoric moments, van Buuren raises his clasped headphones high into the sky in a gesture of passion.
Day four, and one final pool party. Sadly, flight problems mean that ATB misses his spot, but Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano extend their set of slicked-up stompers and funky house, giving the crowd the perfect excuse to keep on grooving. Night-time celebrations are kicked off by Nicky Romero, who brings out an
upfront party set, full of anthems — from ‘Encore Une Fois’ to ‘Save The World’ — and nicely dirty electro, underpinned by some big basslines. It’s perfect final- night stuff, and Romero drives the crowd well.
Last orders are then taken by DJ Vice, via big, brash electro, dirty dubstep and plenty of hip-hop. After four days straight of dance tracks, it’s kind of refreshing, also serving as a reminder of the US affinity with hip-hop. It’s a crowd-pleasing finish, but again perfect for the moment, and the mass Marquee crowd leave with smiles all-round.
Vegas is a curious and fascinating beast. Apart from the clunk of slot machines, there may not be a ‘Vegas sound’, but
www.djmag.com 071
the city’s importance in spreading dance music across the country shouldn’t be underestimated.
The focus may be on the mainstream, but that’s not to say that audiences here won’t dig underground sounds, given time, and the city and its clubs afford some truly unique opportunities for any artist playing — as evidenced by the grandness and professionalism of the seriously impressive Marquee. And the biggest cliché of all is the truest of the lot: nobody knows how to throw a party quite like Vegas. TRISTAN PARKER
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