make the cut for the 600th episode, van Buuren announced that he wanted to go on “an expedition,” venturing to new cities, spreading his understanding of music as it relates to us, almost in a biblical sense. “Why? Because I believe in this sound,” he says. Thus, ASOT 600: “The Expedition” was born. Van Buuren and his small army (Armin’s army) spent ten weeks playing 12 shows in 11 countries as the gnarly ASOT storm passed all around the world - Madrid, Mexico City, Sao Paulo, Minsk, Sofia, Beirut, Kuala Lumpur, Mumbai, Miami, Guatemala, New York, finishing the tour in his hometown, Den Bosch.
“It’s quite unbelievable to think who performed here, legends like Elvis, Michael Jackson, Jon Bon Jovi, Pink Floyd and Madonna, but tonight the trance family is taking over, ” says Armin, who is of course talking about his sold-out performance happening at the iconic Madison Square Garden in one of the world’s biggest cities the night following our conversation.
While much of the East Coast is still recovering from the aftermath of Miami Music Week, the city that never sleeps is lucky enough to be graced with van Buuren’s third appearance since November of last year - first playing the DJ Mag poll party at Lavo and New Year’s Eve at Pier 36 - but Saturday March 30, 2013 is a once in a lifetime performance at what, he says, feels like “holy ground” in the U.S.
Van Buuren is only the second DJ to play MSG, after Swedish House Mafia turned the tables on music history in December 2011, packing the indoor arena usually reserved for NHL All-Star games, NBA Finals or the crème de la crème of musical talents like The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, The Beatles and the Grateful Dead, with rave mavens.
Tickets to the affair sold out within one hour of going on sale. Then came the news about the short set times (roughly an hour slot for each artist as MSG has a strict curfew of 1AM) and forced seating arrangements (including folding chairs on the floor) after music lovers emptied their wallets to be a part of the global movement. Hype is high for the five-hour event and while it might be short in length, it certainly is not in quality.
Come nightfall, it's one of the warmest nights the city has seen in months. While skeptical about the “all ages” aspect of the show, we arrive at the Garden and are pleasantly surprised to see the grandiose dome transformed into a proper trance arena, brimming with undeniable energy and beginning to fill with devoted fans ready to join in the ASOT experience. Armin tees, a subdued amount of neon and glittery eyes are plentiful within the crowd. Large screens that usually display the basketball score flash the Armada logo over head.
As Armin tells us, ASOT is “bigger than me. It’s not only about my label or my artists, it’s about the style, the genre and the question is how do I see trance music.” Far from simply warming up for van Buuren, Alex M.O.R.P.H., W & W and the highly anticipated debut of Ferry Corsten and Markus Schulz’s New World Punx are on the bill for the night. “Tonight, I’m putting on artists that are not signed to Armada. Ferry has his own label. Yet giving him a stage is good for the sound, good for all of us. I think one of the most important things is that we come together and celebrate this music together; that’s what we’re going to do tonight.”
Alex M.O.R.P.H. is not a familiar name to most dance music fans in America. Known for his remix and production skills in his homeland of Germany, Alexander Mieling looks like Larry the Cable Guy to be quite honest. The burly, goateed man is sporting a trucker hat with the phrase “Who’s Afraid Of 138”, which can be seen from the GA pit in front of the stage. For the record, I had imagined the GA pit to be a hot and sweaty disaster zone of flailing limbs, but remarkably there is abundant room to move.
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