When you personally develop long term shows like your new night, Revolt at Hakkasan, what is your main goal in terms of finding a balance between mass appeal and artistry? "Like how I play, my formula is: I'll play 50% for the crowd and 50% for me. And with that comes one very important rule… Never ever play a track you don't like. So I genuinely like all the tracks I play out. But, even if it's the biggest track on earth, if I hate it, then I won't play it. Same goes for making tracks. I'll have 50% artistry in there, and 50% that appeals to a mass audience. Life is all about balance; it's never good in the long term to go overboard."
How do Canadian crowds differ from those around the world? More specifically why is Vancouver one of your favorite cities? "I love Vancouver. I've been coming here since the early 2000s and have had some amazing parties and after-parties here. I can honestly tell you Vancouver and Barcelona are my two favorite cities in the world. It's because it's such a melting pot of everything awesome that a city needs to have: the mountains, the sea, the nature, the old city architecture, the new city architecture, and a very healthy and nice mix of all sorts of cultures. They unite on my floors, and they unite well. The Vancouver crowd is very educated and electronic music runs deeply here. I've worked with the Blueprint guys for ages as well. I love those dudes. Nothing but love for Van City! "
At that it's time to unleash Luke to the adoring crowd filling the dancefloor at Celebrities. Within minutes of hitting the decks, Luke’s authenticity permeates the club. Blitzing through twice as many tracks as most DJs, it's rare for a track to play through without Luke leaving his brilliant ADD riddled
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imprint all over it. Rushing over the crowd, Tupac’s classic 'California Love' manages to run through roughly thirty seconds before Luke warps the track into spinning hysteria with Sander van Doorn’s club-bending 'Joyenergizer'. Approaching 'Joyenergizer'’s second drop, Luke uses Knife Party as a bridge into Swedish House Mafia’s 'Greyhound', which is supported by the soft chant of Daft Punk’s 'Technologic'. Constantly surprising the crowd with raw, genuine, in your face beats, Luke proves once again that he is not only a brilliant producer but also a world class DJ.
As the stripped down vocals of Benny Benassi’s 'Cinema' sends Celebrities into a group sing-along, Luke’s rapid fire set finally simmers - the tempo suddenly ramped up as the crowd prepares itself for Skrillex’s now famous remix. When the drop hits, Hardwell’s 'Spaceman' bursts over the beautifully crisp Funktion-One system and the crowd collectively lose their mind. But it doesn’t stop there as Luke powers right through 'Spaceman'’s heavy bassline into the delirium that is Steve Aoki and Afrojack’s 'No Beef'. Now spinning with reckless abandon, Luke dives headlong, without even phasing in or out for a build-up, into Showtek and Noisecontrollers’ 'Get Loose'. At nearly four minutes of constant climax, Luke has successfully created pure pandemonium in Celebrities. Wrapping up the night with his smash hit 'Pogo', he steps back from the decks as the dancefloor is left speechless … Another epic chapter in Laidback Luke’s love affair with Vancouver comes to a close as he packs up his gear, a huge smile across his face.
Words: RYAN HAYES
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