Steve Aoki brought Neon Future III to Amnesia on Wednesday night. Named after his latest album, this crazy party was full of surprises, big tunes and an even bigger portion of cake.
Admittedly, the night was going to be a reminder of my clubbing past. I watched Steve Aoki back when I was 17 years old at my first proper rave. I jumped at the chance to return to the genre for one night only.
From outside I could already tell it was going to be a noisy one. The booming music from inside the club reverberated through the walls and across the queue and smoking area.
Upon entering the Amnesia Terrace, Cheat Codes were already making headway with their collaboration with Kriss Kross Amsterdam, Sex. As it turned out, it was one of the few tracks I recognised the whole night.
PUTTING THE SOUNDSYSTEM TO GOOD USE
DJ duo Vini Vici provided the heavier sound for the evening. It was a sharp contrast to the more commercial EDM played by the Cheat Codes boys.
Bass thumped through the room and jumped straight through my chest. If there is any genre to demonstrate the capabilities of the newly installed KV2 sound system, it would be this. The sky-high bpm made each drop feel more powerful than the last.
One example of this was Gaia by Jean Marie, Vini Vici & Blastoyz. The song was heavier than most; however, the crowd lapped it up as they continued to dance wildly and jump in unison.
Heart rate racing, the tempo threatened to raze the Terrace roof. Meanwhile, Vini Vici announced we had all joined “The Tribe”. Result.
TIME FOR CAKE
Aoki may have kept us waiting until gone 05:00, but good things come to those who wait. The crowd occupied themselves by getting a chant going. Before we knew it, the time had arrived.
You never would have guessed he had just flown straight in from his set just a few hours before at Magaluf's BCM. Fresh from the plane, his energy and enthusiasm were as high as ever. The US DJ didn't miss a beat.
His iconic long black hair was equally as lively as he darted around. He was in his zone. The crowd were hyper and, fortunately, plenty of energy was stil around to dance the rest of the night away. It was the true meaning of dance like nobody is watching.
This was especially the case for the track Komodo remixed by Steve Aoki, W&W and Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike that sent everybody into a frenzy.
Of course, it wouldn't be a Steve Aoki set without Boneless – a classic even for an underground head, like me.
Aoki's trademark cake throw came later. Selecting his lucky targets from the crowd he launched the cakes right into their faces with brutish force. Thankfully, the cake covered victims didn't seem to care. In fact, they wiped icing from their eyes in pure glee.
Moshi Moshi by Steve Aoki & Vini Vici continued the fun. The Aoki fans went insane and impressively maintained the madness all the way until lights up.
Admittedly, whie a night like this may not usually rank at the top of my list, no one can fault the first-rate production behind it. The amazing lights displays, the special effects, the unreal graphics and of course the music. It all came together to create an unforgettable experience.
Steve Aoki is a true showman of our time. Something about the party atmosphere he creates that is actually quite infectious. I came away with a healthy dose of EDM - all good fun.
If you are open to being covered in cake (I mean, who wouldn't be?), head down to Steve Aoki's Neon Future III every Wednesday until 31 July. You have only three dates left to this residency so don't sleep on it - tickets can be found below.
