JOIN USIt’s evident that Bangalore is a City that loves to have a good time and the recently held ‘Sunburn Arena’ concert by Hardwell at Supernova Arena was a proof of this. The rains, earlier in the day may have made the venue, muddy but that didn’t dampen the Dutch DJ’s spirits, who was here on the India leg of his ‘I Am Hardwell’ tour.
After a warm-up set by Netherlands-based DJ Dannic, who frequently opens for him, an introductory video had the crowd running to the front of the stage in anticipation of the real party beginning. He spanned different sub-genres of electronic dance music (EDM), adding his own personal touch to each of the mixes. The strobe lights, fireworks, glow sticks and futuristic visuals only made the three-hour performance a more memorable experience.
“I love you Bangalore! It’s so good to see you all again,” said Hardwell, as he played his popular songs like ‘Spaceman’, ‘Apollo’, ‘If I Lose Myself’, ‘Escape’, ‘Alive’ and ‘Never Say Goodbye’ alongside mixes of songs by the likes of ‘Swedish House Mafia’, DJ Tiesto and ‘Above and Beyond’.
As is the case with most festivals these days, there was more alcohol than water and it was heartening to see bouncers in front of the stage pouring potable water into the mouths of party-goers. Underage drinking was rampant right under the ‘watchful’ eye of the police force that was doing the rounds.
Despite this, the fans thought it was worth travelling all the way to Yelahanka as they poured in from all corners of Bangalore as well as from other cities to watch one of the best DJs in the world perform.
“It was a consistently high tempo set and it’s been the most responsive crowd that I’ve seen in India so far. It was the best party ever!” said Akash Kaul, an attendee.
Vaishnavi, another fan, said, “I’m still finding it hard to believe that I’m watching Hardwell live and that too for three hours straight. I could have danced all night long! I can’t wait for him to come back again.”