There’s nothing like being surrounded by people who love the same music as you and feel it in a way no one can describe. This is especially true when it comes to trance and the stages dedicated to the musical art form. Insomniac brought this trance destination to Southern California in the form of Dreamstate. Trancegiving as we call it, the day after Thanksgiving, Friday, November 25th and Saturday, November 26th, the NOS Event Center was transformed into a trance heaven, catering to every trance lovers musical dreams.
Trance is a broad term for the many subgenres it has but “characterized by a tempo lying between 125 and 150 beats per minutes.” For those unfamiliar with the different categories and genres of trance, there’s more to the stereotypical melodic and uplifting harmonies that have been known to make people cry. There’s psytrance, tech trance, progressive trance, uplifting trance, psychedelic trance, vocal trance, remember trouse? (Trance-house). The list goes on and the genres can be blended and mixed interchangeably creating endless possibilities. You’ll hear different musical influences from other cultures as well like prayers, inspirational speeches, and repetition of mantras or sayings. Some say it takes you to a higher consciousness, but whatever it does do, it’s magical.
Dreamstates exceptional two-day artist lineup, from all sides of the trance spectrum, gave attendees an assortment of musicians and a key to a wide variety of different approaches to Trance.
Psytrance was a favorite amongst many, when Astrix started at the Sequence stage it immediately hit full capacity, forming a line outdoors in the low temperatures at the NOS. Lucky enough for the people who didn’t catch his solo set, Astrix hit the decks again with fellow DJ and producer Ace Ventura as their duo, Alpha Portal, the next level of psychedelic trance. From mantras to tribal sounds, their set was as insane as it gets.
Another legendary set was the rare Infected Mushroom Psytrance set. It was out of this world and made you feel that way, with their impeccable selection of tracks. They just made you want to move and get down. If that doesn’t call for a good time, I don’t know what a good time is to you.
On a lighter note, ATB brought nostalgia to the night, playing his set at The Dream stage, a structure reminiscent of older festivals that took place at the NOS. His uplifting set caressed the hearts of many, always pleasing the crowd, and number one on people’s lists to see live.
Superstar DJ, Paul Oakenfold’s set was noteworthy as well as many other world-renowned artists that appeared on the lineup like Ferry Corsten, Paul Van Dyk, John O’Callaghan, Christopher Lawrence and other big names like Cosmic Gate, Aly & Fila, Gareth Emery, and much more.
Gareth Emery at Dreamstate Day 1
Dreamstate showed festival-goers that there’s really no main stage, as every DJ is just as important to someone as to anyone else. Insomniac set the bar very high with each structure and visuals at each stage, making it a world of its own, all four equally as impressive as each other. Lasers, confetti, imaginative and hilarious totems, bright lights, a trance lovers dream come true. We all connected on a musical level and that’s why Trance Family was created, for the love of the music.
Listen to some live sets from the weekend HERE!
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