Dethroned

     To a big surprise of many of us here at Electric Dreams Inc., a quick look at Beatport.com's Top 10 charts this morning showed that the absolute dancefloor atomic bomb of Levels had be dethroned as the best selling song on Beatport.

     A surprisingly short run at the top, of which most of us thought would be a record breaking run at number 1. Also quickly slipping from number 37 on the iTunes charts down to a mediocre 57, we can only wonder what is really going on with the music world today? With songs like Flo Rida's Good Feeling taking the same epic Etta James sample and using a similar 128 beat, we can only ask what is happening to Avicii's 9th symphony?

      As you can easily see in the video above, Avicii, the stage name for 21 year-old Tim Bergling has quickly become the king of the piano based synth sound. Starting at the tender age of 18, producing with industry legends such as Roger Sanchez and Bob Sinclair, the sound of the young sensation out of Stockholm, Sweden has infected dance floors across the world. With hits like Seek Bromance and Fade Into Darkness, the high energy sound has quickly propelled Avicii to big sets on the main stage of both Ultra and Electric Daisy Carnival.

     Reaching and incredible number 6 spot on the Top 100 DJs from Djmag this year, only to be beaten by DJ with twice his experience, 2011 has been extremely good to Bergling. A Pete Tong Essential Mix, a private set at Studio 54 set, and working with David Guetta on their amazing track Sunshine, there is no stopping the Swedish youngster from becoming a legend in the future.

     Attending an Avicii show is always as exciting as it sounds. As his set builds and everyone waits for his next track, when the crowd hears the arpeggiated synth come in from Levels, the screams are almost deafening. Once he drops the first bars of the main beat, it is impossible to keep your feet on the ground as everyone around you jumps as high as possible while imitating the sound of the song. Once the breakdown occurs, the soulful styling of Etta James are drowned out by thousands of screaming kids belting out the lyrics "Oh, sometimes I get a good feeling." 

     Not only did Tiesto, Afrojack and David Guetta drop Levels at Electric Zoo, the most exciting time we all heard the song was when the kid himself dropped it. Which also makes you think, what makes it so different? Kids cannot seem to get enough Levels and although he is busy touring, there have been video uploads on YouTube of a Level2, which is already astounding but reminds me a lot of when Levels was still just a bland sample of the song in his Essential Mix on BBC Radio 1. 

     Whatever the future may hold for Tim Bergling, there is no doubt that he will fall under the greats such as Tiesto, Carl Cox and David Guetta when he hangs up his headphones for the final time. Although Levels has dropped one spot, there is no doubt that Avicii is on a path to immortal fame with the work he is doing in clubs around the world.

Big Brothers, Big Inspirations

     Since I have have done an amazing job at neglecting this wonderful blog that many of you have come to enjoy, I thought I would hopefully try and start back up again. Since I've been your typical college student, slammed with homework, a non stop social life, having an incredible time networking with my peers and professors, I sure haven't had much time to myself. When I do find time to myself, I usually am surrounded by the wonderful sounds of my favorite house music songs. It's become a little bit more of a passion ever since I have decided to take the plunge into the life of a DJ.

     Ever since I first touched my cousin's Pioneer CDJ system and watching him mix different beats and songs in his basement, I have always dreamed of learning how to completely electrify a dance floor. Whether in a lit up club or at the front of a huge music festival, I've always wanted to have 10,000 kids losing their mind to my mix. Since the United States is currently having an electronic music revolution, it has been the perfect time to actually learn how to spin like my favorite DJs do at the shows I've been too. Watching these masters of their craft, make myself and several thousand other kids like me completely lose their mind is a work of art.

     If you happened to watch the video above, which is highly recommended, you can easily see what I mean when Kaskade simply takes control of the crowd. Not only does he make these kids lose their minds, he is also having the time of his life in the booth. Dancing like crazy and doing what he truly loves for the people that truly love it. Not only is Kaskade my favorite DJ, he is the biggest inspiration to me as a budding DJ. The fact that when I listen and play his songs on stage, I feel completely free. Free of insecurities, free of pressure and free of all of life's troubles. I can't really come up with any other musician that has made music that makes me dance as hard as I do in the booth or can bring me to tears like Kaskade has done through his storied career.

     Not only have I learned a lot about music in becoming a DJ, I've learned that it simply isn't for everyone. Being on the road, touring the world and playing every night and sleeping 4 hours only to do it again the next day. It may sound like a grueling task to meet but feeling the feelings you feel on stage are simply indescribable. When I try to describe it to people, I usually end up saying "imagine being on a roller coaster for two hours". Although, I have somewhat defined a personality for myself on stage, I still look up to my heroes on the tables for inspiration and for assurance that one day, I'll be that guy. For this, all I can say is Thank you.