2nd October - SWEDISH HOUSE F*CKING MAFIA

Back in 2011, the world was a very different place. There were only two genders, most people still ate meat, and men weren't as regularly victimised by toxic feminism. It is, perhaps, normal for people to believe - with sepia-tinted nostalgia glasses on - that their yesteryears were more glorious than their present - but for those who were present during the 'EDM boom', it was entirely true. High-energy dance music, clad with massive euphoric drops and explosive LED visuals and FX, ruled the world, even crossing over into daytime territory to infiltrate the 'masses' who wouldn't usually listen to such music. Take a look at any 'Top 40' chart between 2010-2013 and you'll see Avicii, David Guetta, Calvin Harris, and most certainly... Swedish House Mafia. 

The likes of 'Don't You Worry Child' and 'Save The World' became well-known hits on every dancefloor across the world, but following all the tribulations and drama which ensued in the resulting years... The 'break-up' in 2012, the finale tour in 2013, the Axwell & Ingrosso side project, and the groundbreaking reunion at Miami in 2018 - arguably dance music's most iconic moment of all time - it only feels like now, that things are truly in a wholesome flow again. The comeback tour in Stockholm over Easter 2019 was a resounding and triumphant success, but still, things felt a bit 'off'. The resulting European leg of the tour, which culminated in a return to the U.K for the first time in 7 years at Creamfields 2019, felt a bit 'rushed' and 'half-arsed', and by the time COVID kicked in during 2020, any plans the Swedes had to really dominate the scene once again, were forcibly dampened.

Refusing to rush things, like the perfectionists they are, the pandemic helped give them the breathing space they required to really work on their new style, the whole image and aesthetic of the brand, and most importantly, the music. By the time a few singles were teased through Summer 2021, it was clear that Axwell, Steve Angello, and Sebastian Ingrosso were back on top form. When the long-awaited 'Paradise Again' album - their first ever studio album under the 'SHM' name was released - at Easter 2022, a few fans remarked on how the album didn't sound like the 'Greyhound 2.0' vibe they'd expected from the supergroup's 2013 heyday. I remarked, to a friend, that the album is ahead of it's time, and that in 10 years it would be seen as a 'classic'. I still stand by that statement.

Having since seen the SHM juggernaut rolling into town at the iconic Madison Square Garden in New York back in August, the deeper, darker, tone with which they now adopt may not be to the liking of those stuck in the past. But EDM as we once knew it is dead, and in the same way SHM were the ones who really pioneered that movement and help it to rise, their latest sound is influencing the industry once more. Evolution, and growing, is not just part of an artist's trajectory, but also a motto worth adopting in life. Those who stay still, don't progress. Those who evolve, succeed. Tonight, if my maths are correct, the Mafia play London for the first time in 11 years (Alexandra Palace, 2011), selling out the O2 Arena. To paraphrase the trio themselves, "those days are gone" of 60,000 screaming fans packing the grassy knolls of MK Bowl. What is left, is perhaps the glittering gold at the end of the sieve. The hardcore fans who were there then, and have stayed here, now. Loyal supporters who have kicked every ball on the journey throughout the past decade, hoping this day would come once again. No stragglers or trend setters wishing to look cool on their Insta. Only true fans, who know every inch of this tail. The Kings were dead, but now... Long Live The Kings! Tonight will take us...

... To Paradise, Again.