​12 top tracks from the relentless Movement Electronic Music Festival

It’s just after 9:00 pm on the second day of Movement Electronic Music Festival and Dixon is taking the crowd on a mesmerizing sonic journey through surreal rhythmic tones and textures. The weather is fairly comfortable and the night has descended, then suddenly the rain starts pouring in. As is often the case with festival crowds, nothing can stop us from stomping through irresistible beats, but a bolt of lightning strikes and the music is immediately cut short. We wearily walk away from the stage, yet booming bass can be heard in the distance. Where is it coming from? Like moths to the flame the patrons follow their ears to the gritty underground stage where Sterac is delivering the most hard-core techno heard at the festival. It’s raw and rugged and undoubtedly merciless, the type of techno the Dutch mainstay is known for, which suites the eager revelers at Movement. They pack in, dripping wet, as onlookers watch streaks of steam rise from the vigorously gyrating crowd. All is never lost in Detroit, the techno calls and the rave lives on.

Despite the short episodes of rain, the eleventh year of Movement delivered what many had hoped for, an oasis of underground dance music filled with the complete spectrum of house, techno and more. As the leading festival for this style of music in the United States, it’s a necessary stop on the festival circuit for many. From conversing with the patrons it’s as if they all made their yearly pilgrimage to Mecca, with Detroit being the birthplace of techno. And it’s not just the fans that feed off this energy. The talent is as inspired as ever.

The headliners speak for themselves. Whether it was The Belleville Three, Carl Cox, deadmau5 as testpilot or Richie Hawtin, all were monumental performances. Then there was Larry Heard, an absolute legend, whose live set traversed through a plethora of his classics as well as contemporary productions like ‘Qwazars’. Soul Clap and Amp Fiddler’s collaborative live performance was beyond compare as they closed out their set with ‘Love Train’ by Soul Clap and PillowTalk, and had the entire crowd belting the chorus. Then there were the Berghain residents Ben Klock and DVS1 who delivered the finest hypnotic techno of the entire festival. There clearly are too many memorable moments to mention, but with that Mixmag has compiled a collection of the top tracks from the weekend to offer a glimpse of the madness.

If we heard it at the festival or the numerous after parties, here are the tracks that ruled over the sets during Movement weekend. Timeless tracks that work magic on the dancefloor.

Innervisions co-founder Dixon was a major highlight on the Movement lineup, especially closing out the Pyramid Stage on the second night. The day was plagued by rain, but the crowd was as anxious to dance as ever and when the storm picked up, he was playing some of his most dreamy and surreal tracks of the set. Although he was cut off for a short while, Dixon showcased a variety of memorable gems, including Âme’s timeless remix of Etienne Jaumet’s ‘Repeat Again After Me’ released in 2007 on Versatile Records. The soulful, yet manic horns on top of the steady, deep and hypnotic beat make for an absolute classic.