12 tracks that prove Dekmantel is a haven for quality house and techno
The third edition of Dekmantel proves the Dutch festival keeps getting better and better
4 Peven Everett & Stacy Kidd 'Body Jerkin'
Played by Palms Trax on Saturday afternoon: In 2014, Red Bull's Lab stage was the open-air place to be. It was surrounded by towering trees that let the sunlight gently bleed through the leave, leaving you covered in some pretty beautiful rays.
Although the stage was in the same area this year, it had been replaced by a giant greenhouse-esque structure full of trees, podiums and of course, incredible music. Some of the most lush tracks of the weekend were dropped here and relative newcomer Palms Trax brought us one of the stand-out sets. Now part of the Dekmantel family, Jay Donaldson delivered two hours of funk-tinged house and disco before dashing over to Boiler Room to play there too. Naturally we followed him along and he was superb at both sessions. The first was more suited to the sun, the second was loaded with a little more attitude. Big ups Jay, you smashed it.
5 Pryda 'Muranyi'
Played by Four Tet on Saturday evening: Much like the UFO Stage, the main stage is a real sight to behold. It's not like most other festivals where there's a big, ugly, square stage that sounds shit and attracts questionable artists throughout the day – no way.
The giant dome in the middle gives you that all important inclusive feel and of course, a little protection from the beaming sun. It's also backed by a long LED strip that melts and twirls with every act (at night it really goes off) and is powered by some genuinely ridiculous Funktion One stacks that are plonked just meters from the front of the crowd.
With that in mind, imagine Four Tet playing in the middle of the afternoon while you're surrounded by thousands of friendly ravers; it was pretty special stuff. His set was littered with disco, house, garage and a few classic Hebden surprises along the way, all blended together on a Rotary mixer, like a boss. The highlight was when the grand, big-room synths of 'Muranyi' by Pryda came trickling in. Yep, Eric Prydz. It sounded epic and when we Shazamed it, three people asked us what it was and their faces said it all: shock. While it's not what you'd expect, it caused every person at that set to thrown down more moves than they had all weekend. Strong stuff and a true stunner.