The last weekend was clearly under the sign of Defqon.1 @ Home. The first Defqon.1 edition which took place only digitally and over the complete weekend. A huge lineup and big schedule already highlighted in advance that Q-dance wont to do things by halves. And wow, what did we experience here? Let’s start with the last day
Ok, we all know it from the camping weekends. The last day is a mixture of a hangover, and starting sadness that the weekend is about to come to an end. So let’s see what the Sunday @ Home delivered.
Easy start up for the Hardstylers
The day started with the SEFA Sunday special at 13:00 CET and got followed by first beats from Sunny D and Pavo. The Indigo stage presented the upcoming generation of Hardstyle Djs with Voidax, Invector, and the Purge. Each artist had a spot of 15 minutes. A solid kick of for fresh Hardstyle. Afterwards, the stream switched over to the UV Stage to provide some early and classic tunes from the past. DJ Isaac played his big tunes like ‘Fascinating Rythm’ and ‘Party People’ and by doing this a great journey through the reverse bass.
Quick Power
Like the prior days, Q-dance tried to give airtime to as many artists as possible. With the last beats dropping from the UV Stage, the stream switched over to the Red Stage. Now it was the time of Da-Tweekaz, Atmozfears, DJ Coone and Zatox to perform within one hour. Thanks to this, the intensity of the sets seem to be increased, cause each artist wanted to bring as much as possible. Good for the atmosphere, cause no break no time to sit.
Blue Power within 60 Minutes
At 5:00 pm it was time for the Rawstyle section to show their power. Rebelion took over the lead with a powerful set as we know them. Due to the short time, they directly stared with their hit ‘Never Back Down’, ‘The Edge’ and ‘Bassline Junky’. Their track ‘Curshmode’ and ‘Reverse Rehab’ just emphasized their hard rawstyle sound.
Hard Driver presented a nice performance directly from the studio. He opened up with the track ‘All or Nothing’ which was created with Szen. Secondly, he played ‘The Realest’ and the collab with Max Enforcer ‘Before I wake’ and closed his performance with the ‘Focus on Music’
60 Min. Hardcore – Black Stage
For all lovers of the classical Hardcore sounds the Black Stage was the place to stream. Our highlight was clearly Miss K8, who streamed a strong and melodic hardcore set – as we know it from her. Best Masters of Hardcore and Dominator styles combined in 20 minutes. Therefore her tracks ‘Too Many Answers’, ‘Bogota’ or her collabs with Angerfist ‘Madrid’ and ‘Santiago’ got mixed with 6 more tracks got combined to a real power pack.
Highlights Ghost Stories
Of course, the name says its all, but with Headhunters and Ghost Stories on the timetable, it was clear that we will witness something really astonishing. And yes we did!
Whilst Headhunters delivered a performance at its best as we know it, it was the Ghost Story performance that created a hype on the socials. D-Block & S-Te -Fan and their live act ‘Ghost Stories’ what a performance.
With their white costumes and a dark atmosphere they kicked off the set with Ghost Stories ‘Open your Mind – Ghost Stories 2020 Live Edit’. Their sister in front singing with her beautiful voice the lyrics creating an impressive atmosphere. The next track was ‘Angels and Demons’ and here her voice even fitted better. But the list of bombs is even longer, with ‘Fallen Souls’, ‘Twilight Zone’ or their unknown track at the very end.
The continued their set with ‘Sweet Dreams’ and ‘The Enemy’ a moment of several goosebumps and one of the Defqon.1 weekend highlights. D-Block & S-Te-Fan can anyone stop these guys? We hope not.
The closing ritual – The Show must go on
Like every year, our hearts become heavy when the closing rituals start. With a laughing and with a crying eye, we welcome the end. But his year’s end show was from another world.
Accompanied by the legendary track ‘The show must go on’ by Freddie Mercury Q-dance delivered a magical show with a very special message. Could there be a more fitting track? We say NO! This one was perfect
Dear Weekend Warriors,
The last three days mark a rare chapter in the history of Defqon.1. We’ve witnessed extreme levels of dedication and unity in a world that doesn’t allow us to physically connect with each other. From the crazy energy of the Zoom Room and the countless comments in the chat and on social media to the thousands of Q-dance Quiz participants: you guys have shown us that the power of an orange heart can conquer all. It’s been a journey that we’ll never forget and we’re extremely grateful to have you as our fans. It is our deepest desire to soon be reunited again. For without you, we are lost. That’s why we have a special message. A message for our community and for the rest of the world. THE SHOW MUST GO ON. ‘
Conclusion
Of course, an event only streamed online is not the same – compared to a real festival like we were used to it. But sometimes we can’t change things, and so its a question of making the best out of the situation.
Here we clearly pay Q-dance our deepest respect for such an amazing show. It was clear that they will impress us and celebrate our all Defqon.1 in the best possible way – but this was outstanding.
We are more than convinced that this COVID19 disaster will bring the scene even more closer, although the spirit of the Hardstyle community had always been something special.
So, as strange as this may sound, we hope that this is the first and last edition of Defqon.1 @ Home.