Martin Solveig & Danny Avila at Pacha NYC (11/10/12)
Last weekend, Pacha NYC played host to world-renowned French DJ/ Producer Martin Solveig and up-and-coming wonder kid, Danny Avila. Hundreds of fans gathered at the packed New York City club to see a show that would be sure to keep energy high through the early morning hours. Having reviewed Martin Solveig at Electric Zoo Festival in September, I was very excited to see him return to the Big Apple for a more intimate show at Pacha. Danny Avila has exploded onto the dance music scene in 2012 — having caught the eye of Tiesto, Solveig, and many other dance music legends. It is clear that his talents have not gone unnoticed in the industry.
Danny Avila has come a long way in the past few months, and with the release of his track “Breaking Your Fall” now available on Beatport via Big Beat/Atlantic Records, the success of the 17-year-old Spanish DJ is sure to rise at an accelerated pace through the new year. At seventeen, Danny already has an impressive list of accolades that includes a weekly show on Sirius XM , residencies in Ibiza, and he is also the youngest DJ Mag Covermount CD artist.
Danny dropped some big time dance music hits including Swedish House Mafia’s “Greyhound,” Zedd’s “Spectrum,” and recent Tommy Trash hit “Truffle Pig.” After watching his set at Pacha, it is no surprise that he has already achieved so much at such a young age. He is often referred to as the “Justin Bieber of dance music,” and although we are not 100% sure how he feels about it, we are sure that his career is about to take off just like the young pop star’s did. The energy and enthusiasm never once lagged through his set, and you can tell he really connects with his audience and has fun with his fans. The crowd went wild when Danny dropped his new progressive house single, “Breaking Your Fall.” I hope he graces New York City with his presence again very soon.
Martin Solveig was recently ranked #48 on DJ Mag’s top 100 DJ’s of 2012. I was disappointed to see him drop from 2011’s rankings, however, I by no means feel that this is a reflection of his talents or the amazing year that Martin has had in 2012. With his fun and light-hearted styles of music, the crowd knew they were in for a fun night.
The beginning of his set was very reminiscent of his Electric Zoo and Tomorrowland sets, playing lesser-known Ryeland’s “Come Now,” and “N*ggas in Paris,” before dropping into his own 2011 mega-hit, “Hello.” He played fan favorite “Years” by Alesso, Calvin Harris’s “Feel So Close,” and “In My Mind” by Ivan Gough & Feenix Pawl feat Georgi Kay. I was pleasantly surprised when he plunged into a completely different formula diverting away from anything I had heard in his most recent sets. Martin is known for his impressive variation and his playful way of experimenting with all genres on the dance music spectrum, which creates a compelling experience during every live set; it seems as if Danny Avila has a creative mind for this style as well. Martin’s ability to successfully drop electro, progressive, and dubstep remixes with smooth progression into his own originals always compliments an electrifying performance. Solveig played for his audience and thrived off the energy of the crowd.
Nearing the end of his set, he played Dada Life’s remix of Kaskade’s “Llove,” then shortly after went into Tommy Trash and Sebastian Ingrosso’s most recent collaboration of “Reload,” before taking a turn into Swedish House Mafia’s “Don’t You Worry Child.” At this point Solveig paused to thank his New York fans, stating, “I just played one of the best sets of my whole life, that’s for sure, I know it’s a lot because of you guys, because of what you guys send back to the DJ…” He slowed things down by playing “Midnight City” (M83 Cover) by The Knocks feat. Mandy Lee, then quickly fired things back up with Knife Party’s drum & bass hit “Bonfire,” before flowing smoothly into his own “The Night Out.”
Martin closed his set the way he closed out Electric Zoo — with his remix of Fun’s “We Are Young” and “Hello.” I have to agree that this was one of Martin’s most impressive sets – a two-and-a-half-hour set full of unexpected synths and drops, uncharacteristic of what he’s demonstrated this year. The audience at Pacha made it clear that Martin is not only “Big In Japan,” but that he has a loyal following in New York as well. Martin and Danny continued to play fun mash-ups together through the early morning hours. I look forward to what both Martin and Danny have in store for us in 2013, and I hope they both return to New York very soon.
Categories: Music