It was about time again for our favorite week of the year! Of course we’re talking about ADE also known as Amsterdam Dance Event. Our schedule was packed with a lot of great events. The first one to attend was Nicky Romero Presents: Protocol Labelnight at the Melkweg. At the mainstage we can enjoy sets from Teamworx, Florian Picasso and of course Nicky Romero himself. The second stage is hosted by Raiden and he also invited some friends over like Shapov, DallasK, and Matisse & Sadko.
When we arrived at the Melkweg the venue was already packed with die-hard Protocol Recording fans. Teamworx are behind the decks and they’re definitely not holding back. Their signature sound was blasting through the speakers of the Melkweg. With songs from Tiësto, Camelphat and of course their collab with Dannic they get the crowd going. At the second area Imlay and Ginjo are playing a deep set. The crowd here still needs to warm up a bit. So we headed back to the mainstage where Mosimann is working the decks. He adds a little extra to his set by grabbing the mic several times and starts singing quite beautifully.
At the Raiden and Friends stage it’s time for DallasK. The plays a typical American dj set, switching often from one style to another. In his half an hour set we hear songs from Martin Garrix and Avicii, the crowd at this stage is definitely warmed up by now. Mosimann makes place for the next dj duo on the mainstage timetable, StadiumX. With a nice melodic set they show why they’re real Protocol residents. Of course their collabs with Nicky Romero ‘Howl at the moon’ and ‘Love you forever’ make the crowd go crazy. Before it’s time for the main man of the evening, we first got the pleasure to check out set of Deniz Koyu. This veteran knows what the crowd desires. But to be honest, it feels like everybody is waiting for Nicky Romero.
Finally the moment is there, it’s time for Nicky. He first plays an one hour solo set followed by a Nicky Romero and Friends set. During his solo set we decide to go to the Raiden and Friends stage, because one of our favorite artist is scheduled to play there: the energetic Russian DJ Shapov. Unfortunately for him, he plays for a crowd of only 50 people, but despite that the atmosphere when he drops his collab with Armin van Buuren is quite incredible.
After Shapov we head back to the mainstage, where it’s time for Nicky his two-hour set together with his friends. Oh yes, he brought a lot of friends with him. The first one is Mike Williams. They’ve been teasing their collab for quite a while, but ‘Dynamite’ is finally coming out soon.
We think no one expected the next artist Nicky brought on stage with him; Benny Benassi! For us it was one of the best moments of the night when they played a long version of Benny’s song ‘Cinema’. Even before Benny Benassi left his next friend Timmy Trumpet already stepped foot on stage.
The crowd goes crazy when they play his collab with KSHMR, but they also play a new collab together. If you think this was Nicky his last surprise, you’re wrong. The next one is someone he worked together with in the past, none other than Fedde le Grand.
We’re having a good time with hits like ‘S.O.S’ and ‘Reload’ blasting through the speakers and don’t forget their song ‘Sparks’. Not only Nicky plays new songs this evening also Fedde has new music for us, a collab with Afrojack and one with W&W. After this B2B it’s time to head to a hotel as ADE has only just begun.
In conclusion, we experienced a great first ADE night, with some surprising sets. Of course, the b2b’s made the party complete. It was good so see that the fans supported al the DJ’s who played this evening. We can’t wait to see which surprises Nicky Romero has instore for us next year!