EVENT PREVIEW: Trance Unity – Heaven Room @ CIRCUS Afterhours 07-03-20 • TRANCEPORTED

On Saturday, March 7, 2019, Trance Unity returns to Circus for its sixth edition. With a stellar lineup spanning 13 hours and 3 rooms boasting 3 completely different vibes, there is something for every trance lover. The Earth Room takes us back to the roots of trance with a full night of classics. The Hell Room ups the BPM and shows us the darker and heavier side of trance. The Heaven Room takes us to a new plane of existence, focusing on uplifting and euphoric trance. A full preview of Trance Unity is available here, but this article is about the Heaven Room.

For me, uplifting was like a gateway drug into the world of trance. I remember that first moment I truly tasted euphoria so vividly. The beats were thumping, the lights were flashing and the dance floor was hot and sweaty, packed with a sea of amped-up ravers. And then time stopped. A sustained note and a melody so sweet my heart began to float, trying to escape my chest and join the coloured lights cascading over the crowd from above. I closed my eyes and raised my hands to the heavens letting the waves of bliss wash over me. That night I shed more than a few tears. My heart was glowing for the entire week afterward. This was uplifting. This was trance. The DJ that played that night will be at this year’s Trance Unity, joined by seven other incredible talents, heating up the dance floor at Circus and transporting us all to trance heaven.

When you walk up the stairs at Circus it will feel like you are entering an entirely different dimension. The first room you come across is where the whole night starts; the Heaven Room. This year, Heaven will feature a line-up packed with world-class uplifters that I detail below.

Ferry Corsten is a man of many identities. The Dutch-born trance pioneer has gone by many different aliases and collaborated on an extensive number of side projects over the years. In 2018, we saw the revival of his early 2000s project, System F, at Dreamstate SoCal, and in 2019 a brand new release under his Gouryella pseudonym. He has been active in the trance scene since the 90s with an extensive repertoire of studio albums, singles and remixes as well as his own radio show, Corsten’s Countdown, and record label, Flashover Recordings. In 2017 he released a concept album entitled “Blueprint” featuring a full-length sci-fi story and accompanying soundtrack. He started up a project called Unity, collaborating with a diverse group of different artists including Paul Oakenfold, Dim3nsion, Jordan Suckley, Saad Ayub and Ilan Bluestone on various releases over the course of the year. On March 7, 2020, he comes to us as himself, Ferry Corsten, and will be gracing us with a blissful 3 hour set showcasing some of the best trance has to offer.

If you paid any attention at all to trance releases in 2019, there is no doubt in my mind that you are familiar with Giuseppe Ottaviani. While the Italian trance maestro has been producing trance tracks since the early 2000s, 2019 was, no doubt, a huge year for him. He studied piano since the age of 4 and his life-long love of music truly shines through each time he performs. Throughout this past year, he toured extensively with his Live 2.0 set-up, performing and creating music live on stage using his suitcase set up of laptops, keyboards, synthesizers, mixers, and sequencers. Last May, he released his album, “Evolver”, which garnered substantial, and well-deserved hype. It seemed that every time I saw a festival line up, his name was on it, and every time I listened to trance radio, he had a new single. Each one was different and each one was a masterpiece in its own right. This year at Trance Unity, Giuseppe will be bringing us a very special and rare DJ set that is not to be missed.

We will be treated to two sets by the Dutch trance legends, 4 Strings; one in Heaven and a second classics set in the Earth Room. The duo, comprised of Carlo Resoort and Jan De Vos, is most famously known for their 2002 track Take Me Away (Into the Night) but have been actively releasing tracks all throughout their career. Their most recent release, I Feel You, features the vocal talents of Take Me Away vocalist Suzanne Teutenberg and truly captures the essence of the group with swelling melodies, an emotional breakdown and a retro soundscape paying homage to that classic sound. One of their classics, Turn It Around, has been treated to a recent update by fellow Trance Unity performer, Factor B, as a part of his “Back To The Future” sets. These veteran performers know how to put together an incredible set so don’t miss the opportunity to see them in the Heaven Room, Earth Room, or both.

After an incredible extended 4-hour set in Toronto in mid-January, UK DJ/Producer Ashley Wallbridge returns to Canada to uplift us all with his signature joy-inducing sound. Last year he released an album, “Kingdom United”, in collaboration with longtime friend and colleague Gareth Emery. The album features 14 tracks including the reappearance of the 2016 track CVNT5 from Ashley and Gareth’s satirical side project of the same name. The two also co-manage and curate their independent record label, Garuda. Ashley, however, is much more than just Gareth Emery’s sidekick. His high energy sets, masterful mixing, and beautifully crafted tracks leave his audience breathless and sets the dance floor on fire. His newest project, FourPlay, is intended to take the audience on a musical journey exploring new and old and breathing new life into familiar tracks. Ashley is certain to bring his all behind the decks in the Heaven Room.

Nearly a year after his Montreal debut in May 2019, Australian export and proper trance master Factor B returns to the stage at Circus. In his relatively short time in the trance scene, Factor B(ae) has risen through the ranks with releases on Pure Trance, Future Sound of Egypt and Subculture. Early on in his career, he was invited to mix “Pure Trance V6” in collaboration with veterans Solarstone and Robert Nickson and last year he joined Craig Connelly in mixing the Subculture compilation. 2019 was a big year for Factor B releases; his solo track Crashing Over placed 2nd in the FSOE Wonder of the Year and his collaboration with The Thrillseekers, Immerse, placed 3rd. In addition to fresh material, he has been updating a number of classic trance tracks under his “Back To The Future” moniker. He has announced a brand new project entitled “Theatre of the Mind”; an immersive open-to-close project featuring an exploration of a new progressive sound. With so many projects on the go, who knows what he will bring to the decks. You can be certain that he will bring his warm smile, contagious energy and euphoric sound, ensuring that the entire room is properly uplifted.

Our second Ferry of the night comes to us not from the Netherlands, but from France. Ferry Tayle is a French trance wizard, based out of Strasbourg. His first experience with music was through jazz, learning to play the saxophone at age 7. He became interested in electronic music upon discovering the music of Lyonnaise composer, Jean-Michel Jarre. In 1999 he bought his first decks and began DJing. It has been a long road since those early days. Now, with countless singles, remixes, artist albums, and compilations under his belt, and the success of the FSOE Fables label, he returns to Montreal to spin magic through his set. He is a master of all things uplifting and melodic and it is said he can paint colours with sound. Whether is an instrumental track like his collaboration with Aly & Fila, Concorde, or a vocal beauty like The Way Back Home feat. Poppy, Ferry Tayle certainly knows how to bring on the feels.

Ruben de Ronde is one of the biggest influencers in trance today. He started working at Armada music back in 2007 as an A&R Manager, and as the label grew his role evolved. Working as artist management and signing tracks lead to selecting tracks for the A State of Trance radio show, and now he is part of an audio/video broadcast with an estimated 40 million listeners around the world each week. Aside from his work on ASOT, Ruben runs his own progressive trance label, Statement!, The Sound of Holland radio show, engages his fanbase with regular content on his Twitch stream, all this in addition to producing his own music and touring around the world. It is safe to say that this Dutchman is one of the hardest working people in the entire trance scene today. 2019 saw the release of his second artist album, “Different”, featuring collaborations with FUTURECODE, Elevven, Estiva and Matt Fax, as well as the vocal talents of Haliene and Roxanne Emery. As for 2020, we’ll have to wait and see.

Last year he opened up the Hell Room, but this year he will start the night off in Heaven. Alexandre Nadeau, aka Tomac, is a Montreal-native and master of the progressive sound. He began DJing back in 2006 at local venues and private parties before securing a residency at Circus. In 2010 he was signed to Armada, and since then has had releases on Armada, FSOE, Black Hole, and Statement! Recordings. His 2019 collaboration with Nikhil Prakash, Pressure, was featured on “A State of Trance Ibiza 2019” and has been promoted by Armin Van Buuren on A State of Trance, Ferry Corsten on Corsten’s Countdown, Cosmic Gate on Wake Your Mind, as well as Above and Beyond on their Group Therapy Radio Show. You can catch Tomac’s radio show, Progress in Motion, the second Thursday of each month on Afterhours.FM.

Tickets are currently in their third tier and going quick! The event is expected to sell out so get your tickets here and join the Tranceported team at what is bound to be the most memorable trance event of the year. This 13-hour marathon runs from 10 pm to 11 am and has a little something for every current and future trance lover. See you on the dancefloor at Circus Afterhours, 916 St. Catherine E., Montreal , QC on Saturday, March 7, 2020.

LINKS:
Monkey Buzinezz
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Ferry Corsten
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Giuseppe Ottaviani
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4 Strings
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Ashley Wallbridge
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