Markus Schulz (Concert Review 6/3/17)

After much anticipation the night has finally arrived where Markus Schulz makes his way to Orlando’s Gilt nightclub, and like any other trance fan l couldn’t be any more excited. Music had started at 10 p.m. but unfortunately like most nightclub goers I didn’t arrive until 11:30 p.m. To my surprise there was still a moderate-sized line outside the door to enter but to buying pre-sales days before I was able to join a smaller line that only took about 10 or 15 minutes to get in. This being my first time attending Gilt I took this opportunity to check out the atmosphere of the club. As soon as you walk through the doors there’s a bar off center right with friendly bartenders that greeted you as you entered. To the right side of the bar there was a pool table that gave the whole room a very relaxed lounge feel. To the left side of the room there was a staircase that led up to the second floor of the club and all the way in the back left corner of this room there was a open curtain walkway that led to the main dance room and stage area. The Vibe Seeing as how it was still early in the night I decided to go upstairs and get my drink on and get a real bird’s-eye view of the whole scene. I was shocked when I found out there was an additional dance floor upstairs with its own speaker so that you could hear what was being played on the main dance floor sounding almost the same, as well as three additional bars. In fact the VIP area was mainly on the second floor taking up most of the overseeing balcony to the main room, giving most in the VIP the feeling more like club owner than club attendee. The drinks were your average downtown club price but the speed in which you got your drinks was far from the average downtown club. After a few drinks I decided to head downstairs to show some support for the act that came on before the control of the decks were switched over to the headliner. At the time the crowd was spread all over the place but honestly I really didn’t mind for this gave me the perfect chance to find ‘The Sweet Spot’ that I could make my own. The track selection began to get deep and inviting as Markus Schulz made his appearance to the stage. Out of nowhere there was an abrupt silence and simultaneously what felt like all members of the crowd screamed “augh” in unison. This small crowd attention check was shortly followed by all those within ear range rushing to the stage.

The Headliner A deep overpowering buildup began as Schultz started with his first track that made you feel as though you were entering the Matrix. By this time it appeared the club had doubled in size. I was stationed front center stage and from where I was standing the walls of the club could not be easily seen for all sides around. The stage was built so perfectly you could literally see the expressions on Schulz face as he connected with the audience throughout his entire set. There was a true sense of unity in the air as people interacted with one another as though we were all long lost friends we haven’t seen a lifetime. Just as you thought the night couldn’t get any more intimate the guest singer Adina step from out of the shadows and onto the stage. Dressed up like a pop star she instantaneously connected with the crowd reminding us we were right where we belong. The music was full of energy and Schultz was able to reach the crowd both young and old. A personal highlight of the night for me was the moment Schulz had mixed in a remix to the classic Sarah McLaughlin song “silence”, as he and several of the old school EDM fans around me mouthed off the lyrics to the song at the top of our lungs word for word.

All Good Times Must End

As the set Drew to a close Markus Schulz stepped out from behind the decks and on to the front of the stage to embrace his adoring fans. He took pictures, shook hands, signed autographs and even engaged in small chat with a few people, and like any good artist Adina follow suit to give all of us the connection we so desired with the artist that we love. All in all this was an amazing performance and it definitely left me with the feeling that I would definitely like to attend any event that the host HTG would be willing to provide.