The first time I had even heard of Eric Prydz was when he opened with this song at EDC last year.
I had wanted to go on a trip to EDC for years, and when I finally had the time and money to go, I found it incredibly disappointing. It was the third and last night, and I had already grown bored of hearing the same shit over and over again. I couldn't tell if it was because I was getting too old, or if it was because every headliner there was actually shit.
It was by complete chance that I wound up at Circuit Grounds for Eric Prydz. Clockwork had just finished and I decided to stay to kill time before Above & Beyond went on (whom I was looking forward to the most all weekend).
The lights were off. It was dark. More people were leaving than coming, so I wasn't expecting much. The past couple of days sucked. It couldn't get any worse. But as the first few notes of Generate grew louder and louder, and the room slowly filled with pure, white light, I was hit by something so beautiful that I literally gasped because I forgot to breathe. There was no introduction. No name. No bullshit. Just good music. It was the best set I had ever heard in my entire life. I couldn't even enjoy myself with Above & Beyond because I was still stunned by what just happened.
All my friends were raving about how much fun they had listening to so and so that weekend. I couldn't say that. "Fun" doesn't bring justice to his set. The closest I can get to describing his set is as a religious experience. I damn near cried. I've never felt so many emotions run through me as sound waves before—not even when my fiancée first told me she loved me. Ten months later, and I still can't bring myself to listen to anything but Eric Prydz. My phone has nothing but his music—all of his EPIC Radios, all of his Essential Mixes, all of his singles, and as many of his sets as I could find.
I keep going back to that moment when the room was suddenly flooded with white light and this song started playing. You could offer me a Ferrari, or even a blowjob from Kate Beckinsale, but nothing in the world would ever make me want to give up that memory.