Photo Credit: Istoria Facebook
By: Katarina Cvetko
Australian born trance event Istoria returns to Melbourne in 2018 for a highly anticipated second edition. After a successful debut down under in 2017, the festival will relocate to Melbourne’s Festival Hall on the 20th of April for an energetic night for trance lovers to remember. Hosted by Australia’s premium trance events company Symbiotic, the event promises to deliver yet another cutting-edge performance with some of the biggest names in the world making an appearance. Check out the 2018 lineup below.
The festival features an impressive lineup of some of the biggest names in trance including legend and top 100 DJ, Armin van Buuren headlining the event. Joining the Dutch superstar on stage will be Ørjan Nilsen, Ruben de Ronde, Will Atkinson and for the first time in Australia, NWYR. Get to know the artists below.
ARMIN VAN BUUREN
The undisputed king of trance, Armin van Buuren will be making his return to Melbourne for the first time since 2015 for this year’s edition of Istoria. Driven by his relentless passion for music from a young age, the trance legend combines his euphoric sound with an array of specially produced visuals and light sequences, allowing the crowd to completely lose themselves in the music and ‘Be In The Moment’. The DJ, producer and host of successful radio show ‘A State Of Trance’ recently premiered his latest single ‘Therapy’ at Miami’s Ultra Music Festival only a couple of weeks ago with the official release date confirmed to be on the 20th of April, the same day as the event. Check out his recent set from Ultra Miami below (skip to 36:45 for the world premiere of Therapy).
ØRJAN NILSEN
Norwegian prodigy, Ørjan Nilsen will be one of many trance acts heading down under in April. The hardworking and energetic DJ and producer has been releasing singles with Dutch label Armada Music from as early as 2006 and shows no signs of slowing down any time soon. Nilsen will be releasing his third studio album ‘PRISM’ in the coming weeks and with Istoria right around the corner, we can expect a deep and meaningful set filled with both old and new material. Check out his most iconic (pun intended) and latest tracks below.
RUBEN DE RONDE
Dutch DJ and co-host of the A State Of Trance radio show Ruben De Ronde will be bringing his studio to life down in Melbourne to unleash his array of progressive, trance and chilled out tracks and mixes. Drawing inspiration from his surroundings, Ruben De Ronde is no stranger to incorporating different styles of music to his sets and has taken his energy to residencies, festivals and tours all over the world. Check out some of his popular mixes below.
WILL ATKINSON
The UK born DJ from Glasgow combines anything and everything to create a unique sound that simply cannot be placed under one particular genre. From techno to trance to experimental, Atkinson’s set has it all and his futuristic sound perfectly caters to the entire crowd. Producing hit after hit and playing peak time slots at most major festivals, Will Atkinson is one artist you don’t want to miss! Check out his recent releases below.
NWYR
Announcing their new trance side project just over a year ago, Dutch duo W&W will be bringing their alias NWYR down to Australia for the first time in April this year. With tracks ranging from mixes of popular trance anthems such as ‘Saving Light’ to highly anticipated original releases such as ‘Voltage’, the debut set of NWYR in Australia will be one for the books! Check out these tracks below.
With a stellar lineup heading down under in April, this event is one you don’t want to miss! Tickets are still available and are anticipated to sell out soon! Get your tickets here.