Photo credit: Katarina Cvetko
Last weekend marked a record-breaking edition of Big City Beats’ World Club Dome; the largest club in the world. Big City Beats and World Club Dome welcomed 180,000 from 70 nations to the annual three-day event to celebrate the iconic ‘Space Edition’ on June 7-9. After attending the winter edition last year, I knew I had to return for the summer edition in Frankfurt and it did not disappoint! Here’s what I loved about it.
The Venue
Held at Frankfurt’s Commerzbank Arena, the sports stadium acts as the perfect venue for the biggest club in the world. While most festivals struggle in stadium venues, Big City Beats and World Club Dome have mastered the art; making it easy for visitors to get in and out of, and guaranteeing a perfect view from anywhere in the arena! Visitors had access to both the dance floor and the upper seated areas of the venue; which perfectly accommodated 60,000 ravers each day. The main stage perfectly combined all the best parts of an indoor and outdoor festival into one, giving an open-air feel without the fear of the elements disrupting the show! Located only two stops from central station, the venue was also conveniently located and extremely easy to get to and from each day.
The Production
Without a doubt, one of the biggest reasons I returned to World Club Dome was for their mind-blowing production and they delivered everything I wanted and more! As both a photographer and a spectator, I absolutely could not turn away from the show of lights, lasers, fireworks and more! The festival took perfect advantage of the venue and incorporated elements of pyro and confetti throughout the entire arena, rather than only on the stage; giving it a truly inclusive club feel.
The Music
This year’s edition of World Club Dome showcased genres from a wide spectrum of electronic music. The iconic main stage welcomed the biggest and best names in the scene; while the surrounding stages showcased the hottest acts in the harder styles, bass, live music and more. Visitors were even treated with a surprise appearance from the Black Eyed Peas, who performed during Steve Aoki’s closing set on Saturday night. With over 230 DJ’s and live acts to choose from, I’ve narrowed it down to my top three performances.
Armin Van Buuren
Bringing a state of trance to Commerzbank Arena on Friday night, the king of trance himself Armin van Buuren, took to the World Club Dome main stage for an epic performance. During the start of his performance, the full main stage was revealed, showcasing a stunning space inspired centrepiece which replicated a true-to-scale Ariane 5 Rocket. Playing everything from crowd favourites to brand new music, Armin van Buuren never disappoints and was definitely one of my favourite performances from the weekend.
Marshmello
After such a memorable winter edition performance, I was extremely excited to watch Marshmello close out the stage once more. Closing out day one of the festival on the main stage, the crowd was treated to a range of chart-topping tracks; perfectly accompanied by his iconic colourful visuals and of course: Fireworks!
Da Tweekaz
Venturing out into the outdoor stages, my schedule consisted of most of the harder styles artists and of course, my favourites Da Tweekaz absolutely destroyed the Zombie Stage. Closing out the stage on day two of the event, the Norwegian party animals put on a show to remember and ended with a literal bang! The official Zombie Stage fireworks show closed day two of the event perfectly!
