Chicago born, LA-based, Lee Foss drew a large and early crowd to the park for his 5 pm set. Wearing a retro zip up and short shorts, Lee immediately took us a little back into the past. Throughout his set Lee played tracks from his highly claimed release Alchemy, older releases, collaborations, and a series of fun remixes from MGMT to Destiny’s Child. His unique mix of sultry, druggy tech-house vibrations with a disco-inspired flare were welcomed by the crowd with enthusiastic dance moves.

On the smaller stage Detroit’s Nitin Kalyan, better known as just Nitin, took the stage for his 5:30 pm set. The stage area, while loose at the front, was packed quite tightly all the way to the walkway. Over the last decade or so Nitin made Toronto home so his fan base is rooted quite deeply in the Six and showed up to share the love this afternoon in high energy and Kalyan did not disappoint.

For unknown reasons Guti was unfortunately not able to perform so Toronto’s Demuir took his place. With a handful of solid collaborations behind his belt (Cassy, Carlo Lio, DJ Sneak) Demuir is also known for his “prolific DJ sets” and this evening’s set was a great example of that. Right after, the main stage welcomed UK duo Dusky to the stage at quarter to eight. The duo are very calm and collected behind the decks, not showing much emotion or movement, but the music rattled through the festival grounds with a bang.

Down the road George FitzGerald stepped up for his nearly two-hour-long set. The stage was repeatedly enveloped with thick fog (see our Instagram story) creating a surreal environment for a good half of the audience. Being completely blinded by the white cloud people were dancing with their eyes closed in psychedelic bliss, while George calmly worked his way through his playlist. The tracks from All That Must Be and Fading Love cross over well to dancefloor music while staying true to their deep, all-encompassing nature that makes you want to turn up the volume in your headphones while pounding life.

The event wrapped up on a high note when Hot Since 82 turned the party into the late-night house music party that is was craving to be. What RA called “visceral, grandstanding house music” comes to life in full color on stage. The night felt particularly dark and we all felt like guests on a live edition Pete Tong’s Essential Mixes episode, dancing, sweating, drinking cold beers, and hoping summer never ends.

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Given that EI starts early in the day, people enter slowly and sporadically over the first few hours and spend a good half hour exploring under the decorated trees, pausing for an already bumping party at the Moog Stage. Admittedly, an empty field at the front can be intimidating but the VIP garden will have you well-rested, meeting new friends, and losing at Jenga in no time.

Early in the day, it became evident that the 70s disco vibe was the theme for the night. The upbeat syncopated basslines, electric piano, synthesizers, and even an occasional “four-on-the-floor” drum beat were present in nearly every performer’s set. Before disco became Saturday Night Live it was an underground movement, people were expanding their freedoms, exploring their sexuality, and sense of style, and ultimately, coming together to dance, dance, dance. The theme seemed very fitting for Pride Weekend and the crowd could not be happier about it.

Now that we’ve set the scene, felt the sun on our faces, and hydrated let’s talk about why we all gathered to begin with – the music.

Toronto native Karim Olen Ash took the Moog Audio Stage for a 3:30 pm set with a few friends. A DJ, promoter, and a regular DJ in many of this city’s best nightclubs is also a member of the fashion and music collective SYBIL. Playing through his usual, booty-shaking variety of vogue house, techno, disco, and RnB artfully blended into one seamless feeling, Karim kickstarted the crowd on a high note. Glitter-covered, smiling people, wearing costumes, standard festival uniform, and on some occasions, very little of anything, were gathering by this small, but mighty stage. As Montreal’s vocalist and performer Pony took over the mic in the slight shade Tom Trago was warming up on the main stage.

The Amsterdam-based DJ and producer has been living a life of “total music immersion” for a long time, a decision he made at the early age of 15. The fact that Trago is living his music dream is evident on stage; the man is just happy to be there, playing tunes for the joyful crowd, enjoying the sun, and posing for photographers. His trademark style: disco, boogie, synth funk, and Detroit techno – three decades covering the best of dance music and house rhythms. And here we are, lucky to be a stop on his busy schedule. Lucky us he doesn’t seem to sleep.

Rotating onto the main stage next was UK-born DJ Harvey. Rolling Stone magazine once called him “the Keith Richards of dance music” so there were high expectations for his appearance. In fact, a lot has been said about DJ Harvey over the years including, fittingly so, that he is “a cult icon to the crowd who look back on the disco era as the birth of dance” (Red Bull Music Academy). For this Electric Island Harvey brought a wide range of influences into a hot pot of solid dance music. From disco to bhangra with a subtle nod to Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love” to iron out a transition. Much like the rest of today’s performances, DJ Harvey was exhaling positive energy onto the crowd, holding a steady grin in the early disco ball light rays.

On the other side of the festival ground, GODDOLLARS was spreading his joy. “Premiere party paladin for the ill Aquarian Age” is all there is when it comes to this DJ / Producer’s bio. Intriguing enough and hard to imagine, but after seeing him live, it kind of makes sense. GODDOLLARS is mostly known for being the co-founder of the infamous party brand ”A Club Called Rhonda” one of LA’s hottest clubs where he typically spins with Paradise. No stranger to playing in the sun, GODDOLLARS packed Moog Stage with hot disco, house, and occasional reggaeton beats. Smiling, dancing behind the decks, and dropping low on the ground without taking his hands off the controls, GODDOLLARS is undoubtedly a party DJ, the kind you’ll want to party with – “aiming for the hips, shooting from the heart.”

In the meanwhile, the rest of the park was holding out for BLOND:ISH at the main stage. Montreal-bread, now a solo techno act, Vivie-Ann Bakos is on a mission to bring “joy and spirituality” through music and sustainability pushing for a zero-plastic initiative at many music festivals. Vivie-Ann’s set picked up on a theme in her own way, it was a magical mix of global influences and solid techno beat staples and sounds of Ibiza. BLOND:ISH is very animated behind the decks, her concentrated DJ face would occasionally break into a happy smile while looking up at the packed, sweaty, dancing crowd.

For the last two sets, the Moog Stage hosted San Francisco DJ crew Honey Soundsystem and New York’s Tom Stephan who took the party into the night. The smaller stage truly felt like a dim night club with members of Honey Soundsystem taking turns to play moody bangers and dreamy electro giving way to Tom Stephan’s tribal house-influenced techno.

The event closed out with a banging set by Seth Troxler. Throughout the day Troxler was wondering about the festival grounds with a handful of friends. His signature mustache and messy “smoking kills” t-shirt area look that’s hard to miss. The said t-shirt is a Scooter LaForge, a New York visual artist, one of Troxler’s favorites. He once told Clash magazine that LaForge’s art is what he has been wanting to express as a DJ: “surprise, intrigue, desire, and confusion,” a kind of cultural impression that samples history, “the beat of a cultural memory bank.” Traxler’s music focuses on house and techno and today, much like the rest of the acts, it features a healthy amount of disco. Now in complete darkness with the light reflecting off the disco balls, passing through the crowd like lasers, Traxler’s textured, melodic, deep, sometimes heavy compositions took us deep into the Detroit nightclubs.

This has been dance music and it has been fantastic. Good night.

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By the time Andhim ramped up, the grounds filled with an excited, often shirtless crowd ready to dance all night. Due to some bone breakage judging on the Adhim Facebook page, Tobias was performing, and touring, minus one Simon but that did not make his set any less epic. Tobias played an over-an-hour-long set which for all we care could’ve lasted all night. The upbeat, electric layered mixes Adhim was dropping powered up the sun-stricken crowd back to life.

Stepping in for a set up next was Toronto’s own Kenny Glasgow. Glasgow begun his career as one half of the Art Department but has been since their friendly, fairly recent split, performing and producing solo. A Taste of the Low Life, Glasgow’s critically acclaimed debut LP kept a well deserving spotlight on the man and his set at Electric Island this past Monday was a perfect representation of his creativity and skill set. To at least half of the crowd Glasgow played a favorite set of the night.

Hailing from São Paulo Gui Burrato took the stage next for a highly anticipated set. As expected Burrato’s performance was one for the books – energetic, innovative and highly engaging. We will patiently await for his return, hopefully at another Electric Island.

The rock solid line up continued into the night with Paul Kalkbrenner closing live set. Having seen Kalkbrenner we were in for a treat. His sets vibrate with upbeat European techno, full of explosive energy elevated to a whole new level on the explosive EI stage.

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Attention all Canadians: a little thing we like to call “summer” FINALLY arrived! Kicking off their 4th season on Hanlan’s Point last long weekend, Electric Island hosted a much-anticipated line up of electronic artists from around the world. Taking place on the holiday Monday, groups of music and weather enthusiasts gathered on the island to listen to some great DJs and started the celebration of this short, but sweet, summer season.

The vibe always starts out very relaxed, but the anticipation starts to trickle through just as the guests do. Waiting for the headliners to take the (new and approved) stage, guests listen to the likes of Jonathan Rosa, Brian Johnson, and Nature of Music. Each artist has their chance to pump up the crowd in their individual way. Glass pyramids hang from the tress which reflect the hot sun that we have all been hopelessly dreaming about all winter.

Next up is the first anticipated headliner, DJ Tennis, who graciously joined us from Miami. Tennis has had a long, successful career and was the perfect DJ to bring the crowd together. His chill beats got everyone on their feet as he moved on to a more futuristic sound. Following Tennis was a crowd favourite – Jamie Jones. As soon as he came on, the vibe transformed and the excitement increased; the party had started. Jones started playing just as the sun was setting and everyone was ready to make the last of the long weekend count. His set was well rounded and he was a good introduction to the more intense hard hitting beats we would hear from Sven Väth. Väth, who has been DJing since the 80’s played a powerful set and pleased the true electronica fans.

With its fourth year underway, Electric Island remains to be an event that thrives on the nostalgia of enjoying the summer season on an island that provides the feeling of a mini vacation beside our beloved city. The event has made a few necessary updates, but they stick with a basic formula: good music, good people, and good vibes.

photos by Ded Pixel for Ded Agency

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Last weekend marked the end of a few things. To start, it was the final Electric Island of 2015. Once a successful and weather-blessed event and now something that will become a distant memory; which brings us to the next ending – summer, but we will try to focus and reflect on how fun it all was. Electric Island, taking place every holiday Monday throughout the summer, was like the dessert at the end of a good meal, it was always something to look forward to. It let you avoid reality a little bit longer. This last EI was as satisfying as the rest, and the line-up was just as consistent.

Brooklyn based DJs, Frank & Tony, kept the crowd pleased with their blend of deep house and R&B. They have been known to project more of a relaxed vibe which was perfect for the day party. Dance music veterans, Frank & Tony’s sound paralleled the atmosphere perfectly. Everyone was starting to arrive, catch up, grab a drink and enjoy the music.

Adam Beyer was an artist who immediately grabbed the crowd’s attention. Swedish techno producer and founder of his own record label, Beyer is a fan favourite and the crowd was looking forward to his set. A few other favourites of the evening were Loco Dice and Recondite. Both originally from Germany, these DJs nailed it. Loco Dice, who started his career as a hip-hop DJ and rapper, played just what we needed, a mix of wavy sound with some hip-hop influence. Dice has the experience and the support in music that helps him be one of the best. Also one of the best was Recondite. A techno producer with experience playing all over the world, Recondite satisfied the crowd with his relaxed, but hard, beats.

The day was close to perfect. The weather was beautiful, the talent was well received and everyone was ready to say goodbye to summer with a smile. Knowing that it was the end of something, but also a memory that will help get us through the next 10 months. Looking forward to Electric Island 2016, with high hopes of original music and talent and the promise of a good time. At this point, let’s choose to say see you soon, not goodbye.

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Jackie Willson: So it seems you guys had some technical difficulty on set. What happened?

The Junkies: Yeah, some issues, it all worked out though!

JW: You have over a decade of experience in the music scene on your resume, how did it all begin? 

TJ: Well, we met through a mutual friend and we went to the same high school in Toronto. We lived in the same neighbourhood, North York. We had older siblings and it, you know, evolved into a party scene and here we are. We just connected.

JW: As a duo, do you find it difficult to collaborate your ideas at times or is it like a well oiled machine at this point?  

TJ: Sometimes, you know, it’s normal. It’s like having a sibling, like another brother or sister. You work through it, just like you would with anything else and you compromise. Compromise is a big one.

JW: Do you find that it helps you become a better artist, the fact that you can push each other? 

TJ: I think so. We have a good relationship.

JW: How do you feel about your set here at Electric Island? Do you find the festival at all different from others in the city? 

TJ: It was good, it was very fun. It’s nice to play here, you know, it’s a different vibe. Beside the heat issues from the sun, it was good. It’s different from other festivals, it’s a good vibe.

JW: Has the Toronto music scene changed since you first started? 

TJ: It’s probably a lot easier, but it’s also tougher too. Now it’s easier to put out music, everybody’s doing it, it’s accessible, but it’s tricky too, there’s so many more people doing it. It kind of clouds everything up, there’s a lot more out there. Even when it comes to buying music, to going out and wanting to buy a hundred records a week, now there’s a couple thousand every day. You have to be more picky and spend more time.

JW: Local Music launched in 2010, how is running a label working out for you, five years into it?

TJ: The label is on hold right now to be honest with you. We just honestly don’t have the time to put into it right now and managing our own careers and working on our own music. It is very difficult to run a label and it’s hard and we just don’t have the time to give our 100% devotion to it. We might revisit it in the near future, but for now it is on hold.

JW: Are there any new artists that you are particularly excited about? 

TJ: Mike Dehnert, he has some really cool trip-back techno. Sante is also putting out a lot of good music. There’s so many artists it’s hard, and guys are always changing. You haven’t heard about somebody and all of the sudden the next day, they are huge. They kind of show up on the radar somehow.

JW: You’ve said before that Womb Lounge, in Tokyo, was one of your most memorable shows, do you have a dream venue?

TJ: [laughing] That was a good one! It’s going to be hard to top that one. We just played a really good one in Chili, and that was surprisingly great. You really didn’t know what to expect, the people really party and give 100%. You know, you go to a show and you don’t know what to expect all the time, a new place or city. South America is great.

JW: What is your favourite fan memory so far? 

TJ: We just played in Denver and somebody gave us this record. It’s like a piece of art and has Lauren Hill on it. It was an unexpected gift in a place like Denver. It was pretty cool.

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Local duo, The Junkies, got on stage in the early hours of the day to start the party. Although it was clear the duo were having some technical difficulties as well as some very harsh sun burning up the decks and eyeballs, both Valentino Cola and Vince Nicolazzo were enjoying the upbeat energy of the crowd and the beautiful day on the island. Local residents at CODA, you could tell they were comfortable in their element and thrived off of their fellow artists.

Another local artist, Art Department, aka Jonny White, took on his first solo tour (sans Kenny Glasgow), pleasing the crowd with his underground sounds and motivating his local fans to get on their feet and enjoy what is left of this Canadian summer. The music was as perfect as the weather, and he definitely put on a show to make some memories to.

When fan favourite, Shiba San took the stage, the mood seemed to go from chill to party pretty quickly. With a seamless collision of hip-hop and “ghetto funk”, San knew how to please this crowd. Patiently waiting for the 2014 summer hit, “Okay,” fans took to the stage and the Island started to look more like a concert than a beach day. This is where it got good.

Green Velvet (also known as Cajmere) showed up with his infamous green hair and played a set that was nothing short of amazing. Playing classics like “Flash,” “Lazer Beams,” and of course “Bigger than Prince,” Velvet blessed his fans with a complete concert that had the entire Island on their feet. It seemed as though no one even noticed that it started to rain, in fact, it almost made the crowd even more pleased. Ending with “La La Land,” this was definitely one of the best shows of the summer.

If you haven’t got the memo yet, make sure you are on the Island on September 7 for the Labour Day edition of Electric Island.

See more photos and tag yourself in the crowd here.

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With respect and admiration from his fellow artists, Trago was able to tour the world doing what he loves and exploring his own sound. Mixing disco, synth funk, soul, hip-hop, and jazz, Trago hopes to create something for his fans that is new and satisfying. With all of his successes, Trago also founded the Voyage Direct label in 2010. Business-savvy and musically talented, it is no wonder he looks like he is on top of the world.

Seeing Trago at Electric Island confirmed that there are still artists who want to push boundaries and truly make their fans happy. His smile really said it all. With the perfect setting and the perfect crowd, there was no way Trago would disappoint. As soon as his music hits you, your whole vibe changes. From tropical beats to funk, Trago knew how to keep it fresh.

With the fifth anniversary of his label coming up and the release of his single “Hidden Heart Of Gold” and “Only Believe,” Trago has a lot to celebrate. If you ever have the chance to see Trago perform, don’t hesitate in going.

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