Cleveland doesn’t have too big of an electronic dance music (EDM) scene, but when quality artists come here to perform, the experience is incredible. On Sep. 15, The Alchemy Tour came to Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica and left Cleveland in awe. 

Surrounded by the people I love, listening to the music I love, created the perfect Sunday night. The lineup included DJs The Glitch Mob, NGHTMRE+Slander as Gud Vibrations and Seven Lions. 

The three acts have unique styles with shared roots in bass music. I remember listening to The Glitch Mob when I was first exposed to EDM and it was interesting to see how their style has changed. I have seen NGHTMRE and Slander separately, but did not know what to expect from their new label, Gud Vibrations. Finally, my favorite DJ, Seven Lions, whose music has gotten me through long nights of homework and moments of sadness alike.

The Glitch Mob started the concert, immediately immersing the audience in their show. The cinematic and video-game style music, paired with the intense visuals created a temporary world where you “see” the music. 

Next up was Gud Vibrations. The crowd went wild when they played their self-titled hit, “Gud Vibrations.” Their music was filled with positive energy, vibrations and frequencies with matching stage and visuals. 

During their set, numerous mosh pits formed, which was entertaining to watch and participate in. To quote the song that began the first mosh pit: “Give me some room, I’m throwing elbows.” 

At the end of their set, Slander and NGHTMRE encouraged the ravers to “form a wall of death,” where two walls of people rush into each other. This is when I got nervous, as my friends and I found ourselves at the front of the wall. When the bass drop happened, the two “walls’ ‘ collided and the fun continued. No one I knew was hurt, which was good. 

At the end of the night, Seven Lions put on a wonderful show. Seven Lions’ music has a lot of power, as he orchestrates emotion by pairing beautifully crafted melodic dubstep with compelling messages and videos.

There was love in everyone’s eyes as friends and partners embraced each other. However, these moments don’t always last very long as Seven Lions has a dark side, which unleashed the wildness of the crowd. One of my friends who was at the show said, “this is the best night of [his] life.” It was mine, too.

EDM isn’t the only genre of music I listen to, but it is the one that never fails to put me in a good mood. Because of my attendance at raves, concerts and festivals, I can relate numerous songs to incredible experiences like the one I had at this concert. When I hear songs I’ve heard live in the past, while having an amazing time with people I love, I reminisce and remember the happiness I felt then.