Editor’s Be aware: EDM.com proudly publishes 4 installments of annual year-end protection: Trade Leaders, Performances & DJ Units, Music Producers and Songs.
Annually, EDM.com highlights probably the most daring and revolutionary units, amplifying the artists whose boundary-breaking work is reshaping digital music on a world scale.
From intimate underground showcases to large pageant spectacles, these performances are celebrated not just for their technical mastery, but additionally for his or her capacity to affect cultural actions. This is not about reputation or ticket gross sales—it is a recognition of artistry that cultivates moments followers will bear in mind for many years.
In no explicit order, uncover the most effective DJ units and performances of 2024 under.
ODESZA — “The Last Goodbye” Finale, Gorge Amphitheatre
ODESZA’s swan tune for his or her “The Last Goodbye” period was a triple-header at Washington’s breathtaking Gorge Amphitheatre. The duo constructed a universe unto itself within the Pacific Northwest, the right setting for his or her farewell efficiency earlier than an indefinite hiatus.
An immense quantity of planning and coordination goes into bringing any ODESZA expertise to life, however they took it to a different degree within the cradle of the Gorge’s grandeur. Soul-stirring string renditions, highly effective stay vocalists and exhilarating mashups took the gang on a journey that someway felt each cathartic and deeply intimate.
In the meantime, followers changed into puddles of emotion as they walked by means of “Echoes,” a surrealist, tech-driven artwork set up moonlighting as a monument to their unparalleled reference to ODESZA’s Clayton Knight and Harrison Mills. The duo had shared an nameless telephone quantity and requested followers to go away voicemails containing their favourite ODESZA recollections, which have been performed in 4D audio across the set up’s gleaming towers and transcribed on their LED panels.
Remodeling the concert events into hubs for immersive storytelling, ODESZA proved that expertise can facilitate the emotional launch of their music when wielded with intention and goal.
Phrases by Saad Masood and Jason Heffler.
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Skrillex — Lollapalooza, Chicago
When Lollapalooza introduced that certainly one of its most iconic levels can be renamed after Skrillex for one night time solely, you knew one thing particular was coming.
Followers attending the storied Chicago pageant in 2024 have been handled to 2 performances from Skrillex at Perry’s Stage, which formally reworked into “Sonny’s Stage” on Saturday. He opened Saturday with an early efficiency underneath the Windy Metropolis solar earlier than closing the night time with a spectacular headlining set.
As you would possibly anticipate from an artist of this caliber, the efficiency was not solely one of many pageant’s finest, however one of many 12 months’s finest. Skrillex used his stage takeover to supply followers a profession retrospective that celebrated all his groundbreaking chapters in addition to the enduring legacy of Perry’s Stage and its namesake, Lollapalooza co-founder Perry Farrell.
From his ageless remix of Avicii’s “Levels” to his collaborations with Justin Bieber, Damian Marley and Boys Noize, Skrillex reminded us why he stays one of many trade’s most prolific artists.
Phrases by Nick Yopko.
Arca — Boiler Room: Caracas
From the shadows of systemic erasure in her native Caracas, Arca took on the strain cooker of Boiler Room and threw down a homecoming DJ set for the ages.
“This set should be studied by at least 20 anthropologists,” one awestruck fan commented on YouTube.
Amid the continuing, catastrophic Venezuelan refugee disaster, Arca returned house and rebuilt in sound what had been fractured in spirit. Her larger-than-life Boiler Room headline in March reunited a gaggle of DJs who hadn’t carried out within the nation for over a decade, in accordance with native photographer Augusto Silva Alliegro, who referred to as the present “a historic moment for Venezuelan music and the country.”
Arca vogued and vibed as she threaded a latticework of distorted bass and ambient textures, curating a set that was concurrently disruptive and deeply intimate. Highlights included spins of “Rain (I Want a Divorce)” by the late digital music legend Ryuichi Sakamoto and Arca’s woozy remix of Frank Ocean’s “Little Demon.”
Flexing her thrashing beats and signature unpredictability behind the decks, it was a type of radical storytelling—a transgender artist reclaiming house in a difficult cultural terrain.
Phrases by Jason Heffler.
Keinemusik — Pyramids of Giza, Egypt
There is no doubt that Keinemusik began a cultural motion in 2024. You have been sure to identify somebody sporting the collective’s “uniform”—hat, silk scarf and glasses—at any home music present this 12 months.
Nevertheless, their set on the legendary Giza Pyramids in Egypt hit completely different. Bringing alongside their signature “kloud,” Keinemusik’s Adam Port, &ME and Rampa delivered a rave expertise for the ages on April nineteenth.
Completely matching the mystique of the pyramids, the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Historical World, the uncommon efficiency helped additional propel Afro-house music globally.
Phrases by Brooke Bierman and Jarett Lopez.
RÜFÜS DU SOL (DJ Set) — Mayan Warrior, Burning Man
The Burning Man group was devastated by final 12 months’s heart-wrenching lack of the beloved Mayan Warrior artwork automotive, a logo of unity and magic that set the stage for unforgettable musical moments on the playa. However it rose from the ashes in 2024 and—reborn as Galaxyer—ushered in a brand new period with RÜFÜS DU SOL main the way in which.
After a five-year hiatus, the group returned to Burning Man for an instant-classic DJ set. The best way they captured the alluring power of the playa was magnetic and their curation impeccable, stacking beloved RÜFÜS acapellas (like “Treat You Better” and “Underwater”) atop fashionable melodic home jams (like “Nothing On Me” by Maz, APACHE and Maxi Meraki). The hotly anticipated efficiency additionally featured aching remixes of “Lately,” “Music is Better” and the timeless “Innerbloom.”
Add Galaxyer’s outer space-themed manufacturing and a putting sundown on the playa to the combination, and you have got an audiovisual feast. Black Rock Metropolis got here alive.
“The energy we felt during the Mayan Warrior set was unlike anything we have ever experienced,” RÜFÜS DU SOL mentioned on the time.
Phrases by Rachel Freeman, Saad Masood and Jarett Lopez.
Justice — Coachella
Seven years after their final efficiency at Coachella, Justice returned to the desert in breathtaking trend in 2024.
Closing out the Outside Theatre, the long-lasting French duo unraveled a set comprising virtually fully unreleased music. It was dazzling showcase of Hyperdrama, their first album in almost a decade, which launched only a few quick weeks later.
Daring, glitzy and undeniably dynamic, Justice’s Coachella set was a masterclass in stay digital music efficiency that bubbled over with the retrofuturistic electro that made them icons. It was a kind of uncommon units the place you could not resolve whether or not to face in awe or lose your self on the dancefloor.
Phrases by Andrea Nguyen.
TSHA — “In The House” Defected Ibiza Summer time Sundown Boat
Solar, soul, summer time, saltwater and TSHA: the right storm for an instant-classic DJ set.
TSHA in 2024 launched her long-awaited sophomore album, Unhappy Woman, however first she cruised the Mediterranean Sea on a yacht and threw down one of many 12 months’s finest DJ units. Again in April, the influential home music producer grew to become the primary artist to carry out for Defected Data’ revamped “In The House” combine collection, which relaunched this 12 months as a part of the label’s twenty fifth anniversary celebrations.
TSHA’s contact was recent but reverent, an ideal tribute to the long-lasting collection. She dropped a handful of her personal hits, like “Sweet Devotion,” in addition to sun-kissed dance information by Amine Edge & DANCE, Monki and Todd Terry, amongst others. Every observe felt like a dialog, the place soulful vocals and dynamic manufacturing spoke to your feelings whereas brisk percussion propelled your physique—and the boat—ahead.
To that finish, the radiant DJ set is a microcosm of TSHA’s artistry. It invitations you to maneuver, however compels you to hear—and in that stability lies her magic.
Phrases by Jason Heffler.
Michael Bibi — One Life London
It is powerful to establish an artist who had a extra impactful 12 months than Michael Bibi, the home music icon who triumphed over a uncommon type of most cancers and made DJing historical past.
His journey from survival to celebration reached its pinnacle at One Life London, a totemic and dramatic efficiency that marked Bibi’s return to the stage after changing into cancer-free. He performed for over 45,000 followers in his hometown, setting a brand new report by headlining the biggest digital present in London’s historical past.
The present was an emotional whirlwind, with poignant visuals exhibiting clips of his time within the hospital and scenes from his childhood. Bibi bangers like “Got The Fire,” “Different Side” and his remix of “Eyes on Fire” heated up the gang for over three hours, and his father even joined him onstage for a mesmerizing guitar solo.
Bibi’s historic efficiency wasn’t only a live performance—it was a testomony to the ability of dance music to heal, finally bringing to life a imaginative and prescient that he mentioned saved him impressed throughout his time within the hospital.
Phrases by Rachel Freeman.
LSZEE — Pink Rocks Amphitheatre
LSDREAM and CloZee make up the genetic code of their brainchild, LSZEE, however the mission is distinctly its personal.
The famend Pink Rocks Amphitheatre was a picture-perfect venue to unleash the complete artistic pressure of their self-titled LSZEE album, a report about curiosity, spirituality, nature and the exploration of a vibrant world. The duo’s two-night spectacular was an immaculate instance of frequencies in excellent concord, LSDREAM’s contagious enthusiasm bringing CloZee out of her shell and CloZee’s culturally wealthy music including fascinating layers to LSDREAM’s wubs.
Possibly it was the natural surrounding nature of Pink Rocks, sending LSDREAM and CloZee again to Joshua Tree the place the LSZEE mission was conceived. Possibly it was the palpable vibrancy of the gang. Regardless of the case, LSZEE’s exceptional doubleheader is etched within the recollections of their followers eternally.
Phrases by Shakiel Mahjouri and Madison Berg.
G Jones b2b EPROM — DEF Detroit
Whereas the techno world flocked to Detroit for the storied Motion Pageant over Memorial Day weekend, the DEF crew cooked up some of the intimate and unbelievable DJ units of the 12 months.
Sweat and scorching breath crammed the air like a fog machine gone haywire as followers took up each centimeter of Massive Pink, a tiny venue that was once a scorching water tank manufacturing warehouse, for an opportunity to witness G Jones share the stage with EPROM.
Collectively, the virtuosic producers threw down hours of experimental bass, stay acid originals, unreleased tracks and incomprehensible sounds that left everybody shocked after the home lights got here on.
Phrases by Nick Yopko.
Honorable Mentions
ISOKNOCK | North Coast Music Pageant
Porter Robinson | Hollywood Bowl
Sara Landry | III Factors Music Pageant
Of The Bushes | Pink Rocks Amphitheatre
Martin Garrix | Extremely Music Pageant
ALLEYCVT | Misplaced Lands
Kenya Grace | Coachella
Maddy O’Neal | Shambhala Music Pageant
John Summit b2b Inexperienced Velvet | EDC Las Vegas
Swedish Home Mafia | Tomorrowland
