Sempersonic™

Eric Prydz in San Francisco. Those are the sexiest five words in the human language, hands down. When the Warfield announced that Mr. Prydz was coming to the Warfield and bringing one of his protégés, Fehrplay, straight off of Pryda Friends, I was absolutely giddy. Eric Prydz is a purveyor of what electronic music and really all music is and should be, a journey through sound, emotion, and feeling. His brand of progressive house stands alone in my mind as the finest music that is currently being released, and his DJ skills are the finest I have seen live, comparable to the master Laidback Luke for how he can manipulate songs, but in an entirely different fashion. After driving to LA last year to see him at the Palladium for the long awaited first time, I was incredibly excited to see him in one of San Francisco’s finest venues, the Warfield. I purchased an absurd number of GA Floor tickets (more then 10), invited all my friends who I knew would like him, and began preparing for PRYDA to arrive in SF.

Having Eric Prydz in San Francisco is a big deal, so we had to welcome him appropriately, with our occasionally clever signs that we designed and made. We had quite a few signs, and we consumed quite a few vodka drinks before we headed off to the Warfield, as you can see below.

So you are telling me it’s a sign?

Off we went, to be sure that we would be early enough to catch Fehrplay. Just like in LA, Prydz brought one of his stellar producers from his Pryda Friends label to open for him. Fehrplay has been crushing it of late, putting out massive tracks like ‘I Can’t Stop It’ and ‘Nightride’ on Pryda Friends. We got in and were rapidly impressed, his set was a perfect opening for Prydz, progressive and building up the energy without really pushing things over the top, just letting everything build.

He dropped the two tracks above, along with Jeremy Olander’s ‘Let Me Feel’, which is just beyond massive. The track that really stood out was Fehrplay ‘Incognito’, which he played right toward the end of the set. Wow. What a track. I had heard it both in Pete Tong’s show and to open EPIC Radio 001, but in person it truly stood out as a track that you must hear on a great system to fully appreciate.

When Fehrplay finished, it was time. The man, the myth, the legend was ready to take us on a journey throughout his glorious musical library, some that we would know, and some that likely no one has ever heard before. Lights down, darkness, and away we go. He came in hard with ‘Welcome to My House’, which is just a stellar tune. It was a bit disappointing as I made a perfect sign for this moment, however the Warfield security would not let it in.

Oh well. The place was rocking, and things were rapidly getting ravey. Suddenly the strobes and lazer popped out, which were the perfect compliment to his double set of LED screen walls. The next track he worked his way into was something that none of us could ID, the vocals sounded like a French lady whispering. From there he drifted into Pryda – Rotonda ID (WOWOW) and suddenly things started getting fully weird. The lights were going crazy, and everyone was fully engulfed by Eric Prydz. I say engulfed, because there really is no other way to describe it. His mixing just swallows up every part of you, and you lose everything. The only thing that matters is his music. He continued to work in the chimes from Welcome to My House too, which was truly messing with us. One of my friends said it best ‘After we left, every track I heard back at your place was Welcome To My House, it had fully infected my brain.’ The next track we currently know only as Warfield ID, it start at about 7 minutes in in the video below and is just absolutely massive. It sounds a combination of sonar, lazers, and drums. If anyone has heard this track before, please let me know, because I want it so bad. However at this point it belongs to us at the Warfield as the Warfield ID.What a build, slow and steady, rhythmic and delicious. This track is sure to be massive.

The effects at the Warfield were just top notch too, this was as ravey/warehousey as I have ever felt there. The vibe was just incredible. The visuals and use of lights was so on point, and that lazer. I think it drove us all crazy. As Warfield ID blasted through, we were going nuts. Slowly Glimma started reaching our ears, and at this point, any shit that was still had was fully lost. Shirts were off, people were trying to figure out where they were, the whole nine yards. Glimma just brought the house down. No other way to say it. After Glimma we got Eric’s take on Jeremy Olander’s ‘Let Me Feel’, which is stellar, but not as good as the original, which I would currently say is the track of 2013. Then it was Juletider. I think at this point we all thought we were dreaming, because this set was just too insane. It couldn’t be real. Right?

Once I had reassured myself that this was in fact happening, Eric started teasing Pjanoo, which is honestly just unfair. The song is just spectacular, but he stuck to his private remix of Pjanoo, which has grown on me greatly. I love the original, but his private remix is just so powerful that it takes a great track and turns it into an entirely different great track with a different feel and style altogether. Next came 2Night, which I had a new appreciation for on this night. The beautiful piano had everyone captivated. Suddenly here comes his Personal Jesus remix, anddddddd everyone is going fully nuts again. Just straight up insane crazy. The gorgeous stained glass church window graphics popped up on the screen, and it was perfect. He then weaved Knockout out of Personal Jesus and into his bootleg of Faithless – Insomnia. That track is truly underrated, another track that hearing live just made me fall in love fully with. By this point our crew of 25ish was all over the place, and we had made new friends who were next to us who were singing along and as crazy as we were.

Everyone was wrapped around Prydz’ finger as he kept toying with us. He transitioned into Power Drive, and everyone in the crowd absolutely loved it. You could tell everyone there was pretty well versed in his stuff as you could feel the energy rise as he moved from one track to another. Power Drive worked its way into Clapham ID, which was so good and then we got a bit of his remix of Meridian. From there he worked into Every Day, which turned the entire floor into a massive sing along. People were belting it out like they were never going to sing again. In case anyone in the crowd still had it together even a little bit, on came Allein. At this point, if you weren’t dancing, you literally had to hate fun, music, and enjoying yourself.

Finally Prydz decided to put an end to this madness, or he tried anyway. He tried to leave the stage, but the Warfield got louder then I have ever heard it, so he returned. Clearly no one was ready to leave. Out came We Are The Mirage, and halfway through the track you could see Eric up there dancing as hard as we were down on the dance floor. You cheeky bastard, next time come down and join the dance party, we had plenty of space! He tried to exit again, but the crowd got louder. Back he came again, this time pulling out Pjanoo. Just incredible. At this point, we had gotten some of our signs back out and headed to the front middle. He spotted the ‘Let’s Be Pryda Friends’ sign that my friend had brilliantly made, and pointed to me multiple times! I’m pretty sure I almost fainted, as he saw the sign and me! As Pjanoo closed out, the crowd got LOUD again, begging for more. Multiple minutes of cheering and chants, and Prydz was trying to convince someone on the side to let him go some more. Unfortunately that failed, and he was through.

You can point at me any time Eric!

At this point, all the lights were on, and he came down to the front of the stage to shake some fans hands, at which point he asked my girlfriend for her sign, which said ‘PLAY ID2′ which she gave to him. A minute later, he came and snagged the one I had as well, and then I was able to partially shake his hand. It was a surreal experience.

Overall, another phenomenal set from Eric Prydz, and to be honest I have come to expect no less. I have been lucky enough to see him three times now, and each set has been unique and brilliant. I cannot say enough times that if you have the chance, go see the man. It is truly something special. I apologize for gushing, but I cannot express in words how spectacular his sets are, especially as people talk about pre recorded sets, and producers who DJ poorly. This man both produces and DJs at the highest level, and it is truly like appreciating art. Stellar. I cannot wait to see him at Coachella, and hopefully this time I will have a pen for him to sign something. The best part is you can hear the whole set, as one of our friends recorded it, just click here.

Cheers to everyone who helped with this, from those with cameras and recorders, to my friends who helped make the signs, and those who helped with the track listing! Please come back to San Francisco soon Eric Prydz, and bring all your Pryda Friends, as we should all be Pryda Friends!