A sea of fans filled the Rogers Centre for Swedish House Mafia’s huge back-to-back farewell parties on Friday, February 22 and Saturday, February 23. Making Toronto one of its few coveted stops for their fittingly named One Last Tour, the trio of DJ/producers put on a show that not only satisfied every electronic dance music (EDM) lover in the city, but left them craving for more.
Toronto came, raved, and loved as over 60, 000 neon-clad, glow stick-holding music lovers showed up to say good bye to the super group. After getting pumped up to tunes spun by fellow Swedish DJ Otto Knows, the group’s 10 p.m. curtain call arrived, revealing the three silhouettes of Axwell, Steve Angello, and Sebastian Ingrosso. The band looked miniature on stage, standing behind their DJ booth, surrounded by larger than life speakers and video screens.
“We always ask [the question] are you ready, but we know Toronto that you’re ready.” Axwell yelled over deafening screams. “So we want you to ask us.” A very loud and clear “are you ready?” then echoed through the stadium, as Greyhound began to play.
Their lively instrumentals and bass heavy beats had everyone’s hands in the air as the crowd jumped to the contagious music. But what really contributed to the party atmosphere was the plethora of special effects and visuals that kept concertgoers entertained. The vibrant pyrotechnics, fireworks, billows of smoke and colourful laser lights, kept the party atmosphere going throughout the show.
The set list included recognizable Swedish House Mafia hits like Antidote, Reload, Calling and Clash and their chart-topping songs like One, Miami 2 Ibiza and Don’t You Worry Child. The DJs also took turns playing their own song remixes, including Axwell’s In My Mind and Steve Angello’s Teasing Mr. Charlie during the two-hour show.
While it seemed as though the audience could’ve danced the whole night away, the show came to an end with a lengthy Save the World remix, as giant balloons dropped from the ceiling and streamers blew from the stage, resulting in an over-the-top send off worthy of the influential band.
Article written by Naomi Leanage, as seen on muchmusic.com.
