TuneLab
CRi
Anjunadeep Open Air: Mexico City at #ABGT600 (Official Set) @CRiMusic
There's a certain kind of desperation that sets in when you're chasing a feeling, not just a track. For those of us who spent the Anjunadeep Open Air in Mexico City frantically trying to place that soaring synth line, CRi's live set was both the problem and the cure. Golden hour bled into indigo over the city skyline, the open-air setup letting every pad and piano note breathe into the warm evening. It was the kind of setting where emotional leaks are not just tolerated but encouraged. Operating at a steady 130 BPM average, CRi built a narrative arc from deep, introspective pockets to luminous crescendos. The harmonic bed was largely rooted in the melancholic warmth of key 10B, with strategic modulations into 5A and 5B providing necessary lifts and emotional texture. The energy profile is telling: a dominant low-end (0.51 avg) cradling the mix, with mids (0.45) carrying the melodic weight and only occasional high-end spikes (0.04) for punctuation.
This balance created a rolling, immersive journey characteristic of melodic house, rather than a peak-time assault. The mixing was fluid and harmonic, allowing each track to bloom fully before transitioning. The crate digging here was a masterclass in the Anjunadeep ethos. His own 'Butterfly (feat. HANA)' is the obvious heartbreaker, but the real gems were the left turns. Dropping the comedic, chopped-vocal edit of 'Gillette & 20 Fingers - Short, Short Man' was a moment of pure, unironic joy that had everyone grinning. The haunting minimalism of 'DJ M3M9 - Gymnopédie No.1' provided a stunning, silent-room moment of respite.
The driving percussion of 'Rheven - Wari' showcased his taste for underground tools, while 'Jazspeak - Waves' delivered pure, undulating deep house energy. Don't overlook the subtle power of 'Hunzed vs Staves - Synesthesia (Staves Mix)' for its atmospheric depth. The journey began with the atmospheric swell of his own 'Intro', a gentle invitation into his world. The peak arrived not with a violent drop, but with the collective, cathartic sigh during the climax of 'Butterfly'. He had the good sense to let that be the final word, closing the full tracklist circle with that very track, leaving us floating in its lush, vocal-led aftermath.