Wax Wings

Of course we're here for the HE.SHE.THEY takeover, where the brief is apparently 'throw every classic that makes you feel things at the wall and see what sticks.' Wax Wings in the Mixmag Lab London doesn't so much ease us in as detonate a nostalgia bomb, with that Gigi D'Agostino opener feeling like a dare. The Lab's usual clinical white is probably stained with the ghosts of glowsticks and spilled drinks by the end of this. Technically, this is a masterclass in propulsion, holding a steady 133 BPM cruise control while predominantly working the 3B harmonic pocket to build a dense, emotional wall of sound.

The energy profile, with its dominant low-end and careful mid-range layering, creates that classic trance-state pressure, letting melodic elements like the soaring pads in 'F-Rontal - Strange Shape' cut through without ever feeling saccharine. For crate diggers, the move from the cheeky electro of 'MXWLL - Free Your Mind' into the deep, percussive swirl of 'Rene Ablaze - Inner Touch (Verum Remix)' is a stroke of genius, while the 'Cakes da Killa, Proper Villains & Wax Wings - What's the Word' remix provides a gritty, contemporary pivot before the finale. The journey is a straight shot to the heavens: from the ironic bounce of 'Gigi D'Agostino - Bla Bla Bla,' through the peak-time weapon that is 'Tiga - Mind Dimension (Ben Sterling Remix),' culminating in the pure, unadulterated serotonin dump of the 'Rank 1 - Airwave (Radio Vocal Edit)' closing track.