10 tracks that brought heat to Iceland’s Secret Solstice

Kerri Chandler’s set inside the HEL stage was a major highlight of the “after hours” dance music programming that would take place in a building located directly next to the festival grounds. Once the main stage cut out at 11:30 pm, everyone would rush to this location to carry on with the party. The first night’s lineup was absolutely stacked with a Circoloco showcase featuring Tania Vulcano, Seth Troxler, The Black Madonna and Kerri Chandler to close it out. As an undeniable legend, Kerri’s hybrid DJ sets span the full scope of house music, and ‘10 Minutes High’ by Kings Of Tomorrow featuring Michelle Weeks was a blast of nostalgia from 1996. Soulful and driving, the track is a sure classic, one that’s been rinsed for more than 20 years, but when Kerri plays it it’s like hearing it for the first time. Pure euphoric bliss on the dancefloor.

As one of the main headliners at Secret Solstice, The Prodigy had a strong presence throughout the festival. Their merch was seen everywhere and it was easy to overhear their name come up in conversation, even if we didn’t know Icelandic. By the third day the crowd was primed for their sound and they didn’t disappoint with a high octane set of their signature sound. Of course their standout moment was ‘Firestarter’, not just because it’s likely their best known material, but because of the way the crowd reacted to it. Plus, there’s really something special about seeing this band in the pouring rain… An incredible moment to say the least.

Mixmag purposefully left out the fact that Soul Clap went b2b with their brothers from NYC Wolf +Lamb, just so we didn’t spoil this next heater that was dropped on the final day of Secret Solstice. To be honest, if we were to pick a single moment to be the tune of the festival, it would be ‘Piano Groove’ (Main Mix) by the trifecta of Kenny Dope, DJ Gomi and Antonio Hart. It seems to be built to be the perfect festival tune. The infectious piano melody, soulful horn solos and driving rhythm makes for an instant classic, but there are certain moments in the track made for building tension, and when that tension is released the crowd begs for more. The four DJs on the stage had their fans locked in, fixated on the groove during this track. Closing it out on such a high could not have been any more ideal.