Electronic dance music artist Avicii performed at the Liacouras Center last Wednesday, Sept. 12.
When Avicii arrived to the venue 23 minutes before his set in a black SUV, Liacouras was as empty as a Friday 8 a.m. class.
But, as the clock neared 9 p.m., chants of “Ah-Vee-Chee, Ah-Vee-Chee” grew louder as the crowd grew larger.
After a year of selling out stadiums and headlining festivals like Tomorrowland and Ultra Music Festival, Avicii is used to perching over a sea of bodies on his raised DJ booth.
The Swedish music sensation stood over the neon-clothed crowd like a shaman, controlling everyone’s mood with build-ups and drops.
Amidst the rave experience, concert-goers were able to escape the monotonous weekday night.
“I loved being able to express myself without any judgment from other people,” junior theater major Troy Taroff said. “I felt free dancing to one of my favorite DJs with all my best friends.”
As a harmonic navigator, Avicii moved the crowd from his turntables.
During his two-hour set he dropped popular tracks “Fade into Darkness,” “Le7els” and “My Feelings for You.”
As the clock struck 10:56 p.m., the lights dimmed.
“I want to skate to one song and one song only,” blared over the PA system and the crowd erupted. Avicii dropped his label-mate Cazzette’s remix to Jay-Z and Kanye West’s “N—– in Paris” to close the night.
The once-small crowd had grown and incessantly raised their hands as Avicii faded out his set to Kanye’s lyrics, “The stars is in the building, they hands is to the ceiling.”
Joseph B. Schaefer can be reached at joseph.schaefer@temple.edu.
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