LIVE REPORT: Awakenings festival

A large-scale techno extravaganza situated in the green area of the Netherlands, since 1997, Awakenings shifts location every year, keeping the sights, as well as the dance sounds, fresh.
This year, it is held in nature reserve just outside Amsterdam called Spaarnwoude. Situated beautifully on a lake, 50,000 people swarmed to its eight stages to check out one of its best line-ups to date.
With the likes of the techno pioneer Jeff Mills wooing festival goers with his brilliantly rhythmic style, Berlin legend Sven Vath closing one of the stages on Saturday and a Drumcode take over on the main stage, this was a raver's delight.
The performance platforms towered up to 100 feet, with extravagant lasers, cutting edge visuals and awesome toping it all off and making it a spectacle to remember.
The sounds varied from more commercial stuff to the harder depths of the Berghain scene.
Day 1 highlights focused on the heavier side of things in Tent X, with Jeff Mills, DVS1, Dave Clarke and Nina Kraviz turning in set, no avenue was unexplored.
Other Saturday highlights included TRADE (Surgeon and Blawan B2B). Len Faki was in especially exuberant form closing on the Main Stage.
On an overcast Day 2, Area Z shone. The likes of Karren and Rodhad got the people going before Drumcode took things over the edge, with the likes of Alan Fitzpatrick , Adam Beyer , and Maceo Plex playing the festival out.
Sadly Awakenings came to an official close at 11pm, but it ended with a bang. An massive fireworks display (and extravagant display from closing DJs) dropped the curtain on a fantastic weekend.

To see photos our photo gallery from the festival, click here.