On the 10th of December 2022 a party took place at the Jaarbeurs in Utrecht, NL. You might have heard of it. It's called Thunderdome, and they were celebrating 30 days of Hardcore. And Marc Acardipane's set was the first one I listened to, and now there's another set, which you can find on YouTube, by another legend. His name is Drokz, a.k.a. Opa Drokz, a.k.a. Ritchie Gambino, a.k.a. many other names he goes by in life. His set was uploaded 2 days ago, and I was one of the first witnessing it (I think I was number 79 viewer). And within only a handful of hours, the set views exploded! Already 20k plays, but for good reasons! It's a set by Drokz, for fuck sake!!
And he had the last set on the mainstage. 30 minutes of Drokz, to close off the party. That, to me, sounds absolutely epic. And Drokz is the main man, who's been there and done literally everything. You name it, he's done it. One man who's got Hardcore flowing through his whole body. Each fibre is filled with the Hardcore enzyme. He's definitely the one you think about, if you think of the style. He is the man who ended Thunderdome 2022 with such a fantastic set, one always seen as a difficult set. Who wants to end a party with a set, when most people are already halfway asleep, knackered to the core, or already on their way home?
But Drokz made sure that the last set was always one you needed to stay for. And judging the video, a lot of people stayed for this set. He always makes sure that those that stayed, get the best experience. A solid end. A way to end a night out. One more time, giving 200% just to get you through the set, and why not? You've paid the big bucks for this event, why not enjoy it from the beginning to the end, and why does the end need to be boring? Fuck boring!
Drokz is a full on Terror maniac, but also loves a bit of Hardcore here and there. And during this set, he brings both a bit of new, and a bit of nostalgia. He starts off the set with a Tails and Noizer dedication song, and continues with excellent, power anthems songs, and ends the set with the final fucking track that certainly gets the speakers blown into smithereens.
But which tracks did he play? You are curious now, yes?
Tails & Noizer - Early Rave Mix By Drokz
Dione - The Switch (Custom Made 200BPM Version by Dione)
Drokz - Ode Aan De Gabber
Drokz & DRS - Hit Hard
Neophyte & Drokz - Dit Is Mijn Leven
Poley Tight - Shoot These Pranksters (Drokz Remix)
Drokz - This Is Dedication
Rob Gee - Realm Of Natas (System Overload Remix)
Beatsbomber - Trip To Fantasy
Alpha & The Omega - Gimme More
Drokz & Da Mouth Of Madness - The Veterans Are Rocking
Drokz & Detest - Beerpressure
The Illegal Alien (3 Steps Ahead) - My Secret Fantasy
Neophyte & Drokz - Sloop Die Speakers
This is certainly a banging set. But you know it's in good hands when opa Drokz comes last. He makes sure that the survivors of the night, those still present, are treated with the respect they deserve. They danced throughout the night, and should be given another present, the final present of the night: one bad ass fucking set!
The last few minutes of Thunderdome. You have to, as a DJ, give the crowd literally everything you've got. The biggest, baddest, and roughest records in your record box (or USB stick, whatever you use). And Drokz brought the heat. He started off with an excellent track, dedicated to Tails and Noizer, and ended with 'Sloop Die Speakers', which got the crowd screaming those words out loud (which resulted in Drokz having a cheeky smile on his face).
But the one track that took me and caught me off guard, was 'Hit Hard'. Fucking hell Drokz & DRS. When I spotted Sylvester Stallone's voice, I thought 'this is going to be bad as fuck', but then, the Acid kicked in. The acid vibes from the early 90s were present with the newstyle beats and bass, but the acid element of the record just threw me off. And in all honesty, I've been listening to this specific record over and over. Definitely the BEST song in this set, closely followed by the appreciation song, and the end song.
A wicked set. I've not had the pleasure to be there, but I wish I was. Just to experience DJ Drokz behind the decks, and hear 'Hit Hard' coming at me, at lightspeed. A fucking big set, but opa never disappoints. He might be 50, 60, or 70.. he is still as hard as nails. And truly the legend we need to cherish in our scene.
DJ: Drokz
Genre/Style: Hardcore, Terror
Liveset Info: Recorded @ Thunderdome 2022
Length Liveset: 00:29:46
Tracks: 14 (fourteen)
Download/Listen (via YouTube): CLICK HERE
File Size: unknown
File Type: unknown
Audio: Stereo
Sample Rate: unknown
Release Year: 2023
More Information: Thunderdome - YouTube Channel