Einmusik b2b Jonas Saalbach — Preikestolen (Cercle), Norway, 2019

On September 2, 2019, Cercle set up its decks atop Preikestolen (“Pulpit Rock”), a sheer cliff rising roughly 600 meters above the Lysefjord in Norway. Einmusik (Samuel Kindermann) and Jonas Saalbach played a back-to-back live set of melodic house and progressive techno, framed by the spectacular natural setting that is Cercle’s signature. Filmed with striking aerial shots, this live concert puts electronic music in dialogue with the landscape: the fjord’s shifting light, the void beneath the stage, the small crowd gathered at the edge of the drop. The b2b, a form of improvisation in which two artists trade control of the decks, gives the performance a fluid, hypnotic build between melodic pads and deep kicks. The recording was also released as an album. No official tracklist accompanies this back-to-back DJ set, as is customary. A benchmark of the live electronic format staged in the wild, this Einmusik b2b Jonas Saalbach live set at Preikestolen for Cercle in 2019 will appeal to fans of melodic house and immersive concert films alike, where the setting becomes as much the show as the music.