It’s 2013, the very peak of electronic dance music. Hardwell is at his peak as well and Knife Party are one of the most loved and at the same time underrated duos on the whole scene. Everybody was craving for a collaboration between the two of them, a perfect blend of two styles. And for a short amount of time, we got it. But, it disappeared rather quietly. This is the story of ‘Baghdad’, the monstrous creation between the Dutch heavyweight Hardwell and the Australian mastermind duo Knife Party that never saw the light of the day.
Let’s rewind the time back to 2013, more precisely the 26th of May. Hardwell was playing a gig at Governor’s Island in New York. Midway through the set, the music stopped and Hardwell took the mic in his hands and announced a collaboration with then one of the most exciting acts on the scene, Knife Party. He didn’t know if he was allowed to even play the track due to an agreement between the two parties to not play it. Despite the agreement, Hardwell played the track. The whole dancefloor was tremoring as dirty electro synths started playing and after the initial premiere, EDM fans were biting their nails impatiently waiting for its release.
Let’s talk about the track. The track starts with a signature Hardwell break with a blissful melody playing. The second part of the break was the usual old school Hardwell sound, reminiscent of his previous works ‘Apollo’ and ‘Spaceman’. Soon, after a rather simple build up the drop hits with amazing energy. The drop really shows why the track is called ‘Baghdad’ because it perfectly embodies that Arabic feeling. The rest of the track is very much the same structure as the first part of it.
According to numerous sources, the track was bound to be a part of the already legendary Knife Party EP, ‘Haunted House’. Instead, it was replaced by the VIP version of the evergreen ‘Internet Friends’. ‘Baghdad’ is now shelved indefinitely, although we can never rule out the possibility of Hardwell & Knife Party working together again. 3 years after the premiere of ‘Baghdad’, Hardwell had a Q&A on the official EDC Facebook page and when asked about it, he simply replied that a new collab is coming! We can only hope now.
Written by Daniel Šikljan / Delacour Agency
