China’s Storm touches down in Taiwan, Australia

China’s leading electronic dance music (EDM) festival, A2Live’s Storm, will for the first time this year include two international dates.

Making good on newly appointed MD Eric Reithler-Barros’s promise to prioritise “Asian expansion”, the promoter – a division of Shanghai-based Ato Ato Integrated Media – has announced it will make its “first foray outside China” with events in the Taiwanese capital, Taipei, and Sydney, Australia.

Along with a new Ultra event, Storm Australia will be one of two new EDM festivals in Australia this year, filling the vacuum left by SFX’s late Stereosonic event.

The flagship Storm festival in Shanghai (35,000-cap.) has, since its founding in 2013, hosted several major international EDM DJs, including Avicii, Skrillex, Alesso, Hardwell and Tiësto. In addition to the Taiwanese and Australian events, Storm festivals will take place in nine Chinese cities in 2017 – up from five last year – with a special show at IMS Asia-Pacific in September.

“When Storm goes abroad for the first time … China will finally become more cemented in the world view as a real pillar of the electronic music community”

At a press conference in Shanghai last Thursday (11 May), A2Live also announced the launch of a new label, Storm Records, in partnership with Amsterdam-based Spinnin’ Records.

The company says an increase in Storm events will serve as a counterbalance to the growing influence of Western dance music in China. “Historically, the electronic dance music scene in China has drawn heavily from Western influences,” reads a statement. “With increasing numbers of international festivals taking aim at the enormous consumer market in China, the genre is getting more influences from outside its borders.

“When China-born titan Storm goes abroad for the first time, pushing its blend of international electronic music stars outside its home country, China will finally become more cemented in the world view as a real pillar of the electronic music community. Due to Storm’s rapid expansion, more music lovers worldwide will experience the magical energy that Storm produces and propagates.

“China will no longer only take cues from abroad but will also play a crucial role in innovating, setting the trends and shaping the global dance music scene.”

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