Today June 23, 2012; Axwell, Sebastian Ingrosso and Steve Angello all blacked out their facebook pages to announce that Swedish House Mafia, the world’s biggest dance group, would be breaking up. Their final tour will include shows in the UK, Ibiza and Sweden with additional stops being announced in August. Read again. Pause. Breathe. Again, Swedish House Mafia is breaking up. No more Masquerade Motel. No more anthems like Save the World. No more Swedish House Mafia.
From SwedishHouseMafia.com;
Today we want to share with you, that the tour we are about to go on will be our last.
We want to thank every single one of you that came with us on this journey.
We came, we raved, we loved.
As we’ve seen before nothing in the music industry is final, except for death. However no matter the finality of the decision, it’s impact on the electronic dance music ecosystem is paramount. This is the same Swedish House Mafia that sold out Madison Square Garden in minutes last year, the same Swedish House Mafia that had more power and influence on the scene than anyone else.
So why breakup now? Dance music culture is exploding worldwide with more opportunities to play bigger shows, bigger crowds, bigger paydays. SHM had just signed an endorsement with blue chip sponsor Absolut Vodka to co-promote the release of Greyhound. Everything looked like it was perfect and the group was poised to continue their dominance in 2012.
If there was tension in the SHM camp, it would have leaked somewhere or the history would have been documented. This is the internet and with social media, there is always full transparency. It appears to me; that Axwell, Sebastian Ingrosso and Steve Angello are going to move forward by building on their own individual brands and careers.
Who wouldn’t want to shape part of musical history for themselves? SHM could have continued to push out tracks and touring for money, but individually the producers would never be recognized for their creations. It’s not about being selfish or seeking individual fame (they already have that), but looking to create something totally your own. I get that and respect them for it.
We are living in a new age of music. Everything has changed because of technology. How we discover new music, how that music is shared, how it’s purchased and how it’s consumed. Our festivals are bigger than ever before as new tracks spread globally at the click of a mouse. The electronic dance movement will go down in music history like the blues, disco or hip hop with dj’s serving as rock stars for our digital era. Who wouldn’t want to achieve everything that’s possible?
Regardless of how final this outcome may be; the collective of Axwell, Sebastian Ingrosso and Steve Angello held a level of prestige and mystique over comparable electronic acts. There was just something magic about Swedish House Mafia. Wherever the future may take them, I wish all the best in their careers and personal lives and thank Swedish House Mafia for the incredible music that I will forever enjoy.
Re-live their Madison Square Garden Set
[wp-like-locker]SHM at Madison Square Garden Download[/wp-like-locker]
Swedish House Mafia 2008 until Forever
Share On
