The decks were set, the stakes were high and the only certainty was uncertainty.
At A State of Trance 2025, Armin van Buuren and Maddix took the stage for a “face-to-face” set, an audacious experiment that flipped the script on the traditional DJ performance. With their booths positioned directly opposite each other, the Dutch artists had no view of their counterpart’s decks, and were instead forced to rely solely on old-fashioned instinct and musical intuition.
Unlike standard b2b sets, where the DJs can easily read each other’s track selections and body language, van Buuren’s and Maddix’s setup eliminated that safety net entirely. Instead, the powerhouse producers had to anticipate each other’s moves in real-time, creating an unpredictable, high-energy spectacle that played out like a chess match.
Their performance set was just one piece of ASOT’s expansive festival programming in Rotterdam this year. The event’s opening day featured over five hours of live performance from van Buuren, who set the stage for a weekend that not only celebrated trance music as it exists today, but also its future.
Fans who missed the moment live can now witness the whole set on YouTube here.
Follow Armin van Buuren:
X: x.com/arminvanbuuren
Instagram: instagram.com/arminvanbuuren
TikTok: tiktok.com/@arminvanbuuren
Facebook: facebook.com/arminvanbuuren
Spotify: spoti.fi/2WHsl2t
Follow Maddix:
X: x.com/maddixmusic
Instagram: instagram.com/maddixmusic
TikTok: tiktok.com/@maddixmusic
Facebook: facebook.com/maddixmusic
Spotify: spoti.fi/2ImjqP4
Content shared from edm.com.