ade: panelists and speakers, tommie sunshine, sander kleinenberg, billy nasty

Kevin Saunderson ponders 20 years of house and 44 years of his cuticles

Relaxed business, club-busting parties, nuggets of knowledge and an earful of new beats: The Amsterdam Dance Event was back in full effect last week, ready for its 13th year. The event, which combines both a business conference and a music festival, connects the city on the water to the rest of the world in style. Sure, there's no beach (close by) and this year there was more rain than sun, yet the event attracted more than 700 DJs/acts, 44 venues, 2,000 conference delegates, heavyweight panelists, and an estimated festival audience of 90,000. As Richard Zijlma, general manager of ADE told us afterwards, "The only difficult [thing] was [that] we had to refuse people from all over the world to the conference because it was simply totally sold out!"

That conference side, in 2007, expand from the beautiful Felix Meritis building with no loss of intimacy to a secondary location, the Dylan Hotel, just a few doors down. The duality continued this year, and ADE even started a day earlier to spread the load. However, the Felix was still often packed, at times to capacity. Just as well then that it had had a facelift; the mildew was a distant memory, and everything seemed lighter and brighter.

Without thinking ahead, trying to decide what to see and do during ADE is a constant struggle, especially if you come to mix business with pleasure. But with some kind of plan, comfortable shoes and the determination of an Olympic athlete, on steroids, anything is possible—even those stairs in the Felix, which could have been designed by MC Escher.

ade: stairs, conferences, talks and presentations

Meanwhile, beyond the conference, Amsterdam's labyrinth of canals, cafes and clubs unfolds like an adventure playground for creatives of all creeds, whether you're seeking a renaissance, a revolution, techno or trance. Party-wise, though, it's not always about planning. Stumbling around the city at 4 AM can lead you to all kinds of places, some great, others not so...

RA opted for a staple diet of techno and house, with some space disco thrown in for added flavour. And, as you can see from the pictures below, this turned out to be a lot of fun and an inspirational brew, so thanks to everyone who allowed us to stumble through!

ade: ovum party at mtv with steve bug and josh wink

Nokia Trends Lab - Ovum Label Night at MTV Studios

Nokia's Trends Lab was a decidedly different way to start a night. Mobile phone innovation and fingerless rubber gloves aside, the Ovum party later kicked in and we were treated to some deadly mixes by D'Julz, Steve Bug and Josh Wink in the cavernous, carpeted main room.
Photos: Ovum with Josh Wink & Steve Bug

Long Evening feat Sharam at Zebra

Sharam headed up an intimate "long evening" upstairs at The Zebra alongside his Bullitt buddies Miss Nine, Nic Fanciulli and Davide Squillace.
Photo gallery: Long Evening

ADE: RA & Innervisions - A Critical Mass

Resident Advisor and Innervisions present A Critical Mass at Melkweg

A Critical Mass with 91 RA members and countless ADE-ers, all crammed into Melkweg's Old Hall for one of the best parties we've ever worked on. We reckon the live Innervisions Orchestra, starring Henrik Schwarz, Âme and Dixon blew everyone away (when asked about his festival highlight, Marcus Worgull waxed lyrical about Kristian Beyer's harmonica solo), but we would say that, wouldn't we?
Photo gallery: A Critical Mass

100% Pure / Intacto / Remote Area - Label Showcase at Flex Bar

Flex Bar was an out-of-town venture but well worth the trip, with Amsterdammers Shinedoe + 2000 and One rocking back-to-back moves. The place was packed. The music was deep, emotive and relentlessly all-consuming, played out with passion through a Funktion One system. Label showcases don't get much better.
Photo gallery: 100% Pure / Intacto / Remote Area

Minus presents Contakt at The Sand

M_nus delivered the goods yet again with their Contakt show at The Sands, where thousands of revelers raved until the wee hours to Richie and friends. As M_nus man Barem put it, this festival was so good that the biggest fight of the weekend, was the "fight to stay awake."

ade: disco with todd terje and prins thomas

A Space Disco Inferno at Westerunie

All Is One and Chemistry joined forces to host A Space Disco Inferno. Here, the Todd Terje & Prins Thomas combo was definitely a sound to behold, while Isis took everyone on a trip in Westerliefde, presenting "Eenhoorn" ("Unicorn") live to get her party started.
Photo gallery: A Space Disco Inferno

Photo credits: Lisa Local / Nik Torrens / Merlijn Hoek