ARTBAT & Armin van Buuren – Take Off [Armada]

Sparked by a chat backstage at Armin van Buuren’s flagship trance festival A State of Trance back in 2023, electronic music powerhouse duo ARTBAT have teamed up with the trance pioneer for a trance-meets-techno collaboration: ‘Take Off’, released on Armada Music.

Merging the pulsating bassline and rolling rhythm, characteristic of an ARTBAT production, with Armin van Buuren’s signature trance builds, melodic chords and driving bass, ‘Take Off’ skillfully infuses the Ukrainian pair’s distinctive output with the Dutchman’s expertise, resulting in a fresh and dynamic cross-genre debut linkup.

“Collaborating with Armin van Buuren, who is such a legend in the dance game, has been really special,” ARTBAT say. “We can’t believe this collaboration hasn’t happened before now and we’re very happy that Armin asked us to do a collaboration, which has brought something so special to our sound. It’s been enjoyable to explore and push the boundaries of both our sounds. It’s an honor to have worked alongside such a groundbreaker in his lane.”

“ARTBAT’s exceptional performance at last year’s ‘A State of Trance’ festival sparked immense inspiration in me,” Armin van Buuren adds. “Even though I was deep into album mode and immersed in a sound that is quite different from ‘Take Off’, their music prompted a lot of ideas. I thought of the concept of ‘Space Case’ and how its theme, spoken word and trancey stabs would chime in with the unique ARTBAT sound. This collaboration feels like it’s been a long time coming, and I’m thrilled it’s now seeing the light of day.”