Cosimea at Smartbar: Unleashing Vibrant Next-Level Futuristic Beats with Azzecca

After wrapping up with Day 1 of Chicago’s ARC Music Festival, ARC After Dark helped me keep the ebb and flow of the rave going with the highly anticipated Cosimea afterparty at SmartBar last Friday, on August 30th, 2024. Headlined by the UK’s genre-defying DJ Salute, Chicago’s hometown favorite Azzecca, the powerful duo X CLUB., and vocalist-turned-DJ Shaun J. Wright, the event was an exhilarating exploration of futuristic, other-worldly club sounds.


The night came alive with each artist pushing boundaries in their own way. Salute’s melodic beats warmed up the crowd, blending garage, house, and rave influences. Azzecca, who also curated the night, demonstrated why she’s one of the city’s brightest stars, fusing dark techno and acid house with an infectious energy. X CLUB. kept the dance floor vibrating with their relentless industrial rhythms, while Shaun J. Wright added a layer of soul with his deep, pulsating grooves.

SmartBar’s very intimate setting provided the perfect atmosphere for the event. The room, packed with the perfect number of ravers from wall to wall, was idyllically hot and sweaty—a hallmark of a truly immersive dance experience. Despite this intentional heat, the crowd fed off the raw energy of the DJs, ensuring that the night didn’t slow down for a moment. SmartBar’s well-known underground atmosphere coupled with Cosimea’s forward-thinking concept made it a standout of ARC’s afterparties, offering a sensory overload for lovers of experimental club music.

Overall, Cosimea absolutely delivered on its promise of bringing “forward-thinking and other-worldly club sounds,” with a night that left no one standing still.