Jeffrey Sutorious aka Dash Berlin pulled out of ASOT 850 in Poland on May 30th and Spring Awakening in Chicago on June 9th, due to undisclosed health concerns. I’ll not speculate on the nature of his illness, though Jeff himself has said in the past that “the higher you go up the ranks, the more problems you could meet on the way to eventually get there. It gets difficult, mentally, physically, or both–not everybody is up for it, will be willing to deal with it or handle it.” As evidenced by the loss of so many greats, it’s no surprise that a 2016 study by Help Musicians UK found that depression and anxiety plague musicians and those in the music industry three times more than the general population.
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The pressures of maintaining appearances, exhaustion, and an inability to lead what many would consider a normal social life were some of the reasons given by the artists themselves for their high rates of panic attacks and depression. The joy of playing and producing music became a source of darkness when working in the music industry. Jeff knew this when he said that “it’s not always a party mood for people who are on the stage or who are in the business. Sometimes the going gets rough. You have to go through some setbacks to get to the next level … It’s not easy.”
I’ve been lucky enough to see Dash Berlin several times over the years, most recently at USC’s Freaknight 2017 where he laid down a wicked set, full of hits from his 2009 The New Daylight album. He’d recently been returning to his trance roots, having recorded a purely vinyl set on Facebook back in September 2017. I’m truly saddened for those who were hoping to see him at these events, as they’re definitely missing out. From what I’ve heard, his classics set at EDC Las Vegas this year was pretty unbeatable. I hope that whatever ails Jeff is as simple as exhaustion or the flu and that he returns to us soon.
Dash Berlin | Photo Courtesy dashberlinworld.com
