Photo gallery: Pete Tong & Essential Orchestra at Aintree Racecourse Liverpool

From the moment the playlist of reimagined Ibiza classics began with Snap’s Rhythm Is A Dancer it was clear this certainly wasn’t going to be some sort of middle-aged meander for the iconic DJ, who enjoyed a meteoric rise to fame in the 90s and 00s. The beats were pumping and the crowd, which ranged from a surprising amount of teens to over 60s, were well up for it.

It was a different experience for each group: the youngsters revelling in the festival atmosphere whilst watching one of dance music’s most iconic figures and the older generation rolling back the years - drifting back to the beach bars of Ibiza or the big clubs that peppered the UK.

The orchestra, conducted by Tom Richards and joined by a trio of brilliant vocalists were sensational, with each section or instrument given a moment to shine at various points in Tong’s set. As the sun went down and the lasers and visual effects really started to take affect, a hedonistic evening of fun and nostalgia really ramped up.

The set took the crowd on a journey from the 90s to present day, including Robert Miles’ Children and Rudimental’s Feel the Love, but the high point of the night had to be the back to back classics of Faithless’s Insomnia and The Source featuring Candi Stanton’s You Got the Love.