Rhetorical question: Are there more stars in the universe or Max Styler hits?
We’re fully aware that Max Styler isn’t a new artist. But in 2024, it felt like Styler experienced the surge he’d been working towards for the past decade or so — an ascension that prompted him to become one of the most-talked-about artists in all of dance music this year, and an ascension that would eventually provide the basis for this article.
Styler’s deservingness of Dancing Astronaut’s Breakout Artist of 2024 title has been well-demonstrated, but if we needed to justify our auspicious sense of how Styler’s year would unfold, let’s remember that he had not one, but two then-unreleased weapons in Dancing Astronaut’s most-anticipated IDs of 2024 list: “Rhythm Machine” with Westend and “Lights Out.” The former landed within the first few weeks of 2024 — and it set off an avalanche.
Before anyone could even finish streaming the latest Styler release this year, it seemed as if three more of his IDs would quickly follow. And even when the identity of the given ID’s creator wasn’t public information, many — including us — blindly assumed it belonged to him. The odds of that high-grade, tech-house production coming from Max Styler’s computer seemed that much more likely, given the rate at which he was releasing music.
Twelve months later, 13 Styler releases have hit the streaming board since January, where they join a pair of cuts from Habitatt, his and Spencer Howard’s new alias. This release total is one that not many of Styler’s peers could measure up to — and few ultimately did.
But it wasn’t just about quantity. This year, Styler balanced quantity and quality across 15 tracks, with each ensuing record even more fine-tuned than the one that came before it. “On Repeat,” alongside Dancing Astronaut Artist to Watch in 2025, Clüb De Combat, doubles as an example and a victory lap that formally concludes Styler’s year of releases. Ultimately, all 15 of these tracks were undeniably unavoidable in dance music’s live circuit and beyond; it didn’t matter if you were seeing Dom Dolla or Kevin de Vries or Solomun.
We could just end our case there, but — of course — we won’t. While his releases simultaneously traveled the globe aboard other DJs’ USBs, Styler coordinated his own packed-out touring schedule. And as we moved later and later into the year, so did the timing of his sets at events and festivals. The capacities of the venues where Styler would appear (and routinely sell out) grew in size as well, leading to the inevitable announcement of a 2025 tour.
It didn’t just feel like Max Styler’s name was inescapable in 2024, it simply was. Whether it was his latest and greatest ID that people were salivating over or one of his sets that prompted fans’ immediate demands for an upload, it was all Max Styler, all year long.
We’ve had somewhat of a hunch about his candidacy for a while, but we are now formally putting it in writing: Congratulations to Max Styler, Dancing Astronaut’s Breakout Artist of 2024.
Featured image: Mason Rippel
Categories: Features
