Date : February 13, 2016
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the historic 23rd St. Armory.
In the center of Philadelphia their stands a fortress. Built in 1901, the 23rd St. Armory is now home to the National Guard as well as some of the best acts in the music industry.
This massive, three floor, 21,346 square foot structure was the setting for an explosion of sound known as Pex Heartburn 2016 presented by the Philadelphia Experiment.
Heartburn 2016 was an Asian themed event celebrating dance music, culture, Valentine’s Day AND YES, the year of the monkey. But not just any monkey, the red fire monkey.
In the Chinese culture 2016 will bring adventure, discovery, questions and answers. Well, there was no question about the depth of talent that took the stage at heartburn 2016.
Surrounded by fire twirling aerialists and death-defying acrobats, Washington DC’s Marco Peli, a PEX veteran, warmed up the crowd with a funk laden, deep house set that made us all forget about the below freezing temperatures outside.
“To put it simply, to me, PEX just does things right, from start to finish. And they do it with some of the best people I have ever met.” – Marko Peli (picture by Heliskope)Next on the decks with the fantastic New York City-based producer/DJ Alan Nieves who is fresh off his huge gig at Technicolor dreams with NOIR in Brooklyn, New York.
Alan Nieves fresh off his gig with NOIR in NYC @ PEX (picture by Heliskope)His fluid, energy filled, 60 minute tech house set captured the hearts of thousands of patrons as he properly set the stage for two of Philadelphia’s heavyweight champions of the turntables : DJ EVERYDAY and New York City underground legend, Davidson Ospina.
And boy, did they deliver!!
Within seconds of taking control of the boards DJ EVERYDAY had taken the 23rd St. Armory to new heights with this driving deep-tech groove sprinkled with house elements and glorious melodic drops. Expanding on the Nieves’ beautiful Techy set, EVERYDAY explored the worlds of Electronica, Deep-Tech and Techno with spot on transitions and a genius crowd pleasing set structure.
DJ EVERYDAY’s fluid, energy filled, 60 minute tech house set captured the hearts of thousands of patrons
Dj EVERYDAY’s futuristic 60 minute tech-house set captured the hearts of thousands of patrons. (picture by Heliskope)Then it was time for former Queens, New Yorker, now Philadelphia resident DJ, producer and musical missionary, Davidson Ospina to take control. Ospina’s uplifting New York City meets Miami style reconfirmed why he has been a New York City underground staple for well over a decade. Ospina’s uncanny ability to read the crowd is second to none, which much be a product of his global djing experience and countless live set headlining in the United States as well as abroad.
“Another Epic Pex Heartburn event! I tell people all the time they need to experience this. It’s more than just a party, it’s a production of goodness everywhere you look.” – Davidson Ospina (picture by Heliskope)Now enter the headliner the one and only Dennis Ferrer. Ferrer, who’s magical musical career spans more than 20 years, took the stage in iconic fashion. Dropping songs from his catalog that range from house to Tech and Deep-Tech and from yesterday a till today. Dennis included his haunting remix of London Grammar’s “Signs” from 2013 and his 2015 global, dancefloor smash remix of “one of us” by Sabb featuring Forest from the Moon Harbour label. Ferrer’s two hour tour de force will etch itself permanently in the Philadelphia’s robust dance music history and so will this amazing musical event!
“through the trials and tribulations the music never left me.” – Dennis Ferrer (picture by Heliskope)I’m certain for years and years to come this musical experience that we all shared will live inside everyone that played, attended and participated in this fantastic event and I am no exception.
With this comes a showcase to celebrate the sounds of the AMAZING artists that played THIS EPIC EVENT. Enjoy the mixx!!
Hesh Donnerstag
global journalist
tanzgemeinschaft.com
