It seems like it’s nearly impossible to catch an EDM show in Philly these days that lasts more than a few hours and doesn’t feature at least one set of dubstep, trap, or some other form of bass music.
That’s why we were so excited for Friday, November 30th at Soundgarden Hall where a trance heavy line-up of DJs, headlined by dutch duo, W&W was hitting the decks. When we first heard that W&W were coming to town, we just had two W&W questions, where and when? After we got those answers, we had a few more questions for Willem & Wardt themselves. We sat down with them at Soundgarden before their set and you can check out our interview with the guys right here:
In addition to the headliners, there were opening sets by locals Johnny V, and Michael Myers b2b Tom Colontonio, followed by throw-down sets by Ummet Ozcan, and Kyau & Albert.
We were very impressed with Ummet Ozcan. His dark brand of trance infused with progressive and techno tones really had the place bumping. It’s easy to see why his tracks can often be found hanging around the upper echelon on the Beatport trance charts.
Kyau & Albert were up next and we were anxious to catch them live for the first time. This German duo has been producing tracks (including supplying their own male vocals) and remixing some of the biggest names in the biz since the 90’s. As expected, they had Soundgarden Hall rocking. Their upbeat track selection was matched, and even exceeded at points, by their own energy as Kyau jumped around stage with the fervor of a kid on a sugar high. Dropping several of their own hits, as well as many other well known tunes, they did a superb job of keeping the crowd engaged throughout their entire set. We look forward to their return to Philly in 2013.
Finally it was time for the headliners, W&W, to hit the stage. Performing for the first time in Philadelphia, their set was very impressive. As confetti canons, dancers, hand held cryo-guns, and Soundgarden’s impressive laser/light show provided all the visual stimulation you could ask for, W&W laid down some choice tracks that showcased their unique brand of electro-trance.
Highlights included their newest single “Lift Off” (which is set for release tomorrow), the ASOT 550 anthem “Invasion”, “Moscow”, and one of our personal favorites, Hardwell vs Above & Beyond: “Thing Called Spaceman (W&W Mashup)”. It’s easy to see why the biggest name is trance music today, Armin Van Buuren, is such a big fan of W&W. The guys were a pleasure to speak with, and an even bigger pleasure to see perform. We hope it won’t be long before they make their way back to Philadelphia so we can all Lift Off again.
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