DJ Isaac Brought The Legacy World Tour to Life in Los Angeles

Iconic hardstyle artist DJ Isaac stopped by Exchange LA to celebrate nearly 30 years of his career on The Legacy World Tour.

In April, DJ Isaac announced that he was setting off on The Legacy World Tour to celebrate nearly 30 years of his illustrious career. It was branded as “an epic journey from 1995 till now,” making it clear that fans would relive DJ Isaac’s storied career along with a dose of the present and future. The announcement of this brand-new tour was followed by The Legacy, a compilation album of DJ Isaac’s greatest records. Serving as a preview for what to expect on tour, this was the perfect way for older fans to prepare for the madness while opening the door for new fans to get to know DJ Isaac on a deeper level.

Of course, this wouldn’t be a world tour without making a pit stop at Los Angeles, America’s epicenter of hard dance. Basscon had fans covered as they crafted up a special night to celebrate the legacy of DJ Isaac, along with a stunning lineup of pure American Hard Dance talent like LINK, Keiji, and SAJCHE. The sounds of hard dance were calling. Before I knew it, I was packing up my car and getting ready for a spontaneous trip down to Southern California from the Bay Area.

The night kicked off with none other than Keiji, who brought the heat in his opening set. He’s usually known for his euphoric style that blends hard kick drums with electrifying melodies taking the crowd straight to Hard Dance Heaven. He completely surprised me with a set full of harder music that nicely bridged the gap for fans of euphoric and rawstyle music, however. As soon as I entered and heard Keiji playing this versatile set, I knew the music would only get better as the night progressed.

After throwing down for about an hour and a half, LINK took the decks and followed with pure energy in the form of speedy music and bouncy kickdrums.

I’ve seen LINK several times in the past, but this set was something special. At times, he strayed away from pure hardstyle music and played what felt like a perfect balance of euro bounce and UK hard dance. It wasn’t anything I expected, but he left me craving more of his infectious beats. Luckily, there was plenty of unreleased music in this set, so fans will surely get their hands on these records soon.

LINK @ Exchange LA 07/14 — Photo Credit: Tony Acevedo

When it came time for the main event in DJ Isaac, the crowd erupted in cheers, roars, and pure joy that could be felt up to the rafters.

As expected, DJ Isaac put on an absolute masterclass showcasing his seasoned skills and unmatched ability to read the crowd. Every time I see him, I’m reminded that while many people are great at making music, not everybody is great at DJing. DJ Isaac is in his own category, though. His ear for music production translates beautifully into his DJ skills.

Being The Legacy World Tour, DJ Isaac took fans down memory lane with the biggest songs of his career, like “Harder State of Mind,” “Bitches,” “I Want You,” and plenty of records from his early hardcore/gabber beginnings such as “Bad Dreams.” This set was purely fan service as he got the party started with reverse bass, transitioned into plenty of singalongs, gave fans exclusive tunes like D-Block & S-te-Fan‘s remix of “Where You Are,” and ended with his remix of “Heaven.”

The party didn’t end there, as SAJCHE brought brutality and chaos to close out the night. The charismatic duo ended the night on a high note with their banging set full of zaagkicks, drifting screeches, and high-energy beats. As usual, seeing these guys perform was quite a treat, as they always have their ears on the latest bangers.

SAJCHE @ Exchange LA 07/14 — Photo Credit: Tony Acevedo

I relived memories from my early days as a fan at many points during the night, but I was also able to make new ones with my family.

I was taken back to the moments of my early raving career, where beautiful melodies lifted my spirit and distorted kickdrums took me on a path of enlightenment. The night was even more special as it was the first time I had been able to take my sister and cousin to their first-ever hardstyle show.

All night, I had two constant reminders of why I fell in love with hard dance – the music. I experienced the beauty of hard dance all over again as my cousin, who is on the autism spectrum, got to experience his first true night out. I felt his passion radiate throughout his body, personifying itself through carefree dancing and fist-pumping his heart out.

In the end, one thing was clear: if you’re not in it for the love of the music, you’re not in the right place.

This was a night to remember as fans gathered to celebrate nearly 30 years of DJ Isaac while doubling down as an incredible American Hard Dance showcase. The people went wild from open to close, proving that hardstyle has the most dedicated crowd in the universe. And like always, live hard dance music revitalized my love for the scene and reminded me of why I want this music to succeed in the States so badly.

Luckily, fans have plenty more opportunities to experience all of the emotions that come with hard dance as Basscon has great events like Lady Faith‘s birthday party and 15 Years of Da Tweekaz coming soon, so snag your tickets now!