Top 5 Summer 2013 DJ Sets In Toronto [Video]

Dance music continued to blow up in 2013. For Toronto, that meant being treated to more live events than ever before. This summer saw Toronto’s inaugural Sensation White, along with the second coming of both Digital Dreams and VELD Fest.

But with this enormous influx of electronic talent, the question remains, who stood out this summer? Who were the must see acts? Here are Toronto’s top 5 performances along with choice video snippets to help you relive the magic.

5. Eric Prydz @ Sensation White

Sensation is less about the music and more about the experience, but that didn’t stop seasoned DJ Eric Prydz from putting it down at Toronto’s first ever Sensation White.

Prydz played a minimalist house set with few vocals. Instead of building big drops Pyrdz had progressive beats take some gritty turns to harder electro that perfectly fit the night’s atmosphere.

See a 20 minute bird’s eye view below:

4. Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike @ Digital Dreams

This duo transformed a relatively tame crowd into an unruly mob. It was an amazing spectacle, to see these young performers ignite the audience with their hard hitting electro set.

The pair is reminiscent of a young  Dada Life. These two got the party started. They jumped up on the decks, demanded to see every hand in the air and even managed to use the microphone without ruining the music. They primed the crowd for every DJ who came after.

To top it all off, their epic track Mammoth was the sound of the night.

Watch this compilation to get a feel of how wild it was:

3. Kaskade @ VELD

VELD scored a major coup by snagging the best performer from last year’s Digital Dreams. Kaskade unleashed an unbelievable set as the sun went down over the first day of the festival.

His signature big room tracks were expertly mixed with just the right amount of heaviness. Even more impressive were the newly designed visuals. The outer space themed graphics designed for his Atmosphere Tour bedazzled all in attendance.

Watch him drop his remix of Lana Del Ray’s “Young & Beautiful”:

2. Tiesto @ Digital Dreams

Of all the names Digital managed to pack into its 3 stage line-up, Dutch Superstar Tiesto was the main attraction. The audience swelled in anticipation of his set, packing an impressive number of attendees in front of the main stage.

It’s hard to explain the hold he had over the audience. Tiesto exemplifies the importance of being a live-mixing DJ, able to rework songs on the fly to build and release the energy of the audience.

He is a seasoned vet who knows how to use each of the tools in his expansive kit to make the crowd go “maximal crazy.” The periodic fireworks shooting off above him certainly didn’t hurt either.

A small snippet of the master at work:

1. Above & Beyond @ VELD

The British trance trio were hands down the best act of the summer. They stole the show at this year’s VELD Fest with an unforgettable set. Their signature move – typing live to interact with the crowd – had eyes glued to the visual display, and I’m sure there were a few tears as well, as emotions hit their peak.

A&B cracked the code – figuring out a way to communicate a deep, heartfelt message that added to the music rather than detracting from it. They have revolutionized the way DJs interact with their live audiences. Look for others to follow suit as the industry continues to boom.

Watch the closing of their epic set (to the tune of Sun & Moon):