Joe Giuliano on May 5th, 2018

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It’s hard to criticize a festival that bills itself as “one stage, one vibe.” What’s not to love? Desert Hearts, the music and lifestyle festival fueled by “techno, house and love,” returned to Los Coyotes Indian Reservation on April 27-30 with 72-plus consecutive hours full of underground sounds, immersive art installations, an immense gallery and eclectic vendor row, a fashion show presented by Glitter Spies, their typically vivid stage production and lighting design and a few select theme camps lucky enough to make the cut.

Could it be closer to L.A.? Sure. Could it be in a warmer season? Probably. But does any of that matter to their devoted following? Not at all. Tickets were sold out in advance this year before a lineup was even announced. Blissed-out vibes seemingly connected every attendee before they even set foot on the sacred native grounds. Unlike other festivals where a certain righteousness prevails, at Desert Hearts everyone is a friend or family. From the smallest interaction in line at a Porta-Potty to an intimate conversation with a neighbor at camp, the vibes are heavy and true. This isn’t your normal weekend interaction. What Desert Hearts has fostered is a safe space so intimate, that your inner freak is set free. Gone are the Coachella concerns of cultural appropriation and overzealous bro advances. Here, culture has been reinvented and asking for consent is the norm. Move over, festival giants, this is how the new school does it.

Whether it be sunbathing underneath the giant psychedelic neon sunflower at the corner of the stage, entering the dancefloor via a makeshift Magic Bus replete with Festival Pandas, gazing at the fire spinning that now has its own stage, being fed Wench Toast by a group of Music Savages dressed as pirates, or finding solace in the cleansing suds of the Clean Carriage mobile shower system, Desert Hearts will transport you to another dimension.

This team of miscreants and party pagans has successfully manifested a mass hallucination so real and effective, that it is spreading a love generation revival that spans cultures, eras and classes.

Perhaps more important than the “Radical Inclusion” principal, is the “Leave It Better” ethos. Not only does everyone feel at Home, they are inspired to give back more than they take. Nothing speaks louder to this point than the Love Ride, an endeavor created by the Savage Hearts and recently co-opted by Desert Hearts. While we may celebrate abundance, our purpose is found in contribution. The true highlight of Desert Hearts should be their communal offering. In L.A. and now expanded to other U.S. cities, it’s the delivery of charitable gift bags to the homeless. What better way to celebrate “one love” than to give love to those who may need it most.

If all of that love and connection haven’t adequately described the Desert Heart experience, the well-curated DJ selection serves as the icing on the cake. Highlights from the kaleidoscopic weekend, in diary form:

Friday

Atish —Where one festival ends, another begins… I ended my last Desert Hearts Festival at Atish and began this year’s event back in his humble presence. It’s refreshing to see Atish taking chances outside of the comfort zone often found in his all-night sets in Los Angeles. It’s even more refreshing when those risks land and he delivers a unique yet solid set. The San Francisco-based DJ and co-founder of Manjumasi Records is a magician behind the decks – one who surprisingly has enough time to even play a game of Connect Four with those close enough to approach the DJ booth.

Sacha Robotti —Looking like a psychedelic furry sloth, Dirtybird’s Sacha Robotti dropped a bass-heavy techno set welcoming all last-minute late-Friday night arrivals. The highlight of the Italian-German by-way-of Belgium producer and DJ’s set was hearing his unreleased remix of Peaches’ “F*** the Pain Away,” which set the crowd into an expected frenzy.

Saturday

Tara Brooks at sunrise — Fresh off her all-night B2B with Lee Reynolds at Union in Los Angeles, Tara Brooks delivered a spectacular sunrise set on Saturday morning. Feeling the closest to a Robot Heart-at-Burning Man set all weekend, Desert Hearts couldn’t have chosen a more appropriate sundance conductor. The smiles were far and wide, none less than the always gracious darling of the Desert Hearts crew.

The Egyptian Lover — Desert Hearts showed their deep knowledge of the history of the dance scene and their ability to diversify their lineup by bringing in L.A.’s own old-school pioneer, MC, producer, DJ, vocalist and funky O.G. — The Egyptian Lover — for a live performance. While vastly different than much of the lineup, the Egyptian Lover was a welcome curveball on Saturday afternoon. The crowd was noticeably moved by the funk and transported to another era seemingly long forgotten in the current dance scene. Until now.

wAFF — Hailing from the U.K., the Jack Black look-a-like wAFF had one of the bounciest high-energy sets of the weekend. He was easily a fan favorite, exemplifying all that it means to be on the vibey Desert Hearts lineup. Atish himself said wAFF was his favorite set of the weekend. Let’s hope this set is released to the wild.

Porky — I have to admit I am late to the Porky party. After having attended nearly every Desert Hearts Festival and numerous City Hearts events, I had seen literally every Desert Hearts DJ except for Porky, formerly known as Porkchop. I was pleasantly surprised. The grooves were real and the vibes were on point. Closed-eye hallucinations gave way to full on transformative waves of euphoria thanks to this man’s deliberate trippy delivery. It’s very possible that Porky is the unintended lovechild of the defacto spiritual father of Desert Hearts — Lee Reynolds and Grace Slick. Follow the white rabbit indeed.

Sunday

Dance Spirit — Riding high on the vibes of recently releasing their second music, culture and art ‘zine, “Space Cadet”, and their first EP, “Music Is Life,” Christopher Mohn and Reagan Denius — together as Dance Spirit — seem to be on top of the world. The afternoon was particularly ripe and their sunny live set was definitely juicy. Don’t miss them at Space Camp, the official release party for Space Cadet Issue 2 in a yet-to-be-disclosed DTLA location on May 18.

Serge Devant — Known for his ethereal after-hours sound, Russian-born, New York-based Serge Devant perfectly exemplified my Desert Hearts experience. Twisting psychedelic grooves echoed throughout the reservation, seemingly welcoming in the coming storm on Sunday night. The sky was electric and the dancefloor debauchery never ceased as the winds whipped through the campground.

Monday

Anton Tumas — Closing out the festival for me was the multi-talented and omnipresent L.A. fixture Anton Tumas. Tasked with providing the largest “monitor” system I’ve ever seen, his Danley Sound Labs speakers blew the lids off anyone lucky enough to step backstage. His set was no less impressive. Wearing a lady’s wig and a tacky “ACID” shirt, it would seem the man doesn’t take himself seriously. Quite the contrary however, as his sets are always carefully curated with a level of detail the community has come to expect from the man responsible for bringing us Subtract Music and its multiple endeavors from Long Beach to the Mojave.

||| Live: Desert Hearts stages Sin City Hearts tonight at the Downtown Las Vegas Events Center.