Mark Farina Plays Nocturnal on Saturday, January 23

Few artists in the world of electronic dance music can take credit for the sort of self-styled signature sound that has made Mark Farina one of the most original and idiosyncratic DJ/producers of the last twenty years. As a house music veteran with old ties to the Chicago, Detroit and San Francisco scenes and their most significant artists and collectives, Farina's life's work is inseparable from the history of the genre in all its geographical and subcultural permutations. The Chicago native grew up listening to early house releases on the radio, and in 1988 met legendary DJ and lifelong colleague Derrick Carter at a record store, the beginning of a creative partnership that would catapult both their careers in the next decade.

Sharing a studio and collaborating on their first production work, the duo would also establish important connections between the Chicago house and Detroit techno scenes, namely through their association with the "Belleville Three" -- legendary Detroit techno producers Juan Atkins, Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson. In 1989 they released the landmark track "Mood" as Symbols in Instruments on Saunderson's KMS Records, and this pioneering ambient house classic would go on to sell over 35,000 copies in the US and UK.

Farina's experimental forays as an improvisational club DJ and sample wizard led to the development of his unique sound, a chunky-funky sampledelic hybrid of downtempo house, hip-hop breaks and vintage soul which he dubbed "Mushroom Jazz". Originally launched as a cassette series and legendary weekly club night in San Francisco, the Mushroom Jazz brand garnered serious attention during the early '90s acid jazz boom, which saw a fusion of Chicago house with the jazzy and organic urban sounds of the West Coast. With the increasing cult-like popularity of his provocative new style, Farina would go on to expand his Mushroom Jazz project to include CD releases and accompanying tours under the prestigious San Francisco-based deep house label Om Records.

Farina has since continued to enjoy international acclaim as a world-class DJ and producer celebrated by wide audiences across the world as he continues to tour heavily each year and release widely through his own Great Lakes Audio imprint, including regular installments of his signature Mushroom Jazz compilation mixes. Mark Farina will be stopping by club Nocturnal's Eden Terrace for a highly-anticipated performance on Saturday, January 23 that is sure to enthrall Miami's house lovers. Mike Miro, Omar G and a few other guest DJs will be spinning in support of Farina and keeping the house vibes alive during this all-night marathon set that will continue well into the next day.

Mark Farina at Nocturnal. Saturday, January 23. Doors open at 11 p.m. Eden Terrace Garden, Nocturnal. 50 NE 11 St., Downtown Miami. 4 a.m.