Neo-nomads
06 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: consciousness, dance, electronic, global, goa, neo-nomads, psytrance, shamanism, spiritual
Psytrance is characterised by specific techno-tribal associations committed to (re)producing a distinct vibe. The genre is unique in that its public events are likely the most culturally/nationally diverse dance music events worldwide. It is also of interest here since elements within this movement hold conscious religio-spiritual pretentions. While there is a paucity of published ethnographies configuring the religious and spiritual characteristics of this global movement, Anthony D’Andrea’s study (2007) of “global nomads” who are mobile in a freak-diaspora characterised as a digital New Age began to correct this. Psytrance evolved from Goa trance, which had emerged as a reproducible and sought-after style of electronic dance music by the mid-1990s. With roots in the psychedelic counterculture and EDM developments of the 1980s and 1990s, psytrance is characterised by a diversity of subgenres, scenes, and concomitant aesthetics. With post-Goa scenes evolving across Europe, Israel, North America, Australia, Japan, South Africa, Brazil, and elsewhere, public events range from small-scale parties to large international festivals, the latter typically accommodating a diversity of sub-scenes and styles. Lasting over-night or perhaps during week-long campouts, events are favourably held in open-air locations where dance floors may be positioned in bushland, forest, beach or deserts, where participants will often celebrate celestial events (e.g. the full moon or a total solar eclipse) or hold parties to mark seasonal transitions.
Psytrance is replete with the characteristics of an alternative spirituality, which has flourished since the 1960s. According to Linda Woodhead, advocates of the “new spirituality” would express commitment to: a spiritual relativism which sees a profusion of religions and symbol systems adopted in the belief that they offer access to similar divine truths; a “new age” of unity, peace and spiritual enlightenment; the understanding that everyday reality manifests “a deep and unifying spirit or life-force” recognisable in the holistic/ecological mantra “All is One”; and an expressive “radical immanence” which sees participants accessing this underlying “life force” or “energy” through direct experience (Woodhead 2001: 81-2). Psytrance carries this cultural continuity of relativism, hope, holism and experience, the latter commitment certainly not the least as detected in the reworking of the Hendrixian question in the title of the debut album of the chief act in the Goa/psytrance movement, Shpongle: Are You Shpongled? (1998). It should also be recognised that psytrance is infused with the reflexive-utilitarian (visionary) and expressive-Dionysian (ecstatic) dimensions of the counterculture that Frank Musgrove had identified as “the dialectics of utopia” (1974: 16). As a vehicle for developments in responsive alternatives to dominant practices and for collective self-abandonment, psytrance constitutes a musical and cultural movement that embraces principal aspects of the 1960s-inspired new spirituality. Festivals like the global Earthdance phenomenon, San Francisco’s Synergenesis, or the UK’s Turaya Gathering (promoted as a “Holistic World Fusion Arts Gathering”), along with Australia’s Rainbow Serpent Festival, or Intention and other events operated by British Columbia’s Tribal Harmonix, among other international events and global sites accommodating a host of therapeutic, artistic and ecstatic pursuits, illustrate that the milieu inhabited by psytrance participants is one in which conscious alternatives and transgressive commitments have recombined.
Man With No Name – Sugar Rush (Astrix Remix)
10 Oct 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: astrix, beats, dance, electronic, goa, man with no name, music, psy, psytrance, trance
Vuuv 2011
31 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: 2011, consciousness, electronic, global, goa, love, psy, psytrance, trance, vuuv
Because of the 20th anniversary of the Vuuv Festival and as big fans of Psychedelic and Goa trance, we like to share our Psytrance adventure with the world. We say thanks and let’s Vuuv!
ELECTRONIC AWAKENING
27 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: art, awakening, consciousness, cosmic, culture, dance, electronic, freedom, frequency, global, goa, goagil, hippies, humanrights, life, love, meditation, music, native, nature, oneness, peace, psy, psytrance, quantum, shaman, shamanism, shiva, soul, spiritual, spirituality, trance
In Electronic Awakening, director Andrew Johner lifts the veil on an underground spiritual movement that has developed within electronic music cultures worldwide.
The story of Goa
16 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: consciousness, dance, electronic, global, goa, goagil, hippies, humanrights, india, life, love, music, native, nature, oneness, peace, psy, psytrance, shaman, shamanism, shiva, soul, spiritual, substance, trance
Goa emerged on the world scene back in the 60′s with the ‘Hippie Movement’ which brought the western world to the beaches of Anjuna. Composed mostly of white teenagers and young adults between the ages of 15 and 25 years old, hippies inherited a tradition of cultural dissent from bohemians and beatniks of the Beat Generation in the late 1950s. Stories of Freaks in Goa and a slowly building counter culture made some enthusiasts hop onto an overland Bus leaving for Goa all the way from Europe (Greece). Disillusioned, disenchanted preferring an altered state of consciousness to the collective illusion the world embraces as ‘Reality’, they found home under the palm trees of Goa.
Staying in Goa was extremely affordable then and to the Hippies, money was always just a means to an end. They stayed and stayed and stayed even longer … the community doubled, tripled, increased exponentially in very little time. So began a long ongoing chapter in the history of the psychedelic culture spawning a whole new generation into an alternate reality, a different world where anything was possible and all boundaries dissolved.
This is just one of the many ways of telling the story of Goa, the Hippies, the Freaks and a generation of hipsters being exposed to a plethora of substances which dramatically alter ones perception of the world and the nature of reality.
Over the years, as capitalism and globalization began making in roads everywhere, the locals and the Goan Government started to become increasingly less tolerant toward the Hippie attitude as it conflicts with the ethics and lifestyles of modern day society. The authorities were now coming on strongly against Nudism, Drugs and Loud Music being played around residential areas late into the night. Some Hippies hence chose the path of reform and got back to the regular city lifestyle and a day job, some became Sadhus and Sanyasis and some stayed back and are still seen dancing around the shacks of South Anjuna, namely Curlies and Shiva Valley. If you ever get a chance to speak to some of these willing old timers, you would know they have a whole lot to talk about and for good reason. With the slow death of the “Hippie Era”, Goa’s reputation as the Freak Capital never diminished, but evolved into the Monsterattes we see on News Channels and read about in the newspapers. Irresponsible use of drugs and sexual predation are closely linked in the darkness of our present times and it’s only we who can change this and turn things around in a new direction we collectively envision.
Psy trance scene in Korea
13 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: music, goa, psy, trance, peace, hippies, love, humanrights, dance, psytrance, djs, skazi, electronic, spiritual, nature, eskimo, native, life, beats, consciousness, global, oneness, korea, south, seoul, yahel, talamasca, cpu
The Korean psychedelic trance community is an interesting creature. Dominated by the club culture, it’s clear that psy trance in Korea is still experiencing growing pangs. Trance parties are nothing new to the country, but the presence of strict drug laws threatens to bring a crippled scene. That being said, there is still a healthy and devoted following of the psychedelic trance spirit to be found amongst a handful of promoters, party-goers, DJs and producers.
Seoul is cultural hub of Korea and, and so this is where one will find the majority of the parties in the country. There are usually larger commercial and international acts flown in at least once each month to perform clubs such as Heaven and Volume. Artists such as Skazi, Eskimo, Yahel, Talamasca, CPU, Atomic Pulse, and Fatali have come through the Korean club circuit and have proven that the demand for Fullon sounds is strong. The underground scene is also in good health with promoters such as Psy Travellers putting on parties at least once a month. Another group by the name of Shevaka also occasionally throw parties throughout the year.
When there aren’t any parties happening, one can find a psychedelic safe haven in clubs such as Miroir, which is a bit small, but manages to play psy trance every weekend. Obeg (the Korean word for the number 500) is also a very chill place with decorations that look like they were taken straight from the fictional planet Tatoonie – the entire interior is decorated as a cave and is truly a must-see. Also, Club Miro will usually have psy trance playing in their backroom.
The indoor scene has definitely evolved over the years and it’s nice to find that Korea actually has a selection of events to choose from throughout each month. Whether the club scene is your vibe or whether you want to get down with the neo-hippies in a faux cave, Korea has it. The crowds just tend to be in rather small numbers.
The outdoor scene is a little less evolved in Korea. The summer of 2009 had only one outdoor party to this writer’s knowledge. Morave, which is now a yearly festival, took place on a private Tae-an beach. More of a festival of expression, one will find a multitude of sounds and events, including psychedelic trance in the evening hours for the trancers in the crowd. Other than that, Korea has massive outdoor gatherings that are fueled by nothing but commercialism. Pentaport and Global Gathering all take place in or around Seoul in the summer months, and even though these events are marketed as electronic music festivals, they are pretty much devoid of any psy trance. There are whispers of future outdoor psy gatherings, but as of now there isn’t much on the horizon.
The music scene in Korea is growing and evolving, and for that the psy trance scene still maintains a very intimate vibe. But this intimate feeling doesn’t detract from the fact that once you are on the dancefloor, you’ll see that there’s something very special here.
Psy trance scene in The Netherlands
09 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: beats, consciousness, dance, djs, electronic, global, goa, holland, humanrights, life, love, music, native, nature, netherlands, oneness, peace, psy, psytrance, shaman, shamanism, shiva, trance
Although the scene in The Netherlands is as old as psy-trance itself, it has been keeping itself to its shores. Psy-trance in the Netherlands has been spreading its wings for a very long time. It began at the Ruigoord, the squatted village that later became legalized. This pioneering era was also felt in the club Trance Buda, where local DJs hosted regular nights. Meanwhile, psy-trance was also morphing into an underground scene while the old squat the Silo pumped wild psychedelic parties in its basement.
With the closing of the Silo, the scene moved to the Elf, the squatted embassy of Belgium that for three years became the glowing light of psychedelic trance. Housing up to 300 seasonal members and many travellers from everywhere in the world, the Elf made an impressive imprint in the Dutch psy-trance and opened it for international trancers, bringing the very spirit of Goa to the Netherlands.
Psytrance in The Netherlands touched ground in the early 90′s at Ruigoord, a squatted village with an alternative way of life. But it was the regular parties organized by DJs Zen, Danyel, Mitch & Lucas at clubs like The Mazzo, Trance Buddha and Club 114, that got the scene going and consolidated it into a style with its own following. During the 90′s there were many parties made by legendary crews like Acidophilus, Circus Hoffmann, Namasté, Empathy and 9Lifes of Hoffman. The squat scene pushed psytrance forward and places as The Silo and The Elf had excellent parties and attracted travelers to Holland.
With the political resistance against the underground life style and the closing of squats, psytrance had to go back to clubs in order to survive. Yet, competing with commercial organizations for a spot in a club meant that parties became less frequent.
Luckily, in 2010 we see the scene picking up again and new organizations coming up as well as traditional ones that keep the flame alive. Most events get posted on www.goatrance.net, so it’s a good idea to check this site to see what’s going on.
The best time to be in Holland is during the spring, especially on 30 April for Queensday, a day with open air and indoor parties all over the country. In Amsterdam, Bom Voyage has its annual party in the center of the city, always including international artists in the line up.
Around the summer solstice, Ruigoord gives the Solstice Festival and monthly they have a psychedelic party in their church. More organizations in and around Amsterdam are Namasté, Prog as Frog, Bleep Bizarre, Pig Org, High Tech Pleasures, Trip to Goa, Inner Visions and Trancending on Thursdays at the Korsakoff.
Around the country there are many active organizations. In Rotterdam: Twisted Trance Society and Alkaloid-Extractions. In Leiden: Cosmic Combination. In Eindhoven: Global Aura and Metatron. In Leeuwarden: 3rd BIT events. In The Hague: Project Twilight, Psytech and Shut up and Dance. In Groningen: Boom Records and Uzumaki, organizer of the Treats Open Air Festival.
Creatively, Holland has a lot of talent. Good producers releasing tracks are Aerophobia, Bassid, Boobytrip, Citizen, Jocid, Kurofusion, Liftshift, Mad Contrabender, Nuver, Pradox, Rev, SQL, Supergroover, The Wizard, Zen Mechanics and the new comers Bionic, Multiband Conspiracy and Woodwise. And some of our DJs: Akbal, Anand, Annakonda, Annunaki, Back To Mars, Bart, Crystal DNA, Dogo, Dr. Vinni, Fluffy, Fluofreax, Hikuri, Jiggi, Kriya, ManDraQ, Mart Fader, Martinèz, Nilezz, Oczean, Paul B, Pim, PolyEsta, Rafadelic, Riches, Rik, Rob, Saaf, Satyr, Shaggedelic, Shawnodese, Supergroover, Tila, Tintal, Wichuri, Yucka, Zen. And a good label to look out for is Mind Funk Records.
When in Amsterdam, make sure to visit the Moondrop for psychedelic fashion and the Kokopelli for alternative uppers and psychedelic truffles. And yes, THC is tolerated and may be bought and smoked in coffeeshops.
TB – Singularity [2011]
06 Jul 2011 1 Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: 2011, beats, consciousness, dance, electronic, frequency, global, goa, music, native, psy, psytrance, singularity, substance, tb, trance
Psytrance Subgenres
06 Jul 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: beats, consciousness, dance, djs, electronic, global, goa, goagil, life, love, music, native, nature, peace, psy, psytrance, shamanism, shiva, soul, spiritual, subgenres, trance
Goa trance (often referred to as Goa or by the number 604 – G = 6, O = 0, A = 4) is a form of electronic music and is a style of trance music. It originated in the late 1980s and early 1990s in the Indian state of Goa and is distinctive, as most forms of trance music were developed in Europe. Goa trance enjoyed the greater part of its success from around 1994 – 1998, and since then has dwindled significantly both in production and consumption, largely being replaced by its successor, psychedelic trance or psytrance.
Goa trance is closely related to the emergence of psytrance during the latter half of the 1990s and early 2000s, where the two genres mixed together. In popular culture, the distinction between the two genres remains largely a matter of opinion (they are considered by some to be synonymous; others say that psytrance is more “metallic” and that Goa trance is more “organic”, and still others maintain that there is a clear difference between the two.) These two are however quite sonically distinct from other forms of trance in both tonal quality, structure and feel. In many countries they are generally more underground and less commercial than other forms of trance. Goa trance, while not played very often today, is more likely to be heard at outdoor parties and festivals than in clubs.
Dark psytrance (also known as dark psy, night trance, horror trance, killer psy or simply dark) is a form of darker and distorted psychedelic trance music made mostly in Russia and Germany, as well as other countries worldwide. The music is considered to be less popular than mainstream melodic psytrance.
Unlike trance genres that are considered to be “commercial”, dark psytrance does not generally use vocals, though there is use of sampling. The atmosphere and theme of the tracks often resemble genres like darkcore and cybergrind, and generally draw influences from the heavy metal culture, and from Musique concrète (especially the Russian artists). There are artists who focus more on creating a horror movie like atmosphere.
Infected Mushroom are regarded by many as the world’s leading psytrance act; they helped make the genre synonymous with the Middle East in the mid 90s. Other notable psytrance acts include Juno Reactor and Astral Projection.
Psychedelic Experience 2011
18 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: beats, consciousness, dance, djs, electronic, germany, global, goa, music, nature, peace, psy, psychedelic, psytrance, trance
Psychedelic Experience Open Air
20.- 22. May 2011
