Dale
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Posted : Dec 18, 2002 02:15
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...continued
Fractal finished and the dusty chaos continued - the cdjs were all breaking down continuously and had to be replaced and then taken away and cleaned, there were three that had done it while I was there. I would assume that this was the reason for some stranger sets over the week. There was absolutely nothing that could have been done about it, as I said the dj booth was totally sectioned off from the crowd but it was just so dusty.
The next dj was awesome as well....I forget his name(I am shocking with names as some of you know ) but he made the best of a bad situation with the cds and the crowd didn't even know.
The second day(after a terrible nights sleep) I got up and filmed some day dancing, it was brilliant, so many people just so into the music in the harsh sun. I think by now the sun was beginning to have a positive effect as everyone adapted and it just made anything(dancing, drugs, walking) so much more intense.
After a fun day of drinking, dancing, filming and smoking in the sun, I ate and screwed around a bit, and then went out with friends to watch the eclipse. It was an amazing site to see everyone just facing the sun with their glasses on, then the actual eclipse was totally breathtaking. They had the glasses which were crap as and made it look like a flash animation, but when it happened and you could look and the crowd went off, it was one of the biggest highs I have ever had in my life(and still no hard drugs!). The sky was as clear as could be, it couldn't have been any more perfect. I heard people from Ceduna were flocking to Lyndhurst for the better view(we live and learn CO ).
I got it all on tape, and amazingly it is pretty much exactly as we saw it.
Walking back I witnessed a capoiera demonstration, with a guy singing and bongos and one or two there instruments, and the crowd chanting as pairs and trios faced off in what is like a fighting dance(no contact). The guy who sang was fantastic - such a voice, and kept singing as he danced and flipped about(backflips, one handed handstands, crazy stuff). The music of everyone together was as good as any I heard all week(on tape too ).
I then went and packed my camera away for a night of partying, and come back out to see someone finish and Ganga Giri begin. Ganga and his group started out dubby(very live) and then kicked in to some more trancy beats, by which stage the crowd around me(right in front of the left speaker ) was in an absolute frenzy. There was this tiny little Japanese girl who was hugging the speaker all night and just in this state of total bliss, she made my night, and I am sure that of everyone around her. I thought she might have gone a bit hard that night but I saw her every day and night after going just the same
The sound was fantastic, not too loud at all, I only put the earplugs in once, it was probably a bit of a lesson for me. I think there was so much harshness to deal with out there softer sound was a great idea.
I danced pretty much all night - I wont try and put together the whole lineup again but it was pretty much all good. I never left the main stage, I usually would have preferred more hard psy(the desert stage) but I never had any reason to leave the big one
The visuals on this night were all mixed with footage of the eclipse and people watching it(not mine, but the same as I'd just filmed) so for me that just made it all the more surreal.
Thursday we got up and headed into a place called Leigh Creek which was around 30 kms away from the camp and had a really nice swimming pool. It was such a relief to cool down and get out of the dust. Even the pool was going off, never have I seen so many trippers dancing to crap pop music like Brittany Spears. It was kind of the way the whole week was, everyone just out for a good time, no matter what the odds. If they hadnt been playing the pop music I am sure someone would have whipped out a bongo.
Got food etc. in Leigh Creek too - the food at the festival was great(a few vegetarian dishes) - it was $6/9 for a small/large plate served from a bain-marie. The major problem was that there was only one damn food tent, and you had to line up forever for a ticket and then your food, probably my only major gripe with the whole festival. So many times I wanted to eat, looked at the line and said stuff it, I'll wait. Big eaters would have been lining up continuously(and some seemed to be!)
We got back to the camp to have a little day boogie then film the sunset...stunning, and there were clouds this night exactly where the eclipse had been the night before, it was like it was meant to be.
Then off to the main stage for some more filming, then later for just some dancing, once again the crowd was pumping, a group of regulars seemed to have formed around the left speaker and there was a fantastic feeling the whole night. I think this is the night(it may have been Wed) half of X-dream played(gotta look through footage) - it was another one of the best sets I have ever heard, literally rocking. I probably danced as hard as ever that night(I even took my shoes off which is just not what I generally do ).
Friday, more time at the pool, dancing in the day, filming and then total disappointment to learn that there was nothing happening after 6pm that night. Everyone who was there was really raring to go, but alas it was over. A few renegade stages continued on but I was pretty much spent and relaxed then crashed.
Saturday I got up and drove home. There was apparently an afterparty at Lake Eyre but by this point I was starting to have serious net withdrawals and wondering how much work I was coming back to. The day drive was much more uneventful than the night one, less roos and emus to worry about(dozens dead on the roadside though). I got home Sunday morning, and collapsed hard onto my mattress without unpacking or showering or anything.
Overall - 10/10. I don't really know anyone at Exotic Native but I take my hat off to you guys for one of the experiences of a lifetime.
There is a dvd they are producing coming out sooner or later(featuring some of my footage ) and I am also working on a dvd project entitled 'Solar' which will feature Earthcore, OEF, Tribeadelic NYE and RSF this summer, and be released mid-late next year.
I will also add my review of Earthcore over the coming days...I just wanted to get this one out of my head while it was still fresh.
  http://www.festivalisland.com
http://www.oztrance.com |
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