PsYcHeDeLiC Trance Scene of New York

Off Topic- Link to classmates Videos

2009-05-07T11:49:00.000-07:00

Off topic, but need to post links to some of my talented classmates videos and podcasts, so here they are:

>>> Podcast by my boy Carlos

Mattson Tomlin

Ben Goldstein & Madeleine McMillan

Data Dog World

Maya Solovey

Find more videos like this on Purchase College Viral Marketing

Santinoarts

Alladin Project upcoming X-Dream party& Orb Festival 09

2009-05-07T11:22:00.000-07:00

As the weather gets warmer and the Summer draws closer, many of us get ready for the outdoor party season to finally start. During the cold winter season, most parties are held in clubs, lofts, and warehouses. But in the summer time, there are parties held at parks, on the beach, and sometimes even rooftops. It makes the whole party experience a totally different one.

One of the biggest psytrance festivals held in New York is the Orb Festival by Alladin Project. This year will be their third festival, held at Echo Lake in Afton New York (3 1/2hr drive from the city). The lineup this year is VERY impressive as I just received news that Simon Posford will be joining the lineup to perform a Shpongle DJ set, and Hallucinogen Live! Its been a while since he last performed these classic acts here. There are close to twenty international acts with many DJs. I will be performing a DJ set for the third year in a row :) For more info on the Festival, check out there Orb website.

Also a video by Haim to give you a taste of the festival:

Alladin Project will be throwing a big party on May 15th, with one of the classic acts, X-Dream. They always put on an excellent and will be sure to rock the dance floor. If you are interested in attending the party, I will have a guestlist for the event so please contact me. More info on the party can be found here.

Reality Engine

2009-05-07T10:37:00.000-07:00

As I'm sidetracking a little from the psytrance topic from the last Bella Gaia post, I will like to take this opportunity to introduce another very talented audio/visual artist/group based in New York. Luis Campos and Matayas Kelemen are two DJs and producers that have established quite a name for them selves in the dance music scene over the years. The two have joined forces to perform an improvised Live audio/visual show- Reality Engine.

Check out some of their work:

both of the music for the past two videos were minimal, but for those psytrance heads, you'll enjoy this one:

Yes, their work is very talented with an artistic element,yet psychedelic. Its not the usual music video, since the music and visuals are inextricably linked, and they are both improvised for their live shows. Aimed for the dance floors of clubs and festivals, they currently in the process of booking gigs for the 2009 & 2010 season.

Check out their myspace

Youtube Channel

Bella Gaia = Beautiful Earth by Kenji William

2009-05-07T00:46:00.000-07:00

Bella Gaia is the project produced by renowned musician, artist, and director, Kenji Williams. Its a new multiplatform immersive theater experience running in the forefront of the audio & visual industry. In other words, its not your usual audio/visual show, as there is so much more to it...

You should first take a look at a short clip to get an idea of the show:

Bella Gaia is a new form of multimedia show where art meets science and education. Through the audio/visual live performance by Kenji against a large-screen backdrop of orbiting visuals of earth from space (provided by NASA), BELLA GAIA conveys a greater personal understanding and appreciation of our Planet Earth. It is a powerful entertainment and educational outreach vehicle for planetariums, science centers, universities, government agencies and other institutions

There are two versions of performance to this project: the full dome version and the HD performance version. The full dome production is conducted in a digital planetarium, as the HD version is for flat-screen theatres or special events, to concerts and festivals. Kenji has been performing Bella Gaia since 2008, and showcased at NASA’s Earthday, to Fiske Planetarium in Colorado, and Tokyo’s finest Hokutopia Planetarium.

Keep an eye out for Bella Gaia to come to a city near you!

Kenji Williams and the Bella Gaia Project

2009-05-02T09:09:00.001-07:00

This semester, I have had the wonderful opportunity to intern and work with the internationally renown award winning filmmaker, music producer, and classically-trained violinist: Kenji Williams and his Bella Gaia project. Bella Gaia is Kenji's current project, but I'll explain that later on since most people from my viral class reading this blog won't even know who he is...

People in the trance scene know him as the guy with the violin :p Yes, his signiture style is the traditional violin that he blends on top of pre-produced, cutting edge EDM (electronic dance music). The result of crossing traditional boarders by fusing an analogue string instrument with synthetic electronic music = a very unique and original sound that few musicians in the world come close to.

Check out a videos of him rockin a few parties in Tokyo:

Kenji Williams is a composer and producer of 6 music albums, Director of 15 films and music videos, 3 feature length projects, and 3 multimedia theatrical live shows!
He has been involved in the scene since the early 90's and is considered by many as the "next level" multimedia artist. He is always pushing new limits in search of the next big movement in the audio/ visual industry, as he currently focuses on the Bella Gaia project. Next blog is on Bella Gaia*

Check out his website for more, info, pics, and videos:
http://www.kenjiwilliams.com/index.html

He's also playing in Tokyo on 5/5/09 @ Tokyo Salon.
More info @ http://www.fusionearth.com/index_en.html

>>> There are lots of videos of him & his work on youtube too

Psytrance Video & my Podcast mix for Purchase Viral Marketing Class

2009-04-29T20:38:00.000-07:00

Its been a while since I last updated my blog due to the overwhelming amount of work that I have these days, as graduation draws very close. But Finally, I created my two short films & podcast so I would like to share it with everyone.

The first video is a preview of the Orb Festival by Alladin Project. The festival takes place in upstate Afton NY on July 9 - 13th, and it is the only outdoors psychedelic trance festival in NY. There is another Festival in Philladelphia called Gaian Mind, on June 11-14th, but for now, I'm sticking to psytrance only in NY. I will be performing at the Orb Festival again, and it will be my third time playing there :) You can find videos of the festival & my self playing at the previous Orb festivals on youtube. Look for user/ channel psytechnologist.

The following video is a glimpse of our biweekly Psycheground parties held at Sullivan Room. Psycheground is currently the longest running weekday psytrance party and has a reputation of throwing quality events with international headliners every so often. Our next one is scheduled in mid May with a new concept. More info soon.

And finally my podcast project. I created a 7 and a half minute micro-mix of some new psychedelic trance music. I created this micro-mix using four songs, and various samples and loops and mixed everything together. When I play in front of people, I usually wouldn't mix one song to the other this quickly. However, this song is intended for the viral marketing class members, and I assumed most of them to have never heard of this type of music. So I made this mix with that in mind, using lots of vocals (which usually turns off a lot of psy heads), and less repeated loops and grooves. Well, I'll appreciate any kind of feedback (positive and negative) and hope you enjoy the mix. Please download from the link below.

http://rapidshare.com/files/227383426/Viral_Podcast_Mix-_DJ_KeN-_April_09.mp3

Bi-weekly NY Psytrance event- Psycheground @ Sullivan Room- March 19th 2009

2009-03-18T23:26:00.000-07:00

It has been one of those crazy busy weeks, even though I should be on Spring Break... Catching up with work, my mother flying in from Japan, internship, and organizing events, all came at once. But I guess that's how life is...

Anyways, we had to make so many last minute rearrangements for our bi-weekly psytrance party, "Psycheground" @ Sullivan Room. A DJ canceled on us a couple of days ago, but we were very fortunate to have support from Guilliume Clave (an active member in the scene) to offer us Pixel, one of the biggest international acts in the scene, who just happened to be in town for a gig on Saturday the 21st.

The Psychedelic trance scene in New York is very small and still underground compared to some of the other major cities in the world. There is so much potential within the city and the scene, but the bull-shit politics involved in the scene keeps it from growing... It is complete non-sense since the scene is so small, but several individual's egos tend to get in the way to create such a negative vibe... Buttt, many of us strive, to bring back the scene to what it used to be in the early 2000's, by educating, nurturing, and slowly but expanding all who are involved. Simply for the love of the music, the scene, and the people...

I believe this party is another small step towards our ultimate goal, as we were able to gather various members and organizers under one roof which rarely happens here in New York. Hommega, TDC, YBB, Omnitribe, Alladin, and Dreamcatchers, are who will be a part of this event. And much appreciation to Guillaume for his support & super positive vibes (not to forget his upcoming event "Voyager 1" on Saturday March 21st).

Anyways enough with the rambling... Come check out the event if you happen to be in town. I know for sure its gonna be a really good party, with positive vibes, and great energy. Here's the info:

--- Thursday March 19th, 2009 ---

DJs:

> 10:00- 12:30..... Animaltek
--- (Omnitribe/ Treibstoff/ Resopal/ Living- Russia/ NYC)

> 12:30- 1:30...... Knob (Alladin Group- JP/ NY)

> 1:30- 2:30....... Pixel - (Hommega - Israel)
------------------Special set preview of Voyager 1 !!!

> 2:30- 4:30....... Muktisvara (TDC Records- Russia/NYC)
--- Tag team set & 1st appearence @ Psycheground

Decoration by Dreamcatchers

2 for 1 drinks from 10:00-11:00pm.
party is from- 10pm - 4:30am

@ Sullivan Room, New York City
http://www.sullivanroom.com
218 Sullivan St (between Bleecker and West 3rd St, 2 blocks east of 6th Ave)

General Admission: $10.00
RSVP to psycheground@yahoo.com for $5.00 guestlist
OR contact me directly (914)-473-4802

Subway: A, B, C, D, E, F, or V trains to "W 4 St - Wash Sq"

21+ with ID

In Depth Review of March 13th Alladin Party @ Club Exit BK

2009-03-17T23:41:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since I went out to a proper Psytrance party, due to the overload of school, work, and life in general. The weather was perfect, and simply felt really great to get out, just as mid term exams finished, and I started my spring break :)

(Club Exit without any Decoration- click 2 enlarge)

I got to Club Exit in Greenpoint Brooklyn around 12:30am, and was greeted by several of my fellow Indian friends. We had a nice chat, as I was really tempted by the thumping bass that leaked through from the walls of the club. As usual, Exit was decked out in full UV decoration & back drops. As I entered the club, I was quite surprised to see my long time friend & DJ, Knob on the decks. He hardly plays at the beginning of parties, but was playing some really groovy tunes from his new project called Sublex. A little on the darker side, pacing around 135bpm, but not too deep or bright. Just perfect for the time of the night, as the dance floor was slowly filling up, and had everyone getting into the groove.

Andromeda then came on to play some brighter progressive psytrance. He had some quality tracks, really beautiful, to create a nice story as he got the entire dance floor into trance mode. Then came Orbit (Elnadiv and Knob) the organizers for Alladin Project. Needless to say, they droped their usual bombs after bomb, as they rocked the entire dance floor. Next up was the much anticipated Digital Talk. He was good, but I expected much more from him, since he is one of the most sought after acts in the scene these days.

Then came my climax of the night- Mad Maxx of Phantasm Records . I really liked his last album Afterworld, and was looking forward to hearing him play, as I too have played several of his tracks at my own previous gigs and had the crowd going. As he got up into the DJ booth, and started his set with a remixed version of the track Edge of Time, he simply turned the energy level of the dance floor up several knots. By the third track of his set, everyone was dancing like crazy, and not a single soul stood still on the dance floor. Mad Maxx's song selection was perfect, every track on point, and simply created smiles on everyone's faces. His music was spiritual, yet powerful & top quality production. Its been a while that a DJ/artist made me dance, and wouldn't let me stop.

(picture courtesy of Dogus A)

The party ended on a very positive note with Chromosome's short but yet smooth set. From everyone's facial expression, they wanted more, and didn't want the party to end. But it was past 6am, and the main speakers were turned down, as the DJ had no choice but to slowly kill the music. The lights came on as security slowly started to kick people out... Overall, people seemed to be very satisfied with the outcome of this party. My feet & legs were sore, but it was totally worth it. Thanx to everyone who came out to this party by bringing their positive energy and vibes to the dance floor. Also, to the DJs & artists who were involved, and last but not least to the Alladin Crew. Next Alladin party is scheduled for the April 11th.

New York psytrance events this week...

2009-03-11T18:41:00.000-07:00

So this past week had been super crazy with midterm exams & papers to write for all of my classes. Thats why, I obviously stayed home and missed the party from last week's YogiBogeyBox & TDC party... However, I heard there was quite a nice turnout, and people seemed to have enjoyed the event.

Here's a quick video on what it looked like:

This coming Friday March 13th, there will be another Psytrance party, this time held by Alladin Project. They will have the party at the usual Club Exit in Greenpoint Brooklyn.
The lineup looks massive with 4 live acts and 5 other DJs. Anyone interested in attending the party should shoot me a message & I will put you on my guestlist.

http://www.alladinproject.net/

Here are some links to check out the artists music & info:

- Digital Talk- www.myspace.com/digitaltalk
- Andromeda- www.myspace.com/andromedamusicnet
- Chromosome- www.myspace.com/chromosomemusicnet
- Mad Max- www.myspace.com/madmaxxspace

This Saturday- March 7th, 2009... YBB & TDC

2009-03-04T23:33:00.000-08:00

This coming Saturday March 7th, Yogi Bogey Box & Trance Dance Company come together once again for another unique gathering. This one being highlighted by an Israeli legend and an act from Brazil who will surely warm up the dance floor.

Main stage DJs:

STEREOGRAPHIC - Discovaley, Manic dragon / BRAZIL
http://www.myspace.com/stereographicmusic
*** First US appearance + speacial extended LIVE set ***

The project Stereographic is carried out by the musician André Santana Camargos. His career is highlighted by playing some of the largest festivals in the world, including Universo Paralelo and full MOON festival. Anfré has been a psytrance producer since 2001, and his project gained more shape and quality in 2004. Stereographic was one of the first producers of underground music in Brazil and in AMERICA. His music is played by a large number of respectable djs around the world. The style can be defined in 2 lines: Stereographic side a- full on night high-tech , fat bass, deep atmospheres and melodies - and Stereographic side b -night, dark, harder sound, also with fat bass, efx and obscure atmospheres. We will be showered with tastes of both projects ...

DARK SOHO - Warp Brain, Alchemy, B.N.E / ISRAEL
http://www.myspace.com/darksoho

Dark Soho are Sagiv Boxer, Elram Boxer and Lev, a psychedelic trance band originally from Haifa, Israel. The name Dark Soho comes from SOHO, the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory. Being legends in the scene, Dark Soho has beuilt a reputation for quality sound and a very unique performances. Dark Soho have three albums out, Sun Spot, 2000 (on BNE and Sphere), Combustion, 2002 and Light In The Dark, 2004, (on Alchemy rec). On Dark Soho’s latest album, Light In The Dark, they collaborated with the world renown sitar virtuoso, Anoushka Shankar. The album Light in the Dark has taken Dark Soho in a new direction, winning them new fans with their original full on-rock sound.

DJ NIKI - Mighty Quinn / Japan
http://www.mightyquinnrecords.com

Dj Niki is a co-founder and owner of Tokyo based psychedlic trance label Mighty Quinn Records. Together with his partner Toshi they have released two well recognized and respected compilations and now working on future releases. Dj Niki has been Djing since 2004 and had played at numerous psychdelik partys around Japan. Sharing the decks with artists such as Penta, Osom, Jahbo, Kindzadza, Parus, Polyphonia, Dejan and Jellyheadz and many more, Dj Niki has aquired a full length and power collection of music and presents a complete psychedlik story to the dancer on the floor. His sets are described to be perfect for any time of the party and are usually smooth, rhythmic, mysterious and create a perfect atmosphere for body and mind. Trancers and dancers are usually put in a happy, easy going, relaxed state of mind.

NOMOLOS - Zenon / USA, ISRAEL
http://www.myspace.com/thenomolos

Nomolos AKA Yair Solomon, Currently based in NYC, is the Zenon Records representation in Israel. He specializes in the Zenon style of dark mystical minimal to grinding, experimental progressive. Some of his favorite acts include Krumleur, Sensient, Cujorius One, Mantik, Opsis and Igneous Sauria to name a few. He has performed in the UK, Australia, USA, India, Nepal and of course Isreal, supporting many fine acts including Sun Control Species, Perfect Stranger, Ticon, Pena, Koxbox, Hujaboy and many more. Lately Nomolos has been exploring Dubstep, and the more abstract sides of the Minimal Techno world and is incorporating these fresh sounds in to his DJ sets enhancing these deep musical journeys.

ENERTOPIA - Warp Brain Records, GeoIsrael, Krembo / Israel, Argentina
http://www.myspace.com/enertopiapsy

Emiliano Solazzi Griminger (Moti Griminger) was born in December of 1974 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Growing up in Israel, In 1992, Emiliano hooked up with Ziv Matushka, another pioneer in the Israeli electronic music scene and, together, they started to experiment with more Industrial music and eventually writing Goa and Psy trance. Ziv joined P.Cok, and Emiliano continued his project as ENERTOPIA. The first single by Enertopia was released in 1996 by B.N.E Israel in a compilation called DESTINATION ISRAEL, and after a few months he was signed by KREMBO records. Moti has released many tracks throughout the past 15 years, and is now running an east coast label: Warp Brain Rec.

PROGRESS CHILL - TDC, YogiBogeyBox / USA
http://www.iprogress.us

With a growing acclaim for quality live acts, Yuri Vaskevich, has been a regular at these events and with a late night, or better put an dearly morning event, it was only natural that we end this gathering amidst some mazmerizing sounds. Anyone who was around for the KoxBox/ Ocelot party will surely remember the early morning tunes that carried us off.

2nd Stage DJs

* Tony Unorthodox - 28th Day / NYC

* Gui"aum"etriX - Gaian Mind / NYC

* Andrey K - Polarlight / NYC

* Fumi - Yogi Bogey Box / NYC

Be ready for a special visually stimulating atmosphere
by the deco crews of TDC and YogiBogeyBox as well as
new and special Visual projections by VJ Plasmo !!!!

18 to enter 21 to drink with valid ID
Doors open@ 11PM- going till 8AM

Tickets:
$30 @ the door
$25 in advance @ http://www.yogibogeybox.org

Party Location:

The Hook (formerly Hello BK)
18 Commerce Street
Brooklyn, NY

Brief History of the PsYcHeDeLiC Trance Scene in New York.

2009-03-04T20:23:00.000-08:00

I still remember the first Psychedelic Trance party that I went to in New York to this day...
It was by the legendary SYNTHETIC SADHUS @ the Amazura Ballroom in Queens NY in November of 2000. 　At the time, I was into the techno, hard trance, and Drum & Bass scene, and did not know much about the psytrance scene nor the music. The headliners for the event were: Hallucinogen, Raja Ram, Dimitri and Paul Taylor. 　All whom are well respected and active artists in the scene still to this day.

(Dimitri Nakov playing @ the Synthetic Sadhus party- click pic for full view)

I was shocked when I set foot into the venue to see the massive Ballroom decked out with never seen tripped out psychedelic UV deco & backdrops. It was as if I had walked into another dimensional world, and was simply blown away. Not only was the decoration and the vibe of the party top notch, but it was the music that put the icing on top of the experience. Since that day, my heart has been sold to Psytrance, and never looked back...

(HALLUCINOGEN playing his Live set from the actual party)

The Psychedelic Trance Scene in New York was at its peak around 2001-2002, where the bigger parties attracted anywhere from 500-2000 people per event. The two major organizations that threw these gatherings were Synthetic Sadhus and TSUNAMI. Both of these organizations have closed their doors since, as smaller events still take place on a regular basis. Organizers that still take an active roll in the scene today are: Alladin Project, TDC, Dreamcatcher aka Psycheground, 28th Day, Yogi Bogey Box, Spectra, Omni Tribe, Repsychle and Psybotik (sorry if I've forgotten any other groups). Many groups have come and gone over the years, as well as newer groups seem to pop up once in a while...

Since most parties are usually thrown in clubs in or around Manhattan, it takes away much of the vibe from what it should be, compared to the open air (out door) festivals in other countries. However, there are outdoor festivals and parties in New York during the summer time that usually attracts a larger crowd than the usual club events. Also the laws in NY make it difficult to throw these events, due to the Rave Act that was passed in 2003. Ever since, organizing events became difficult for promoters and organizers, but we still strive to keep it alive...

The Psytrance scene attracts a divrese mix of audience from different cultural backgrounds, such as Israelis, Russians, Japanese, Brazilians, Indians, and Eastern Europeans. You will not find a diverse cultural crowd in any other club/party in the city... I simply believe we need more Americans to join the scene to make it grow... As a result, the scene in New York has been underground, and will stay that way unless changes are made.

Psychedelic Trance a.k.a. Psytrance

2009-02-23T20:43:00.000-08:00

Recently I've gotten several questions from my Viral marketing classmates about what Psychedelic Trance a.k.a. Psytrance is?! I was totally surprised since Purchase College is a Music/ Art Institute, but it seems as if most of the students don't know about Psytrance, or haven't even heard of it. Electronic Dance Music in general is huge in Europe, Asia, South America, and basically everywhere else BUT the U.S... Rock & Hip Hop still seems to dominate the mainstream, but I know there's a wave of Dance music that's coming sooner or later. Why?! I'll explain that in my future blog...

Well its really hard to explain Psytrance in just a few sentences because you really need to hear it on a proper sound-system, and feel it with your body and soul to truly understand it. Well in a few words, its a form of electronic music usually created with layers of synthetic melodies and riffs, with pounding kicks and bass lines. Some who don't know about it may judge it as Techno music, or even rave parties, but it is NOT!!! Its more than just a genre of music, but for many a spiritual experience, a life style, a culture, and a movement.

Take a look at this short documentary about Psytrance. I think you'll get a better understanding of Psychedelic Trance than my explanation...

A few more videos for your reference... Some of the pioneers of the scene. I believe many Psytrance enthusiasts wouldn't consider them psychedelic (anymore), but this is for those who don't know about Psytrance :p Afterall, after 10 years, they are still rocking dance floors across the globe.

Infected Mushroom

GMS- Theme from the movie "Requem for a Dream"

Skazi

First Blog

2009-02-18T20:01:00.000-08:00

Ok. So I've been quite reluctant to start this blog for a few reasons. Why? I'll mention that in the near future. But I don't have any choice at this point, since its mandatory in my Viral Marketing Class. The professors are super cool, and what we learn is real good stuff. I know I have a slow start, but hope to keep this blog & twitter going.

Oh, by the way I have a gig tomorrow night, February 19th @ Sullivan Room.
The Party's name is Psycheground, and the music is Psytrance (Psychedelic Trance).
If anyone is interested, mention my name at the door, and you'll get a reduced entrance fee.
Contact me for more info.