Before January last year, I hardly knew much about rave parties, doof, psytrance and so on; until I attended Rainbow Serpent Music festival on a whim.
Some might say I was meant to; it sure did feel like I was in the right place at the right time. In many ways the lifestyle that Rainbow encompasses speaks to all of us who are on a search for greater humility and humanity in our lives; something I did not expect to encounter when I pictured what a bush-doof on steroids might be like. Even more so, the community and attitudes that surround the festival are futuristic and promising to our potentiality as a people; not to mention infectious.
I had been waiting anxiously for months to attend Saturday’s mini-Rainbow at Ceres environmental park. Ceres of course is the obvious choice, and though it seemed like mother nature was preparing for a storm, the clouds quickly dispersed and the sun shone down on the happy people of the Rainbow Gathering. The beautiful surrounding of the environmental park was an especially sweet change to the concrete nature of most gigs I attend.
When you begin entering this world, you quickly realise that there are those whom are learned in the art of celebration; and those like me – who are diving in as beginners with an open heart and a lot to learn. But not once do you feel uncomfortable, unwelcome or disengaged. In fact, quite the opposite happens and you realise there are so many boundary pushing every-day awesome somebody’s that you just haven’t met yet. All you have to do is embrace it.
With one stage overlooking the river and a second engulfing the Ceres Café, there was no shortage of tunes and party vibes to choose from. I tried my best to see as many sets as possible; of course a near impossible feat at a Rainbow event. Among the DJs and heroes of the day were Unseen Dimensions who forced his epic psytrance to bang with beat of my heart; one of my favourites of the day. Melbourne’s U-One with more of a crossed genre vibe had the place groovin’; drawing from worldy influences. Jamie Stevens, also from Melbourne brought a kind of beauty with his gift; providing driving beats with uplifting elements and a prettiness in his interpretations. Hypnagog was wild, creative and unpredictable; absolutely warping my mind; futuristically and defiantly. Griff full of heart and soul; brought bass-driven beats with a chill and energy dedicated to happiness. Pr-Incest (San-Fran) combined chill-bassy-fun beats with collections of vocal sampling and obvious earthy and roots influences and ill. Gates who was bangin’; bringing quality dynamic beats with influences from everywhere; even hip-hop; and driving them home with an eclectic electronic empire of epic proportions; failing only to disappoint.
On the dance floors at both stages there were the usual colours of the Rainbow celebratory costumes, from animals to gypsies to I-don’t-know-whatsy’s. What I did know is that I feel re-charged with an underlying belief in community and a satisfaction with my place in the world.
BY FRANNY B
Loved: Costumes.
Hated: That I couldn’t attend the after-party.
Drank: Cider.
