Tecknogecko and Immerse get inthemash at Advent*jah!!

By Nikki Blunt and Kat Loughrey

Aaaaah Advent*jah – you either love it or hate it, eagerly await it or absolutely dread it! Either way it’s hard to deny the fact that this event has become an institution within dance culture in Brisbane.

Regular ravers to Advent*jah will have noticed, like we have, the immense change in this bi-annual event over the years in a variety of ways – be it the type of people that attend, the format, DJs, increased variety of genres or simply the sound!

For many the end of Advent*jah would be a very unfortunate occurrence. It has opened up the dance scene to many who would never have had access before – to the underage, the mainstream listeners and numerous first-timers. The RNA Showgrounds has continually provided a safe haven for ravers to let loose and become one with the music – how unfortunate it is that this is possibly all coming to an end.

On this note, Nikki and I were determined to have a mad and crazy one anyway, so here you go – here is Easter Advent*jah through this inseparable duo’s eyes…

As the ravers flocked from far and wide, the beats had started pumping! For some, this was their first Advent*jah and others had lost count of how many that they had been to. Whether this was your first, last or one of many Advent*jah festivals with names like Karim, Dave Randall, Dave Lea, Paul Mac, Mark Sherry, Agnelli and Nelson, Jody Wisternoff, Pete Wardman, Andy Passman, Kevin Energy and stacks more, it looked to be an awesome night!

For weeks coming up to Easter long weekend, outfits had been changed and re-planned, rave paraphernalia bought, and minds focused on which tunes we couldn’t wait to hear and which DJs we were eager to see! So by the time of our arrival at 7.40pm – stating that Nikki and I were pumped is an understatement! Armed with water spray bottle, backpacks, rave bracelets, gum and cool tops that we had handmade ourselves – “Tecknogecko” and “immerse” had finally entered the Advent*jah!

At an event of this size there is so much to do and so much to see, so many friends to run in to and so many new friends to be made. Not wanting to miss any of the action, we charged on in. With only three of the rooms open we decided that the best plan of action was to take a look around and soak up the atmosphere. People were arriving in herds and everyone was in high spirits. Within half an hour the place was buzzing with excited ravers eager to kick of their evening with a bang!

For these ravers, the night was planned to kick off in the Panthenon where Baby Gee was supposed to start the fun at 8pm. Arriving in the room to find the organisers still setting up and Baby Gee no where in sight, we felt disappointed and instead ventured into the hardcore-tekno room where Fraktour was whipping up a fast paced frenzy. The grandstand in this room was already full and the dance floor was definitely grooving. We both exchanged silly grins, both obviously feeling the excitement of the Advent*jah vibe and we were excited about what was yet to come…

We decided to go back to the Panthenon to find out if everything was up and going. It was indeed. It was about 8.45 and the room was quickly filling up. Firstly, we were impressed by the visuals and lasers (especially Kat!), considering that last December Adven*jah there was disappointingly no lasers (*Kat frowns*). Also we noted that you could not stand right in front of the speakers or the stage, it had been fenced off! Shame! And the sound was definitely quieter and more muffled than last time. We then noticed that the DJ in control, however, was not Baby Gee (*Nikki frowns*). Moving closer so we could get a look at who was behind the decks we realised it was none other than Kevin Energy. Confusion set in. He wasn’t due to start spinning for another 15 minutes, what had happened and where the hell was Baby Gee? Did we miss Baby Gee? Was he moved to a different time slot? Was he removed from the line up and we just didn’t know about it? Or did he actually play and we were just totally deluded? We mu

Checking the watch it was time to bust a move and make tracks for the progressive room to check out our favourite local DJ, Cosmo Cater! Although progressive isn’t really our thing, Kat and I were there more for support than anything else, however we were confused as to why Cosmo was in the progressive room as we didn’t think he was a progressive DJ [Maybe the fact that he’s played at some of Brisbane’s biggest progressive events and supported international and interstate progressive DJs and acts such as Chicane, Satoshi Tomiie, Kasey Taylor and Chris Fresh to name a few, would put him in the progressive room – Ed]! As soon as he started the room really picked up. After a short boogie, we wandered in and out of this room for about an hour and every time we came back in Cosmo had picked up the pace a little bit more – definitely bangin’! Asking the punters what they thought, it was of general consensus that this was the most stomping set that a lot of us had ever heard him play. Well done Cosmo!

By the end of Cosmo’s set Nikki and I felt like being social. We wandered around for a little while observing what was going on around us, and also popped our heads into a few of the other rooms. Some rooms were more happening than others but one thing was becoming clear. We were both of the opinion that the sound systems in all of the rooms were not of the best quality. I (Nikki) decided to find out what others thought about this and asked around. Most people thought the same thing. Most were attributing it to the fact that the rooms were just huge tin sheds and just accepted it for what it was. The sound was definitely lower and this could be due to the noise complaints that the last few Advent*jah’s had received more than anything else.

Despite this everyone was doing their best to uphold the Advent*jah spirit. The whole place was an explosion of colour and smiles. The majority of people were decked out in bright colours and were carrying glowsticks smiling with their buddies as they ran from room to room. If nothing else stood out on this night, it was that everyone was really trying their best to have a great time and make the most of this event. Advent*jah had always attracted a niche crowd and tonight was no different. It was like the punters were one big family; treating the event, and each other with the respect that was deserved. Advent*jah is a night where DJ’s and fans become one and unite for the same reason: to pay tribute to the music! That was definitely the vibe that was going around at this Advent*jah, which is exactly the way that it should be. It definitely felt cosier than previous Advent*jahs had.

The humidity by this stage had reached proportional levels, causing everyone to think that it might rain – typical for the Easter Advent*jah. It definitely affected the crowd as breaks were required for those deep in the depths of the main rooms; then it just started to rain, and rain, and pour! It wasn’t a burden for us ravers though (only the done-up girls!), it just helped us to cool off!

By now 11pm had rolled around and we had to get our butts into gear. Nikki and I weren’t sure who we wanted to see more, Andy Passman or Mark Sherry, so I (Nikki) had decided to split the hour in half. First up Andy Passman. For some reason Passman had been put in the progressive room; this seemed to confuse some, including us as most people were under the impression that Passman played trance. In the progressive room or not, it was trance that he played! And how we loved it! Pumping out epic trance picking up the pace with every track. Somehow we got lost in the music and ended up staying for Passman’s entire set, missing out on Mark Sherry. We weren’t disappointed though as we were really impressed with what Passman had thrown at us!

We now entered every reviewers nightmare – Chaotic Clashes! The next hour and a half was jam packed. Too many DJ’s and not enough time to see them all (that’s a problem you have if you like more than one genre!) Why is it that EVERY Advent*jah it appears that the organisers have made little or no consideration in the clashes and flow of the line-up eh?

We ran in and out of the Panthenon several times however the heat in there was building up and up and more often than not we found ourselves wandering out to the Ravebreak chillout tent to catch our breath. The inseparable duo DID become separated numerous times through this period of time – both looking for different tunes, vibes, people and feelings. The time passed too quickly as well. Catching bits of Thief, Karim and Dave Randall all three fall under the same banner – BANGIN! The Panthenon was really pumping and the kiddies were moving with such energy that it exhausted me to just watch! Oh and the lasers…MAGIC!

Although neither Kat nor I made it to see Paul Mac or the Resin Dogs, we were informed by numerous people that both put on a great show, which we should have seen. Oh well, sorry, the Panthenon was calling…

Usually neither of us venture into the Ravebreak Chillout Tent as we usually find it too slow (who chills out anyway? K). So we were impressed to see the last improvements of the tent. Now the word ‘tent’ should be used loosely here, because once you enter Ravebreak it definitely was no tent! The dcor was amazing, it was like you stepped into a cool club! Done-out in all white, looking extremely funky with beanbags! The only problem with this room was there wasn’t enough room to move hopefully next time they can have a bigger venue. Also the house that was being played was so great to groove to – I nearly didn’t want to leave – trusty Nikki pulled me out to keep on goingI(No time chill outItoo much to see! N.) Well done to the DJs in this room for putting on a top show as well as a big hand to the Ravebreak team for a fab room to stop and breathe for a moment or two (*clap clap*)!

Moving on to check out some Paul Holden action in the hardcore-tekno room only to be met with disappointment, again. Holden wasn’t any where to be seen. Deciding not to linger, we continued on.

Pete Wardman was up next, and the last of the acts for the Panthenon. The room was full, a lot of people seemed to want to catch a bit of Wardman and the crowd seemed to be getting what they wanted: Hard and fast beats. After about fifteen minutes though, we decided that we’d like to groove to something slightly slower. Feeling satisfied that we’d seen enough to appreciate the greatness that is Pete Wardman we said our good-byes to the hard house kiddies and off we went. As soon as we turned to leave we were hastily stopped in our tracks by the infamous intro of ‘Dreams’ by Miss Shiva. Those with glowsticks waved them vigorously in appreciation and feet all round us were stompin! At the end of Miss Shiva we waved goodbye to our hard house brothers and sisters and made way for something a little slower.

It was now about 3.30 in the morning. Until now, with the exception of Miss Shiva, neither of us had really heard any tracks that we really wanted or had expected to hear. On a whole the music all round was great and was going down well with the punters but we hadn’t heard any tracks that stood out in our minds, until now. Agnelli and Nelson entered the arena fashionably late; this seemed to be happening a lot this evening. What was going on, why were all the DJ’s showing up late to their sets or not even showing up at all?

Anyway. In came Agnelli and Nelson and they pumped out a classic set! They played track after track that everyone around me got excited. They had everyone dancing and everyone cheering. They played a version of their classic ‘Everyday’ that was accepted fantastically by the crowd, especially us as we stomped it out up on the grandstand! Kat and I absolutely lost it! Also another track that they played that stands out in my memory was Cosmic Gate’s ‘Exploration of Space’. They also pumped out their famous tracks ‘Hudson Street’ and ‘Embrace’. By the end of their set, most of the other rooms had been shut down and people were streaming in. The trance room was now full of punters soaking up what Agnelli and Nelson had to give. It is usually this time of the morning that punters start to unwind and start to slow down, but Agnelli and Nelson did a fine job of keeping everyone wound up.

At 6am in the morning was the last of the internationals, Dave Lea. Some argued that this was a really bad time slot for an international DJ to appear, as it was at the end of the event and a lot of people had gone home. We personally had no problem with it (remember DJ Scot Project at 6am last Advent*jah?), you’re soft if you have gone home by now! Nevertheless, Dave Lea ripped it up and gave those who were brave enough to stay quite a set! He played for an hour somehow managed to get pretty much the whole shed dancing. We were quite impressed, especially when a remix of ‘Age of Love’ was dropped. However, by the time he had finished and local legend Jen-e had stepped up, our crew had decided that enough was enough and it was time to make tracks…much to Kat’s dismay! (I would like to mention here, that Kat is one party kitty and dragging her out of the arena was quite a difficult task indeed! – N)

Alas, that was the end of another Advent*jah. All in all it was an excellent night, there were however a few things that we feel warrant a mention.

For those who are wondering why several DJ’s showed up late to their sets we were personally informed by Mr. Paul Holden himself that the reason that he and Agnelli and Nelson were late was because their private Lear jet that was to bring them from Sydney, was late. As for Baby Gee, who knows!?

To finish on a bright note though, the visuals that were in almost every room were spectacular and the lasers in the hard house room absolutely went off! Two very big thumbs up!

So what is the future for Advent*jah? As mentioned earlier, this was supposedly the last one at the RNA Showgrounds! So where to next? We’ll have to wait and see what the Advent*jah crew have in store for us all in December. Mmmm we’re already planning our outfits for the next event…

On a sad note, it is very sad that several people suffered from drug overdoses. Unfortunately, this is a side of our culture that pulls us down in the eyes of the public. So please play and rave safe kiddies and don’t allow this to happen again!

P.L.U.R

Nikki and Kat