Earthdance Benefit Night @ Colonial Hotel, Melbourne (12/10/02)
As I entered the Colonial Hotel, I knew I was in for a good night. The stairs leading up were lit by candles and surrounded by decorations. The first room I approached is commonly known as the ‘chill out room’ and was decked out in comfy couches, warm lighting, nice beats and friendly people. I then ventured higher up and found the second room, which was already pumping the sounds of Benza. I made my way to bar for a drink and then continued my journey through a hallway, filled with mystical art and decoration, that led me to the third and final room. This was the main room, which was much bigger and much more ventilated.
I unfortunately missed the opening ceremony of harmonic chanting Monks but heard they were something special. I did however catch the “flower mimers”, who chanted and meditated with incense and flowers. The crowd was infatuated with their performance, especially when they handed out flowers to the select few, I was lucky enough to be given one.
Truthfully, I spent most of my night in the smaller and hotter room. The music there was uplifting and got people up and dancing like mad. However, Mark Allen was the exception, with an interesting set of hard, rare grooves he had the crowd pumping. Mark Allen lived up to his reputation as one of the world’s greatest uplifting, psychedelic Djs. Billy the Kid and Nirav played an excellent set together along with the usual gang, Ozzy, and Morpheus. Glow sticks and hands in the air contributed to the great atmosphere.
This worldwide party was definitely a night to remember, with all proceeds going to a good cause. With a combination of great music, dance, technology and spirituality, this Earthdance event was a definite success.
