Swiss Report

Once upon a time...

Author: Aruna
Date: Jun 26, 2003
Views: 3147

Swiss Report

Once upon a time...



... there was a tiny little country in the middle of Europe. A movement emerged in the nineties which was never seen before. It nearly seemed as if this small spot earth overslept the wild sixties and seventies and wanted to catch up with everything it missed at that time. Suddenly everyone seemed to be on a journey to search something new, they all were on this trip which guaranteed something marvelous and ultimate.



Travelers brought their impressions home and there was an extense dancing and celebrating outside as if it was at the beach in Goa or Thailand. More and more parties took place in fields, forests or in castle ruins. The common experience was indescribable and took many people into its spell. The movement grew and grew and parties, DJ‘s and communities shot like mushrooms from the ground. Fairies, trolles, gnomes and hobbits came out of all their hiding places and there was great joy and peaceful experiences.

As we know light throws also shade, and this slowly became apparent in many different forms. The whole thing started to lose its thrill by the huge number of events. Each weekend you could choose between approximately a dozen of different parties. An advantage of course, you can follow your preferences and go to a sweet little party in the forest or to a big event with a international lineup.

But sometimes, a scene is floating strange blooms. It gets split somehow and this whole bunch of hippies sometimes don’t really seem to be as tolerant as you thought. A distance starts to develop between progressive listeners and classic lovers and – to express it a bit exaggeratedly – if the chai does not taste as it does in Arambol, the party organizers get badly criticized.



To get an overview of feelings and tendencies in my country, I started an inquiry on the most well-known web platform of Switzerland, . I wanted to know how the so-called Goa scene is seen, their changes and where it probably will go. It was really exciting to read all these received statements and I would like to say a big THANX to all who were participating. J

Remarkably in all these mails the big love is speaking out of them which connects the writers at this movement. This has not changed. Some people think the spirit is lost and gone. But what is „spirit“? Isn’t it the human being who creates the spirit of something with thoughts and feelings? If this spirit seems to be gone then probably the attitude of people changed.

Some would like to reduce the changes in the scene by changes in drug consumption. They say that in former times, there were more hallucinogen substances consumed and today more substances which keep you up and dancing.



A recurring discussion is the question about this „ commerce/non-commerce“-thing which sometimes can not be taken really seriously. Some would like to have parties where everything is for free - entrance, bowle and an open bar - but with a great international lineup and an expensive decoration. Sometimes it seems that there is awareness missing about where a budget for a satisfying event can go and how much energy it takes to make it happen.

Another widespread phenomenon is the one that probably moves humans since ancient times: the past and the future, tradition vs. changing times. Some still hang on the old and golden past, they miss former times and its atmosphere. Others are looking forward, the term „Goa“ does not really exist longer in their minds, they are having fun, flowing with the change, indulging into the full spectrum of life in general, the entire sound spectrum and flow of life which can not be stopped anyway, fortunately... J



Besides reporting this general tendency, we also want to turn to some facts. If you are talking about the so-called “Goa scene Switzerland“ very soon you will hit , the website already mentioned, which is operated and maintained by unselfish idealists for many years now. The agenda is always full, fliers including pinboards are collected here and you can get amused by reading reports after the parties.

There is a new Link-Database on the starting site which certainly will get developed. From here you get to many branches of the Swiss Goa tree and spend many hours by surfing through the whole bunch of fruits which it offers.

Every weekend thousands of dancers get their information in the announcements of interzone, where their favorite DJ plays and where all these sound and decoration artists, chai cooks and all their friends will be found.



The most events take place in the German part of Switzerland, we could say that the region between Berne, Basel and Zurich is our „Golden Triangle“. Not so often, but also regularly you will find parties in the French and Italian area. In summer time there is smoke rising from many fires in forests and fields and in winter time the club scene becomes stronger again. But there is an increasing open air trend noticeable in the last couple of years also in winter time. Unforgettable the snow party about two years ago where strong rainfall transformed snow into ice and the area became an enormous ice-skating field. J

The pool of organizers and DJ’s is wide. It is not really easy in Switzerland for musicians, sound artists and labels anyway and today maybe even a bit harder. There are two labels worth mentioning here: Traktor Schallabor and Interzone Records, which inspire with innovative work and with their powerful label parties in past autumn. Both, and just released fresh new material.



Producers could be listed in great numbers, it sometimes seems as if there is a studio hidden in each third cellar, just behind the homegrown supplies. To those which are not mentioned here, remember: we love you all J !!! Internationally in demand are PASTE, , and Silent Sphere (Medium Rec.), very cool guys with great creative energies in their souls. My personal bet for the future are Sven Snug and V-Tunes, watch out!!

And of course, books could be filled by telling you of all these DJ’s, organizers, parties and so on... However, it might be interesting what will happen to the ZOOM, the huge festival which took place after the Streetparade in Zurich many years now. After ZOOM sank in the mud last year, future became uncertain. Might there be luck to this unique gathering and its organizers, the icons of the Swiss party scene.



My highlight of the past festival summer was the Hallucination Festival of Synthetic Vibes, , organized with a lot of love and enthusiasm and professionalism, a great event in the middle of our marvelous mountain world which hopefully finds its repetition next summer... and many others too!

Well... there is a lot of love and light! And even if winter is long, it is anything else but cold in this tiny little country, in the middle of Europe...

And certainly we all dance into eternity!



J
Aruna





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