Template:India 2009
From Psychedelic-Traveller
[2009] Enchanted by electronica in INDIA
- written by Divyan Salotra
The year 2008 was quite colorful for us psyaddicts. It was characterized by a sine wave of happiness which created some havoc, but resulted in much revelry. There were good days and there were bad days. But most importantly, there were still so many days, when Peace, Love, Unity and Respect prevailed.
Despite the gloomy macroeconomic outlook of the world, Indian organizers managed to bring down major acts like Infected Mushroom, Astrix, Protoculture, Atomiculture and more. Not only does this mean that people from all strata of society appreciate psytrance, but it’s also an indication that India is a popular destination for established artists. In addition to the above, the second edition of the blazing Sunburn Festival in Goa invited stars like John 00’ Fleming and GMS, who received an astounding crowd response. Although most major gigs of 08’ weren’t very successful in monetary terms, Atomic Pulse and Pixel performed in 2009, which means organizers are still enthusiastic.
Psychedelic shamans from the motherland imprinted Indian footprints on foreign soil. Kerosene Club headlined trance events in Russia, Belgium and Israel and DJ Nick of Shivlink Records performed at the world’s largest psytrance festival - “Boom 2008”. Ma Faiza further escalated her successful career and feels that “Electronica is more popular than ever before, but it’s not too much about psytrance anymore.”
Psytrance seemed close to its terminus when the infamous ‘Technodrome’ bust occurred at the ‘72 Degrees East’ club in Mumbai. Technodrome doesn’t smoke or drink, but was jailed for over two months under the charges of drug peddling.
In 2008, we let go of our hopes and accepted a terrible truth. The magical, all night parties with fantastic decoration that happened at a different location every three nights are gone forever. However, it’s still a great place for the psychedelic traveler. One can feel the essence of psytrance embedded in the beautiful beaches of Goa and Chicago of 1200 Mics confirmed this - “the party scene of Goa was the icing on the cake, but the cake is Goa”. Clubs like Curlies, Paradiso and West End are places to dance, but do lookout for that occasional beach party.
The hills of Manali and the scenic lake in Pushkar (Rajasthan) are a must-visit if you’re looking for a silent, laid-back holiday surrounded by white skin. The backwaters of Kerala haven’t made much progress on the music front, but no psyaddict will regret visiting the lush landscape. The regularly hosted parties in Calcutta mostly witness sunrise, while Delhi and Mumbai are places where something psychedelic pops up every couple of months.
Some things can be explained, while others have to be experienced. The psychedelic magic of India is definitely the latter.
