Despite my huge affection for electronic music as an adult, I was never a raver as a teenager, and stuck to my basement hardcore punk shows and “rap music” cassette tapes back in the day. In fact, I only went to one big outdoor rave in the late ’90s, to see what all the fuss was about, and a few warehouse squat raves in the U.K., again as a curious observer more than anything. For the most part, I do my camping alone with a fishing rod, but from a cultural standpoint, I definitely appreciate the phenomenon. And as a dance music writer, I’d be remiss not to shout out what is, from all trustworthy accounts, the biggest, bestest, craziest and most well-organized outdoor rave in the province, Éclipse, which runs from this Friday afternoon till sometime Monday on the riverside at Bonnet Rouge in Ste-Thérèse-de-la-Gatineau. They’ve got an impressive line-up of DJs, live performers, visual artists, incredible set designers, interactive technologies, meditation sessions and other such ambitious elements planned for what should be an amazing weekend for everyone involved. Check out eclipsefestival.com.
Tireless proponent of big, international beats from cumbia to kuduro to baile funk, Pop Montreal collaborator, Masala radio show host, Boomboxx impresario, one of the main brains behind the Bridgeburner series and about 100 other things, Guillaume Decouflet, aka Khiasma, has been an absolute one-man cultural powerhouse in the Montreal music scene, and has consistently kept open-minded listeners aware of developments outside the echo chamber of Western club culture. Without putting too fine a point on it, the Hogtown rivalry will get one hell of a lot harder when he moves to Toronto this month. All that to say, there will be a going away jam at Zoobizarre on Friday night, commemorating all the incredible things he’s done for the local scene, featuring performances, DJ sets and toasts by friends and crew.
GOOD LUCK, HOMIE! jack.oatmon@gmail.com
