Partying in this new age.

[jordanneke]

Yo peeps,

Just wondering about how clubs and stuff go down in the whole #metoo age.

Firstly I'd like to state that I aint no raving mysogonist, I can't even spell it. And neither am I some crazy mens rights activist.

Two things have me thinking.

Firstly, my mates who are middle aged straight dudes, who are pretty liberal and 'woke'. We are not bro's. They all went to Lovebox in LDN. Granted they were the oldest by a mile, but they were there to party nonetheless. They wanted to get down front to see Childish Gambino, and like all crowds, there was a bit of pushing to get a prime spot.

My mate (who's white) followed all the other lads to the front and brushed/ moved passed some girls on his way. They objected, he said sorry and tried to apologise. They were having none of it, and proceeded to chant'WHITE PRIVILEGE' at him.... and shut down any dialogue. He was pretty upset about it. They 'no-platformed' him.

I mean, as far as lads go, we are pretty enlightened, left wing, pro women socialist, but is this the way shit is headed?

Secondly, Jackmaster (the fucked up reprobate that he is) felt up some girls at a festival. I agree that shit is wrong. He apologised, the festival said he was a dick, and were quite rightly upset....

So reading on RA, in light of this, another festival were like 'Jackmaster does not represent what we stand for blah blah blah, so he won't be playing'. Which is fine, sticking to principles and all that. ...

However, upon checking out their promotion for the festival, all they have is photos of hot young girls with big boobs 'having a great time'. I mean, talk about irony.

Clubs are about sex drugs and rock n roll.... What's it like out there in this 'woke' age? Are things still the same? Is it better now?

[RWise]

Most big promotions and clubs will say anything to be put in the social justice spotlight to save face, when in reality its all because they dont want their name/brand being seen in a negative light, which will in the end, stop money going into their pockets...

I am all for calling out misogyny, harassment etc but im not for this hyper-sensitive age where you can literally get an online witch hunt called upon you for saying one wrong thing. This invokes a lot of people to create problems over things that aren't even a problem, which i think in return takes away some light on the actual serious problems at hand sometimes.

I dunno, its a weird day & age right now for the world, and music scene.

Usually at techno events i go to, the crowd is pretty chill. All be it, depending on the club you go to, as i mainly go out in London and you can get some real shitty crowds if you dont choose the right event/venue. But for the most part, a good techno night has a pretty diverse crowd, with most people there for the music and being pretty respectful from what ive gauged. However, it feels like theres a lot of 'man-shaming' going on at the moment, where men are automatically categorised into always being some sort of predator... Some of the double standards are rife..


Slight side track but funny little story that partly relates to the thread:
I remember i was at Printworks in London to see the likes of Surgeon, Dvs1, klock etc... I went to the bar to get a cup of water and when i was walking back through the crowd to get to my spot, i got bumped into very gently by someone dancing and a tiny bit of my water went on this girls arm. I wasnt in a very sober state to say the least but i loudly said into her ear 'Dont worry its water!' with a light hearted smile on my face. She said something back to me but i couldnt understand because it was so loud.. What i heard her saying to me was 'Do you know roy?'.. She asked this about 2 times and i didnt have a fucking clue so i basically looked at her confused and shrugged my shoulders with a 'I dont know?' look on me.... What she was really saying to me was 'are you going to say sorry....' Next thing i know, she slaps the cup of water in my face and aggressively pushes me just below my neck, which if she would of hit my neck, would of not been fucking fun... I stood there just completely confused, not knowing what to do, as part of me wanted to fucking go a-wall... I just walked away in the end as i could see a bunch of guys running to her rescue, not knowing or caring about what even happened. Plus its a rave, so no point trying to make shit a civil court. but the next day it had me thinking about if the tables were turned, if a girl was in my position and i lost my shit and assaulted her over such a small reason.

Makes you think..

[terryfalafel]

Some people are obnoxious. Not all, not most, but some. What they use as their platform to behave obnoxiously could be anything, but a minority of people will always misbehave / be outraged / have an inflated sense of entitlement.

Ignore them and move on is probably the best option I reckon.

[Amøbe]

Well the underground parties in Copenhagen are very "woke" (my girlfriend just taught me to say that) and sex positive. They are very vocal about being non-tolerant towards sexism, groping, unconsented sexual confrontations etc. Now you could fear that these parties would end up bland if you interpreted is at they forbid any kind of physical contact/communication, but quite the contrary has happened. People seem to be way more comfortable about being sexual, as some fear (I guess) has been eliminated, and you can feel safe.

The people who arrange these parties, have on numerous occasions said they want to school people in other ways of partying.

I have to say I am very positive about it!

(RWise that woman sounded really uncomfortable! Fuck that type of behaviour!)

[Mattias]

Yo peeps,

Just wondering about how clubs and stuff go down in the whole #metoo age.

Firstly I'd like to state that I aint no raving mysogonist, I can't even spell it. And neither am I some crazy mens rights activist.

Two things have me thinking.

Firstly, my mates who are middle aged straight dudes, who are pretty liberal and 'woke'. We are not bro's. They all went to Lovebox in LDN. Granted they were the oldest by a mile, but they were there to party nonetheless. They wanted to get down front to see Childish Gambino, and like all crowds, there was a bit of pushing to get a prime spot.

My mate (who's white) followed all the other lads to the front and brushed/ moved passed some girls on his way. They objected, he said sorry and tried to apologise. They were having none of it, and proceeded to chant'WHITE PRIVILEGE' at him.... and shut down any dialogue. He was pretty upset about it. They 'no-platformed' him.

I mean, as far as lads go, we are pretty enlightened, left wing, pro women socialist, but is this the way shit is headed?

Secondly, Jackmaster (the fucked up reprobate that he is) felt up some girls at a festival. I agree that shit is wrong. He apologised, the festival said he was a dick, and were quite rightly upset....

So reading on RA, in light of this, another festival were like 'Jackmaster does not represent what we stand for blah blah blah, so he won't be playing'. Which is fine, sticking to principles and all that. ...

However, upon checking out their promotion for the festival, all they have is photos of hot young girls with big boobs 'having a great time'. I mean, talk about irony.

Clubs are about sex drugs and rock n roll.... What's it like out there in this 'woke' age? Are things still the same? Is it better now?

That's the way things are headed yeah. Pretending to be "good" wearing the big badge of goodness just to be sure to to feel good about oneself as well as being on, what they perceive being the "winning side" is the new thing. Or wait, it was always, just different It's a polarized Society these days, no nuances. No rational logic. No understanding of context.

[chava]

If you find the term 'woke' to sound a bit religious or it is because it is.

[Amøbe]

If you find the term 'woke' to sound a bit religious or it is because it is.

I find it to be rather new agey in the sense that annoys me a bit.

EDIT: but then again, I don't care that much about it

[jordanneke]

Well the underground parties in Copenhagen are very "woke" (my girlfriend just taught me to say that) and sex positive. They are very vocal about being non-tolerant towards sexism, groping, unconsented sexual confrontations etc. Now you could fear that these parties would end up bland if you interpreted is at they forbid any kind of physical contact/communication, but quite the contrary has happened. People seem to be way more comfortable about being sexual, as some fear (I guess) has been eliminated, and you can feel safe.

The people who arrange these parties, have on numerous occasions said they want to school people in other ways of partying.

I have to say I am very positive about it!

Well, that sounds pretty good actually. I guess it ends up more like the vibe in a good gay club, and not the predatory shit hole that pick up places are.

[0dd]

Always good vibes in the gay comunity

[chava]

Well the underground parties in Copenhagen are very "woke" (my girlfriend just taught me to say that) and sex positive. They are very vocal about being non-tolerant towards sexism, groping, unconsented sexual confrontations etc. Now you could fear that these parties would end up bland if you interpreted is at they forbid any kind of physical contact/communication, but quite the contrary has happened. People seem to be way more comfortable about being sexual, as some fear (I guess) has been eliminated, and you can feel safe.

The people who arrange these parties, have on numerous occasions said they want to school people in other ways of partying.

I have to say I am very positive about it!

Well, that sounds pretty good actually. I guess it ends up more like the vibe in a good gay club, and not the predatory shit hole that pick up places are.

But weren't the (underground) techno/house party scene always pretty inclusive (for lack of a better word). I wonder where the need for woke disclaimers has come from? 'Mainstreaming' of techno? More alcohol intake compared to ecstacy? Is the Jackmaster thing standard behaviour? I really doubt that we live in a more 'sexist' culture than 20 years back, although it is worth thinking about if so.

[kertikristof]

What I saw recently in Budapest is very positive. I had no such experience at techno parties, like the very strange behavior of girl above. By the way I witnessed similar at alternative rock events. If I had to label techno crowds, would call it 'mature' instead of 'woke'. And I think I am cool with this.

[Mattias]

Well the underground parties in Copenhagen are very "woke" (my girlfriend just taught me to say that) and sex positive. They are very vocal about being non-tolerant towards sexism, groping, unconsented sexual confrontations etc. Now you could fear that these parties would end up bland if you interpreted is at they forbid any kind of physical contact/communication, but quite the contrary has happened. People seem to be way more comfortable about being sexual, as some fear (I guess) has been eliminated, and you can feel safe.

The people who arrange these parties, have on numerous occasions said they want to school people in other ways of partying.

I have to say I am very positive about it!

Well, that sounds pretty good actually. I guess it ends up more like the vibe in a good gay club, and not the predatory shit hole that pick up places are.

But weren't the (underground) techno/house party scene always pretty inclusive (for lack of a better word). I wonder where the need for woke disclaimers has come from? 'Mainstreaming' of techno? More alcohol intake compared to ecstacy? Is the Jackmaster thing standard behaviour? I really doubt that we live in a more 'sexist' culture than 20 years back, although it is worth thinking about if so.

I think there are at least intertwined two truths to it; Techno / House were always very inclusive (not perfect though, nothing is never perfect) but along with the interest for the music the more rotten apples goes with it. Personally I feel it's less inclusive now then it has ever been. The more hardcore, purist, "true to the roots" parties / events it seems things are as they always were. However the whole "move edm festival feeling into a club" thing have really debauched a lot in the scene.

[s7ntax]

I’ve not really been to any big techno events for a long time but from my memory of these events they attracted a diverse crowd but due to the size there were always some not so cool people in that crowd and some real arseholes both male and female just there to drink, harass and cause shit.

The last couple of years, the only event I’ve been to has been Tensile at Beaverworks in Leeds which has been a very chilled experience. You still get the odd small group who stand out in this setting to be kept at arms length but they don’t usually stay long, on the whole this crowd have been very friendly, there is a very lgbt friendly vibe here and you can feel the love transcending through the crowd, big fuck off cheesy grins, lots of people hugging and loving the music, all accepting of each other and I’ve not seen any sleaze balls harassing women or women like the one rwise encountered. I feel lucky to have met these people and over the past 2 years that Dom has been putting on these nights I’ve made so many friends that I only really see in that club, but still when that time comes around again and we are back in Beaverworks it’s like the family have reunited again. Even the door staff down there are super fucking cool.

I’m lucky to have this event running on my doorstep just 20 minutes from my house, real underground techno, no ridiculous ticket prices, no bullshit big name djs playing mediocre techno for huge fees, just real raw talent and an awesome crowd who are there to have fun and listen to some decent music.

I would probably hate it at these big festivals now a days, it’s become something else to what it was when I was first attending these events, all corporate, attracting arseholes who are only there because it is a big event and a cool place to be. It used to be all about love and music, people went out because they were really into it, not because it’s a cool thing to do.

It still lives on in small events like Tensile, everyone there for the same reasons and not because it’s cool but because they love it. Big events are just about money these days, the small events may not be packed but that is just how it seems to be these days with people having families and not going out like they used to but we don’t need these voids filling with the wrong people just to make the numbers up as that’s where shit goes wrong and the vibe is lost to ket sniffing steroid heads.

[Críoch]

That's lovely to hear about Tensile.

Yeah. Was talking to a chap that does doors at clubs recently. Local cheese emporiums places for teens / early 20s. He said that young people , men.. weren't drinking all that much nowadays. They spend a lot of money on steroids.

He said that the steroids.. mixed with a bit of alcohol & whatever cheap Chinese headshop crap they've on, makes for a very aggressive night out. He said he's noticed an increase in arguements / violence.

Probably the same crowds.

[s7ntax]

I used to work with a lad who was like that, he used to get roid rage at the apprentice and would sniff loads of ket and go to minimal techno events, he thought Sellout and ITCHY were good and didn’t really like the techno I would play to him. He goes to Ibiza with his mates a lot, they all have steroid physique and I can imagine then all stood around with their chests out. Makes me laugh to be honest and we know him and his mates as the village idiots, bit of a joke between me and a mate.

[intrusav]

Just my opinion (and prob not summarised very well) but I find there is always an element of tension at play in these situations.
The more peaceful and tolerant the atmosphere is, the more other people, who consider themselves 'outside' of it or feel excluded in some way, like to fuck it up for everyone else and start shit ( with alcohol, drugs to fuel it even more).

I do find that the 'safe space' approach can be very shallow with some people though, despite it being very important.
They seem to latch on to the principles in a black and white way and that's unhealthy.

There's the argument that the more you have to flag it the less sincere it is, like people are just behaving based on a set of house rules, as opposed to bringing it in naturally.
I guess that's the part I'm not fond of (when I think about it and wonder why it bugs me in some way). I would much prefer that that atmosphere and attitude was genuine and grew organically ..

[intrusav]

Been to Budapest a few times now and I have to say it really stands out how nice a city it is, esp for a capital city. I got a sense of it being at the early stages of being a really cool place to live, kind of naive (mean that in a good way) and going in a positive direction ..

[Amøbe]

I feel (in Copenhagen, at least) that one of the problems is that the established venue (well, there's only really one - Culture Box) lack a sense of community. I know from working in other nightclubs that they make a lot of their money from advertising in hostels and hotels, and I cannot blame them for running a business, but it just has a side effect of being a place of pure escapism and not in a positive way. I do believe that escapism is an important part of the culture, but it can take the form of "I came, I saw, I concurred", where - sorry for profiling - especially a lot of British tourists come to get fucked up, shout "oi mate!", Grab some pussy and then leave the country again.

I like escapism more if it takes the form of a constructive anarchy, where people want to be in a better place. Where you escape to create a community.

[chava]

...especially a lot of British tourists come to get fucked up...

Or Danes in Berlin. Otherwise you've got a point. Culture Box got very touristy when the earlier crowd got older. The new 'scene' seems more home grown, but that'll probably also change in 10 years. Maybe even sooner unless they refuse to do any PR. So enjoy it while it lasts...

[Amøbe]

...especially a lot of British tourists come to get fucked up...

Or Danes in Berlin. Otherwise you've got a point. Culture Box got very touristy when the earlier crowd got older. The new 'scene' seems more home grown, but that'll probably also change in 10 years. Maybe even sooner unless they refuse to do any PR. So enjoy it while it lasts...

You're probably right - that's the way things tend to go. But on the positive side - something new came instead, and it will probably happen again!