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Full Tilt Magazine - July 2001
"Before and after" is one of the simplest and best advertising techniques. There's nothing more convincing than a direct comparison - especially if you were there yourself! I was at Paul van Dyk and, the following week-end, on D-Rail 4. It was the ultimate "Before and after" comparison. I think everyone has heard how Ice ripped us off - huge queues, dangerous, overcrowded venue etc etc. And then your reviewer (Andrea Steyn?) praised them for a job well done! (I think you ought to be a bit more careful with your credibility. For Full Tilt to praise that sort of exploitative garbage makes you look pretty undiscerning and could wreck all the other good stuff you do.) D-Rail 4, on the other hand, was exactly how a rave should be. It was absolutely superb. There were enough people to generate a major party atmosphere, but there was space to dance and chill. The music was great - both floors! - and the bar service was quick and friendly. The people were brilliant - true PLUR. I've never experienced such a relaxed, intimate atmosphere. People were freely sharing everything from bottled water to beer and other more exotic substances. It was a bit like the descriptions you read of the original hippie culture - a laid-back, very accepting bunch of people without any malice in any of them. Except in the dance carriages, where there was serious animal partying going on! Paul van Dyk: queued for a couple of hours, partied for a couple of hours, got bumped and hassled and crap service. D-Rail: queued for 1 minute, partied for 11 hours, met brilliant people, remembered what I liked about rave culture in the first place. And the ticket prices? Same for both. Makes you wonder. I just hope the D-Rail people don't start hosting events more often. Firstly, they'll put everyone else out of business and secondly I'll have to abandon any hope of ever having a quiet week-end again. Mr Brown
“Picture this: It's around 7pm and you're standing on a small cement railway platform just outside of Joburg, the smokey evening air laden with the distinct smell of thousands of woodfires. You're dimly aware of an approaching train far in the distance. As it gets nearer, you begin to notice something unusual about the sound of the engine. It's hard to make out at first but soon a faint rhythm seizes control of your right foot and sets it tapping. There are few things on the planet that could possibly prepare you for what you're about to experience. As the train draws nearer, the deep rhythmic beat you've been straining to hear moves into your solar plexus. The air around you gradually comes alive to the sound of a deep, sexy bassline and swinging percussion, competing quite successfully with the roar of the diesel locomotive. You lean forward, like a bunny in headlights. Before you have time to realise what's happening, the engine speeds by and you're fully immersed in a world of overwhelming light, colour and sound. The next 30 second of your life may well be the strangest you'll ever have. The windows flicker past you like disjointed frames on an old movie reel. Split-second still images of people in bizarre poses and eclectic clothing burn themselves onto your retina. There's barely enough time to make out what you're seeing before another pulse of strobe light reveals what's waiting in the next window. The music changes style and tempo as each carriage speeds by, the doppler effect giving the entire experience a 'stretched tape' sound the human ear wasn't designed to be comfortable with. In just under thirty seconds, it's all over. The train disappears into the highveld night. You're left only with the lingering smell of smoke fluid, a high-pitched whining in your ears and pink spots in your vision. Congratulations, you've just been d-rail'ed.” For further information on this mind-blowing production, brought to you by the BrainStorm Crew, please contact info@brainstorm.org.za. |
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