EDM is a rapidly growing and evolving phenomenon; it is quickly taking the world by storm, and it seems that festivals can be found anywhere in the world at any time. These are the 5 things I learned as an EDM Virgin after my first show.
Judgment Free Zone
As I was standing in line outside the 9:30 Club in Washington DC to see Loudpvck and 12thPlanet, I wondered if people would know immediately that this was my first show; if my understated white tank top and black shorts screamed “Noob!” Especially as I watched women continue to walk past me in increasingly less clothing.
I couldn’t help staring at the wild clothes passing by me, the bright colors, the costumes. I suddenly felt so out of place.
It didn’t take long for me to realize that no one cared what I was wearing. No one cared that this was my first show and I didn’t know what to expect. In fact, no one cared about what anyone was wearing. It hit me like a sledgehammer that this was the first time I had been surrounded by people who just accepted everyone else; a completely judgment free zone. The beauty of EDM shows and festivals is that everyone is united for one purpose: to love and enjoy music. Every person in that club came to enjoy some kick ass music, and inherently loved everyone else because they were there for the exact same reason.
No Pressure
EDM and Rave culture gets a bad rep as being an excuse for people to get high together. People have stereotyped ravers as drug addicts for years. I would obviously be lying if I said that drugs were completely absent from EDM shows and festivals. They are easily accessible and people are more than willing to share.
At my first show, I was nervous that people would push different drugs on me, pressure me to try something new or something stronger. I was shocked when the first person that offered me MDMA hugged me when I shyly declined. I stood with my arms at my sides, staring wide eyed at my girlfriends, completely clueless.
“Ok sweetheart, enjoy the show! If you change your mind, I’ll be over in the corner. Stay safe, have fun!”
Definitely not what was I expecting. One of my friends was a regular attendee of shows and festivals and stood to the side laughing at the confused expression on my face as my new friend bounced away in time with the music. No pressure to do anything. Drink, don’t drink, get high, don’t get high. The only thing that matters to anyone at these events is that you are safe and having fun.
Explore
While EDM can be considered its own genre, there are so many sub-genres it can be overwhelming. Trap, trance, dubstep, house, who-knows-what. EDM is a very generalized umbrella for an entire world of music. Don’t be afraid to explore different genres. If you’re like me and have a very eclectic music palette, you can find something to fit just about every mood, from relaxing trance mixes perfect for yoga, to heavy hitting bass tracks to head bang to.
Don’t let yourself get stuck in one small nook of EDM; explore it all. Take some time to read other articles, learn about the different styles that you like, listen to different playlists on SoundCloud or Spotify.
It’s an Experience
After my first show, I fell madly in love with all things EDM and rushed to download as many Loudpvck tracks as I could find. And was crushingly disappointed when I didn’t feel the same rush as I did at the show. Live music is always different than tracked music, but I have always been able to love recorded songs just as much, if not more, than live music. I found the exact opposite to be true of EDM. I found myself getting bored, missing the big build ups and the even bigger drops. It just didn’t have the same effect.
EDM shows are an experience. They play on all of your senses and everything is different live. You feel the bass, you don’t just hear it. You heart stalls with each bass kick, and races with each synth building beat. The smells from the fog machines, the dazing light shows, the neon colors and smiling faces. EDM is much more than just music; it’s an experience. It took me several months to be ok with knowing that I prefer live EDM to recorded tracks. I still listen to it, but it’s not necessarily the first thing I choose on Spotify or SoundCloud for the day. But it is the first thing I will spend my money on. If I see a show in my area, I’m happy for someone to take my money so I can go. I don’t bat an eye spending $200-$500 for festival passes when I rarely spend more than $40 on any other show. The experience is like nothing I have ever seen or felt, and I crave it. I was happy to find that several of my friends felt the same. They love EDM, when it’s live. Because it becomes more than just music; it’s an event, an experience.
It’s a Family
I felt the first stirrings of a sense of community at my first show with Loudpvck, but it wasn’t until I went to my first festival in November that I felt like I was being embraced by a community, by a culture, by a family. The second I stepped across the gates into Tinker Field in Orlando, I felt this weight lifted from my shoulders, and one word crossed my mind. Home. This felt like home, and each of these 60,000 strangers was a long lost family member I couldn’t wait to be reunited with.
There’s an amazing sense of belonging in the EDM world; there are no barriers, no stereotypes, no cliques. I saw goths, punks, jocks, cheerleaders, nerds. But they weren’t those labels. They were just people. Beautiful people with shining smiles on their faces, living. It’s an incredible sensation to feel so accepted and welcomed into a family when you spend much of your life feeling like you don’t belong anywhere. I wasn’t prepared for the level of contentment and attachment I felt my first few moments in EDC. I was nearly overwhelmed with gratitude.
There is so much to EDM and Rave culture, it’s impossible to describe it all in one short article. EDM has its own terminology, its own traditions. The best way to become familiar with it is to research it, ask questions, explore it. And don’t be afraid of it.
There is so much to this amazing world that it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. But embrace if you embrace it, it will embrace you.
