… I know I’m stating the obvious but the difference between then and now is the interence by shady suits in the background creating DJ “characters” who they make shit tons of money from, without any real care or interest in the scene. Maybe I’m ignorant but I don’t know if it was that bad during the Jules days. Maybe I’m wrong. At least it was a different EDM as the crowds were still off their heads on good pills and the clubs were indoor and better. The open air firework show EDM is very weird to me, I get it, but it just seems very rapey to me rather than genuine. People enjoy it though so who am I.

    Amps I went to the first 3 Electric Zoos in NY back in like 07-10 when EDM was just getting going. Seems obvious that it blew up, in retrospect. I remember Afrojack and Skrillex drawing more than double the capacity of the tent they were in at the time. Crazy to think that Speedy J had a bigger tent and spot on the flyer. If you look at the most recent flyer for EZ now, you won’t know a single name.

        zackster in retrospect. I remember Afrojack and Skrillex drawing more than double the capacity of the tent they were in at the time.

        Yeah. Through work I have been to a few EDM festivals over the last few years, and I tip my hat to the crowds there, they go fuckin ape shit to all of it and the vibe is nearly always good. It’s not my music, but they are all havin a good time and getting their moneys worth, and having chatted to a few of the DJs, they genuinely love what they are playing, proper enthusiasm for it.

          LT42 back then people went to the events / clubs because they were into the music or enjoyed the night out. There was no social media influence, which is what drives some people to events now. It wasn’t trendy back in the days be seen at clubs / raves / dance festivals.

            Yeah there were some questionable nights going on but they were still full of proper bang heads.

            zackster If you look at the most recent flyer for EZ now, you won’t know a single name.

            I will.

            Obvs.

              “EDM” might seem worse but that’s just because us Americans take everything to its absolute capitalistic extreme. It certainly wasn’t THAT bad back in the Judge Jules days but that element was certainly there.

              And I don’t mind any of it. Not my musical tastes but I doubt anything I liked at 19 was appealing to a 40 year old either. Have fun and who cares.

              Skrillex, as an example, seems nothing less than a sound dude who makes terrible music. Known a few who have worked with him and I’ve read interviews - just seems like a guy doing his thing who has respect for those before him.

              The likes of Jules / Tall Pall / Oakenfold by late 90s/early 00s were pushing credibility to a degree, but compared to Aoki/Guetta or whoever the big EDM headliners are it’s no comparison .

              What was that festival in the midlands with the Bedrock tent circa 2004 ? Up the M1 . Homelands ? That was the first time I noticed a divide at a “festival” between house heads and a commercial set. Remember watching Oakenfold for a bit closing it out and thinking WTF happened to him . All Jesus poses and turd house.

                zackster I went to EZ in 2009 or 2010 and there was a definitive EDM divide there. I’d never heard of most of the headliners . Remember enjoying Frankie and James Holden then buggering off on a bus back to Manhattan

                    IndustryStandard yup yup. I was at that one. Holden was in the trance tent and was absolutely awful. I remember he kept motioning to the crowd to pelt him with cigarettes. Once he’d finally catch one he’d happily puff along on it. He was the second last act and came on before ATB. It sounded like he deliberately turned the bass down on every channel on the mixer. I remember him going on Twitter shortly after and tweeting “shouting for me to play harder ensures that it won’t happen”. Thankfully Hawtin destroyed the techno tent that night.

                      IndustryStandard What was that festival in the midlands with the Bedrock tent circa 2004

                      There was a Bedrock tent at Global Gathering which I think ran for most of the 2000s.

                          IndustryStandard The likes of Jules / Tall Pall / Oakenfold by late 90s/early 00s were pushing credibility to a degree, but compared to Aoki/Guetta or whoever the big EDM headliners are it’s no comparison .

                          What was that festival in the midlands with the Bedrock tent circa 2004 ? Up the M1 . Homelands ? That was the first time I noticed a divide at a “festival” between house heads and a commercial set. Remember watching Oakenfold for a bit closing it out and thinking WTF happened to him . All Jesus poses and turd house.

                          I think the turning point started happening around 1999 to be honest.

                          Suddenly all the squares you knew from school were starting to turn up at places like Cream and Sankeys. People who a couple of years previously were wearing shiney shirts and shoes (or the female equivalent) into chart music and ridiculed such places and their crowds as being ‘for druggies’ were suddenly there in combats and t-shirts ‘havin’ it’.

                          The schism just grew bigger from there.

                              bosstrabs the squares from school🤣

                              too right though. Funny how it went from druggies/ravers to suddenly respectable . Same crew that now bang on about those awful Pete Tong/Hacienda concerts as ““taking them back ” . Please…..most in attendance were too scared to go to a decent club, frequenting the local Ritzy and dancing to Encore Une Fois instead and going to Tenerife instead of ''Beefa

                                  I heard a bloke describing Pete Tong’s classic orchestra as “life-changing”. I nearly hit the cunt

                                    IndustryStandard Exactly, it was remarkable how the same knobs who were drinking alcopops (Hooper’s Hooch and Reef seemed to be the popular ones around here) in Mr. Smiths almost overnight were banging on about what a ‘choon’ Gouryella was (and other such pish at the saccharine-sweet end of trance).

                                      a month later

                                      Not very surprised by this. Daniel Wang has back pedalled quite drastically on his post about Gou.