Think of me as that undeclared voice in your head that holds to no rhyme or reason; the one that acts on Dionysian impulse and carnal urge. The one that drifts, that indulges flights of fancy and carries you onward like Icarus towards the sun. Think of me as your pure Freudian ID. Bacchus, Bragi and all wandering bards. You listened to me a lot when you were in your early 20s.
NXNE brings out that voice in all of us; it is what navigates us through the five-day current of music and parties towards places and people unknown. Losing my map somewhere along the way, I was left to fate to prove that NXNE picks you up and delivers you to like-minded people in unique and unforgettable experiences. If there was perhaps initial planning involved (the map itself indicates this may be so), I abandoned the thought soon-after, leaving this experience instead up to the aforementioned Gods, to that 20-something voice in my head…
The following is what started as plan, what was supposed to be an all-encompassing guide, but what quickly descended into only a passing point of reference. Trust me. It is better that way:
You need to prioritize your week; If there is that one band that you must see, keep it in mind as the center point of your night. For me, that center point was Dan Deacon, the messiah of neon. If my main objective was to find out how NXNE brings us all together I thought the first place to start is the dance floor, where the front of the stage is a battleground, a fight to hold your footing.
Getting into the Thursday concert at The Horseshoe Tavern was debatable: this was a destination concert. The reach-around lineup began to fester before 11:00, a silent cue of waiting hopefuls with not much more than obstinate determination on their minds and swift texty fingers. Inside, Merchandise closed off their set, as a floor stage was set. Monitors, a table, and what seemed to be neon Megablocks posed as a glorious castle. Deacon is known for his interactive and narrated performances usually incorporating sci-fi pop-culture references and spastic dance instigations. It could be the nature of the genre or Deacon’s on-floor-stage, but no one is left as a solo spectator at the high-energy dance party. You are prompted and encouraged to embrace your neighbor as close as a clan member of the Na’vi. Talk about unity: the set concluded when the table holding his mobile music station of knobs and modular colour blocks collapsed and left audience members holding up the pieces. Not only would your shoes be ruined post dance circle, so would your Friday night plans as Deacon was announced to be the Special Guest at the Drake.
If one is not equipped with the necessary tools, one may fall or be left behind. Not only do you need to function at high levels on low levels of sleep, you need to be mobile and accessible. Bikes are key to navigation in the city as you crisscross from venue to party to venue. And if you find yourself without a NXNE pass you might find yourself without a crew. Admittedly guilty of leaving stragglers at the door, I myself take-part and take witness to the multiple accounts of abandonment that occur during NXNE. When it comes to sitting side stage at Ludacris, I hope to be forgiven by those left in the horde. Perhaps they can complain together.
I found myself at Dan Deacon part two at the Drake Underground early Friday night. Separating from my troop to plant right in front of the Megablock mixer table, I held my ground as a front row spectator to the noise parade. Bumping elbows with a man of equal stature to I, in a glance and a nod of the head an alliance was made.
Holding front row requires these kind of strategic partnerships as the crowd washes up to the front and tries to take you out like the tide. “We got this,” he said to me, and our place was solidified. When a larger rowdier man to my left starting encroaching on our space, chivalrous and unwavering, my ally moved to my left taking ground stating “I got him”. Once the music died and the sweat dried from our brows, our brief brotherhood cracked like monitor feed. Relationships based on necessity and extreme circumstances never work out anyway.
Besides planning what bands you are going to see (and how you’re going to see them), your “plans” should also being swept into any of the awesome parties that are thrown during the week. The Jagermeister/Exclaim Magazine’s outdoor BBQ has become a staple party for NXNE. It’s a great way to start your night into no direction. Daytime NXNE parties also are unique, like an outdoor concert, except that the focal point is not music but food stamps and mingling. Perhaps it is the fact that you are left exposed in the daylight but you would be hard fixed to find the lone wanderer during the day. The most synergy you will see would be the uniting of clans to the next thing once the libations run dry.
Truth be told, you can go out to NXNE, or any inner-city music festival for that matter, with the right intentions, with a plan, but that does not always lead you to the exact experiences you were hoping for. No undertaking the size of something like North By North East is an exact science, something you’d apply sound logic and executable strategy towards. Its not something that’s cut and dry; its liquid, fluid and better treated as such. Trying to pin it down, to adhere to a set timetable will always lead to it escaping you; expectations after all are often accompanied by disappointment when they are not met or exceeded. Better just to ride the wave towards whatever and whoever it takes you to.
Think of me as that undeclared voice in your head that holds to no rhyme or reason; the one that acts on Dionysian impulse and carnal urge. The one that drifts, that indulges flights of fancy and carries you onward like Icarus towards the sun. Think of me as your pure Freudian ID. Bacchus, Bragi and all wandering bards. You listened to me a lot when you were in your early 20s.
NXNE brings out that voice in all of us; it is what navigates us through the five-day current of music and parties towards places and people unknown. Losing my map somewhere along the way, I was left to fate to prove that NXNE picks you up and delivers you to like-minded people in unique and unforgettable experiences. If there was perhaps initial planning involved (the map itself indicates this may be so), I abandoned the thought soon-after, leaving this experience instead up to the aforementioned Gods, to that 20-something voice in my head...
The following is what started as plan, what was supposed to be an all-encompassing guide, but what quickly descended into only a passing point of reference. Trust me. It is better that way:
You need to prioritize your week; If there is that one band that you must see, keep it in mind as the center point of your night. For me, that center point was Dan Deacon, the messiah of neon. If my main objective was to find out how NXNE brings us all together I thought the first place to start is the dance floor, where the front of the stage is a battleground, a fight to hold your footing.
Getting into the Thursday concert at The Horseshoe Tavern was debatable: this was a destination concert. The reach-around lineup began to fester before 11:00, a silent cue of waiting hopefuls with not much more than obstinate determination on their minds and swift texty fingers. Inside, Merchandise closed off their set, as a floor stage was set. Monitors, a table, and what seemed to be neon Megablocks posed as a glorious castle. Deacon is known for his interactive and narrated performances usually incorporating sci-fi pop-culture references and spastic dance instigations. It could be the nature of the genre or Deacon's on-floor-stage, but no one is left as a solo spectator at the high-energy dance party. You are prompted and encouraged to embrace your neighbor as close as a clan member of the Na'vi. Talk about unity: the set concluded when the table holding his mobile music station of knobs and modular colour blocks collapsed and left audience members holding up the pieces. Not only would your shoes be ruined post dance circle, so would your Friday night plans as Deacon was announced to be the Special Guest at the Drake.
If one is not equipped with the necessary tools, one may fall or be left behind. Not only do you need to function at high levels on low levels of sleep, you need to be mobile and accessible. Bikes are key to navigation in the city as you crisscross from venue to party to venue. And if you find yourself without a NXNE pass you might find yourself without a crew. Admittedly guilty of leaving stragglers at the door, I myself take-part and take witness to the multiple accounts of abandonment that occur during NXNE. When it comes to sitting side stage at Ludacris, I hope to be forgiven by those left in the horde. Perhaps they can complain together.
I found myself at Dan Deacon part two at the Drake Underground early Friday night. Separating from my troop to plant right in front of the Megablock mixer table, I held my ground as a front row spectator to the noise parade. Bumping elbows with a man of equal stature to I, in a glance and a nod of the head an alliance was made.
Holding front row requires these kind of strategic partnerships as the crowd washes up to the front and tries to take you out like the tide. "We got this,” he said to me, and our place was solidified. When a larger rowdier man to my left starting encroaching on our space, chivalrous and unwavering, my ally moved to my left taking ground stating "I got him". Once the music died and the sweat dried from our brows, our brief brotherhood cracked like monitor feed. Relationships based on necessity and extreme circumstances never work out anyway.
Besides planning what bands you are going to see (and how you’re going to see them), your “plans” should also being swept into any of the awesome parties that are thrown during the week. The Jagermeister/Exclaim Magazine’s outdoor BBQ has become a staple party for NXNE. It's a great way to start your night into no direction. Daytime NXNE parties also are unique, like an outdoor concert, except that the focal point is not music but food stamps and mingling. Perhaps it is the fact that you are left exposed in the daylight but you would be hard fixed to find the lone wanderer during the day. The most synergy you will see would be the uniting of clans to the next thing once the libations run dry.
Truth be told, you can go out to NXNE, or any inner-city music festival for that matter, with the right intentions, with a plan, but that does not always lead you to the exact experiences you were hoping for. No undertaking the size of something like North By North East is an exact science, something you’d apply sound logic and executable strategy towards. Its not something that’s cut and dry; its liquid, fluid and better treated as such. Trying to pin it down, to adhere to a set timetable will always lead to it escaping you; expectations after all are often accompanied by disappointment when they are not met or exceeded. Better just to ride the wave towards whatever and whoever it takes you to.