[re]Blow Your Mind

Hey, wassup it's Wish! About this time last year, I attended my first massive event, Holiday Madness. Showtek was in, there were thousands of people lining the dance floor at Amazura Concert Hall, and everything was just unbelievable. Now, it's time for part two, as Caffeine Entertainment and Epic Entertainment brings us back to the insanity with Holiday Madness 2 [re]gifted, sponsored by Kikwear.

This year the party is back and in the legendary Amazura. Amazura can easily hold thousands of people, and only twice in the past year have I personally seen an event that actually looked full there. One was Bobble Invaders (PLUR Rave Promotions 1st party) and last year's Holiday Madness. This event is stacking up to be in the same boat with 2,000 people rsvp'ed on the main facebook invite. Of course we know not to judge a party by that number, but the higher the attending rate, the more people actually come out. Amazura sports two stages on two floors. The main stage is significantly larger than the upstairs area, being able to fit over 3,000 people without a doubt. Upstairs has a jungle theme going on, along with windows over looking the main floor. The ambiance of the place is surreal when it's filled up.

By: Ronnie C.

What's a party without entertainment?! A long awaited booking has taken place for this party. The legendary DJ Isaac will be returning to New York to spin this party. It's been a while since he was here last, and only got to perform about three minutes of his set (thank you FDNY) at Naughty Neon 2 back in February. So now, at a much larger spot, his appearance will be [re]gifted for everyone to enjoy. If you are not familiar with his music, get on it, the bitches will appreciate it.


The lineup is epic, with city favorites X-Dream and Jen Mas, and Tight Crew's very own DJ Soappy. Making the visuals extra special is Morgan Freeman. Anybody who has been to the club knows what the laser system is like there, so putting one and two together is always epic. If all this wasn't good enough, there going to be a lot more. We're talking body painting, people on stilts walking around, aerialists, a cotton candy and popcorn machine, a kandi station, and even a sexy Santa contest with a $100 prize. This will be a night to remember [or not ;)].

Get your tickets before 2pm on Friday and save five dollars. Use that five dollars to buy your of age friends a drink. This is the most definitely the right way to kick off your partying for New Years weekend!! I'll catch you there, with gloves on and camera in hand. If you see me, say hi!

Epic Party: Shut Up And Dance

When I originally heard about this event, I knew this was going to be a huge party. I showed the flier to a fellow OWL and close friend Hurricane Irine and she went crazy about how awesome it was going to be. I'm still new to a lot of the DJs on the scene, but after hearing it from her, I figured I needed to be there. And awesome it was! Both [OWL] Supernova and myself went to see the scene and catch what was good at this event.

Time To Have Sme Fun! By: Ronnie C.

CT Represent! By: Paus3

It was another night hosted at the extremely spacious Amazura Lounge. I've been here once before, the night that Showtek rolled into town, but this time it was done up all differently! The lighting and sound system were the same. Laser and moving heads everywhere and constantly putting on a show to the music. Massive speakers blowing out so much bass it was terrifying. What was different was the feeling to the main room. They had placed several large white spike-balls hanging from the beams in the ceiling. When the light was bouncing off of them it was unreal. Morgan Freeman was also in the house, and he did up the stage so nicely! There was an entire layer of screen stretched out from end to end of the DJ as well as two towers on each side as well. He was playing constant visuals on the screen, it was awesome to watch the stage come alive. Behind the towers were the Peek A Boo gogo dancers casting their silhouettes for the crowd to groove to.

Sweet Atmosphere By: Smurf

Sexy Gogo Shadows By: Ronnie C.

It was great being there and recognizing so many people. Our new friends from Electrik Graffiti came in  from Jersey sporting their custom made scoodies. These hoods are so warm and cozy! Not to mention uber unique and well made. It was so great seeing them, we were all rocking our scoodies and giving tons of light shows and sending out good vibes. It's people like that who are constantly putting out the positive message of community. Check out their store online for what they have in store for you!

Some Eletrik Graffiti Scoodies By: Paus3

It was wonderful, there were so many lights going on, thanks to all the glovers, poi-artists, hula hoopers, glow stick maniacs (?) and Utopia providing so many glow toys. It was a good night to be out gloving that's for sure! There were people there from all over... New Jersey, Connecticut, and even Massachusetts were there and representing their styles. There was supposed to be a glovers competition, but unfortunately it did not happen. That didn't stop the glovers from trading shows and entertaining the masses. If the competition did go down, it would have been hard for the judges to choose a winner, there was a lot of talent in the house.

Beautiful Ribbons of Color By: Ronnie C.

Gloving Upstairs By: Ronnie C.

Awesome Duo By: Smurf

Getting Bendy! By: Smurf

Holding The Universe By: Smurf

Cookie Streams By: Paus3

 The music was great, a lot of hardstyle and dub was being spun, and Afrika Bambaataa brought it back to a much funkier time. The crowd was going crazy for Jen Mas as it was her first time back on the scene or a while! She and Lady Faith gave some sick tracks to glove to, made me appreciate hardstyle a little more. It's so crazy to watch an entire dance floor dancing to hardstyle, things get a little crazy.

Afrika Bambaataa Spinning By: Ronnie C.

Bead for Kandi By: Paus3

Set List By: Paus3

Sick Hats from Method By: Paus3

There were other activities to partake in while the party raged on. There was a bouncy castle, right next to it a massage table, there was a kandi making table, a Utopia booth, a Method booth, cotton candy and popcorn as well as fresh fruit (YES, there was actually fresh fruit at this event!) being passed around. Definitely a night to remember, with a job very well done by Epic Entertainment and California Dreaming. Let's walk through the party, shall we?

PHOTOS:

The Pros:
Ronnie C. Photography: Set 1//Set 2
Taylor Flash: Set 1//Set 2
Reptar Photography: SET
Epic Glow Wrm: SET


The Others:
Paus3: SET
Deblette: SET
Delineation Digital Media: SET
ThreeFourteen Media: SET

Want to see more of the party? Then check out Three Fourteen Media's video of the event!



Coming up this weekend, another Hi-5 Gallery, Finyl Fantasy 3, and Jungle Bungle!

Holiday Madness Featuring Showtek!

Some of the biggest parties every year are the ones that have the right promotion, the right DJ's, the right people, and the right venue. Caffeine Promotions did all of the above and beyond with Holiday Madness featuring Showtek as the headliner.

Showtek by: Reptar

Lets start this off with promotion. With a name like Showtek, everyone is going to be going crazy to come and come them out. This event had the most intense amount of promotion I had ever come across. Everywhere you looked on facebook, the Caffeine promoters were doing there thing letting people know about the show. Even other promoters got in on the action with promoting and hosting, like Kyle Kingzly, showing that the PLUR doesn't just exists within one group, but the community as a whole. And the hype didn't stop with that. Everybody who is anybody in the scene was talking about it. Either for a DJ they were going to support, or just the fact that they wanted to see this spacious beautiful venue fill up, which it did. On top of that, you had everyone chipping in to make it a success, like Kevin Carpet working the door making sure that all the DJ's, photographers, VIP's and pre-order ticket holders got in quickly without keeping everyone waiting outside for too long, and we are talking a long line down the block. It's always a positive to see things run smoothly.

We're Getting Wild Tonight! By: Reptar

Wish You Were Here By: Taylor Flash

Having a Great Time! By: Reptar

The Amazura Lounge. From the outside it looks nothing more than just a regular building. But the second you take a peek inside from the front door, you immediately take notice to how huge this place is. It looks like a basketball court, or an ice hockey ring converted into a concert venue! The main floor is massive, boasting two full length bars on either side of the dance floor, and enormous stage that could fit an entire orchestra on it, and a sound system that would leave your body bumping to bass for three days after the party. That's just the downstairs.

Upstairs there was another room, and it was like walking into a jungle. There were faux trees and animals all over, a green tint laid over the room, and it was a much more intimate setting with the closer quarters. There was a bar up here too, as well as a raised dance floor, ideal for bands, but since it was raised you need to watch your step!

Hulk By: Ronnie C.

Just A Touch Louder Please! By: Ronnie C.

The music was rocking all night long. The bass was just insane and had everyone dancing to the beats. For me, I like a little treble to actually hear the music and all the sounds. It didn't stop me and anyone from going wild. For the first time ever I shuffled on the dance floor, I did not think it was possible, but that's just what the music did to you. There were so many amazing DJs at this event. From Hocus Pocus, Hulk, Droid, Johnny J (I gave my first show to his set, and he's also featured as this week's mix I'm listening to!), to legends like Frankie Bones, S-Factor, X-Dream, Ritalin, John Bas, and of course Showtek, the lineup shined all night.

Put Your Fucking Hands Up! By: Ronnie C.

The Bass Makes Me Move By: Taylor Flash

It Just Got Real By: Taylor Flash

God Mode? By: Ronnie C.

Yes God Mode! By: Taylor Flash

Showtek is very crowd interactive. It's amazing watching them get the entire room jumping at the same time, they are the ultimate hype machines constantly keeping the people going. If you've never seen this duo live before, I suggest making sure to put that on your to-do list.

Raiden! By: Ronnie C.

Lets All Glow Together By: Reptar

Now the Amazura holds upwards of 4,000 people, and it was pretty packed. You still had the cuddle circles lining the outsides of the dance floor, some people were even ballsy enough to hang out right in front of the speakers too. You had face painting by Pixel, as well as a vendor selling glow toys and such. There were a lot of people dressed up in costumes, but one that really stood out of the crowd was a dude who dressed in a complete Raiden costume. People were loving him and his ice blue contacts! It was a wonderful vibe in the room, everyone was having a blast.

Eddie Skilling By: Taylor Flash

Glow B Andit By: Ronnie C.

Going HAM By: Taylor Flash

Star Dust Will Melt You By: Ronnie C.

And due to the volume of people, it was only appropriate that there were enough people throwing lights to accommodate all those eager eyes. There were probably about 20-25 glovers on the scene this night. The gloving community is like a niche community within the rave community. They will all talk to each other, to find out where everyone will be. That way they can trade shows, do doubles, and crazy things like a glovers circle! I was so happy to see many familiar faces, and to meet all the new ones as well, these people had mad skills! Not to mention, all of Team [OWL] (obsessed with lights GO LIKE!) showed up, as well as some members of [MD] (mind destroyers), and the Sprout Family. It's just wonderful having everyone doing their thing while showing each other what PLUR is all about!

Glovers Unite! By: Reptar

Does This Even Need a Caption?! By: Taylor Flash

Epicsauce By: Ronnie C.

Smurf Throwing Beautiful Lights By: Taylor Flash

PHOTOS:

The Pros:
Reptar Photography: Set 1//Set 2
Ronnie C. Photography: Set 1//Set 2
Taylor Flash: Set 1//Set 2
Sam Freund: Set 1//Set 2
Fresh Mix: Set
Delineation Digital Media : Set

And that about wraps it up for 2011. This was easily the biggest party of the year, and was a great foot for Caffeine to stand on going into 2012!