#hola highlight clip behind

[dlstmxkakwldrlarchive]

onew_griffin: wing wing 🕺💨

[djsinquarantine]

Terminal Club Online, By Francisco

Basic Details: This was a digital rave that took place on June 6th, 2020. It was live on Zoom. During my studying it, viewership gradually increased from 9 when I began to 28 by the time that I left. The event was hosted by an organization called Terminal Club Online. During my viewing it, two different djs played: DJ Rival Dealer and Ruiseñor. Both djs were women and the stream was Spanish speaking. For a brief period of time the stream was simultaneously live on Facebook with about the same number of viewers. There was no associated cause. The only ‘ads’ were promotions of the organization’s donation page.

Visuals: The djs only had lighting effects on their cams and no digital effects. Ruiseñor was playing on what appeared to be her patio with plants and decorative lights behind her. Rival Dealer played in what appeared to be her room with the lights turned off and disco-like lights hitting her room floor behind her. Some of the other viewers who turned their cameras on did employ digital effects. This ranged from simple virtual backgrounds to more elaborate effects like digital masks. One individual by the name of Amin Wejebe regularly switched between different effects that included one that made him look like a cow and another that distorted his camera feed. 

Music: This was my first time listening to this particular kind of music. I would describe dj Rival Dealer’s style as either trance or progressive breakbeat as there was a strong emphasis on the beat and the music was slow as well as progressive. Meanwhile, Ruiseñor’s style was much much more experimental. In fact, when she first started playing there was a solid 5 to 7 mins where the music did not even have a beat and was purely ambient and melodic with synth chords in the background. 

Technology: The tech in this event was fairly difficult to make out. Neither of the djs that I watched had the cameras positioned at an angle that gave a good shot of their boards. The only things I noticed when it comes to this is that Ruiseñor was using vinyls. There was no use of mics whatsoever. The djs were muted and were only sharing their computer audio. This was my first purely Zoom based event and it was easy to see some disadvantages. The chat did not have access to many emotes and the camera highlighting made it difficult to have a view of everyone instead of just one person as it would reset my view. However, it has advantages like being able to see other people which may outweigh the limitations. There were no bots, from my understanding, which means that a dj may have to shift attention from the boards to manually mute or kick trolls.

Social: Most people in the event seemed to know each other well. At the beginning, many chat members even congratulated Irma, Ruiseñor, as it was her birthday. Something of note for me during this event is that even though the option of cam was there, very few people actually turned their camera on. This led me to wonder how many people were only using this event as background music. When it comes to my personal focus of trolls and raids, there were two instances where people popped into the event only to unmute themselves and say or play something to overpower the music. The first time around, the troll kept repeating “Hola” as loud as he could until Irma muted and then kicked him. The second time around was a bit more complicated. The troll played various clips of audio from porn while laughing loudly. Irma muted him a couple of times, only to have him unmute himself. Eventually, Irma was able to kick him. The nature of her having to do it manually made me wonder how difficult it might be when more than one troll enter a Zoom call or when the dj is busy playing music and doesn’t have anyone else with mod authority.

Liveness: Something that I learned from digital liveness at this event is just how amplified it can get when people at the event know each other. It becomes so much easier for one to approach the social aspects of the event both as an insider and as an outsider of the group as this often makes people more welcoming, from my experience. Another thing that I found interesting is that people seemed willing to share the experience with family and friends which may also amplify liveness through the introduction of greater social inclusion. During my studying it, I saw two participants bring in family members (one brought in their mother while another brought in their younger sister), and another participant turned on his cam to reveal that he appeared to be at a beach with around 4 friends with him, all watching the stream. 

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[weliveourdream]

Hola everyone.

And welcome back to my blog and another Friday. I hope you’ve all had an amazing week and that you’re doing good. And, regarding what we will be talking about today, I hope you’re in the mood for another trip to paradise – aka Sziget festival – and that you already enjoyed my recent post about the first two days of the festival (click here if you want to check that out). I am so excited to tell you all about day three and seeing Marty again and what happened after that and how my mum and I got home at half-past 5 in the morning. In short, I’m crazy happy to tell you about anything and everything and I can’t wait for you to read it and to relive all these moments with me. Are you ready? Yes? Then let’s jump right in, shall we?

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Day 3

As I mentioned in my previous post, Sziget couldn’t have been more perfect than it was. It was an absolute dream come true and I’d do lots of crazy, crazy things to be able to go back and do it all over again. And Day 3 especially. The moment I woke up that day, I knew that exciting things were ahead. Because it was the day I’d finally be seeing Marty again, after a year. Some of you might know that ever since seeing him live for the very first time in 2015, also at Sziget, I’ve been to one of his shows every single year. It’s become a full-on tradition now. It’s become my thing to see him every year. And I couldn’t wait for the fifth time, especially because of the fact that it was at Sziget. Our five-year-anniversary and at Sziget, just like the first time. It was bound to be perfect. And on top of that, it was also STMPD-Day, so after Marty’s show, his label would be taking over a stage for the rest of the night and I was so ready for that.

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So, as soon as my mum and I got on the island, we once again went for a little walk around the island and went to the beach (yes, the festival even has its own beach). There weren’t many acts on for us to see, so we still had some time left to just wander around, do some people-watching, visit the funfair again and get some food. Again, I need to mention that the whole festival is an absolute paradise and crazy beautiful. I love it with my whole heart.

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At about 4 pm we walked over to the Volt Stage to see Wild Front, who I was super excited for, as I had already seen them at the beginning of the year in Brighton at a teeny-tiny venue. As you can imagine, it was pretty cool to see this small band play at my favourite festival. I don’t know, it just felt like some part of Brighton was visiting me there. And obviously, they were absolutely fantastic. If you haven’t heard of them, you should definitely go and check them out – here’s the link to their youtube channel. And after seeing them, it was already time for us to head to main stage and to get ready for Marty. Just like in 2015, mum and I wanted to save ourselves a spot at the second barrier, so no one would be jumping around in front of us. So we waited, about 3 hours, but unfortunately, at first, we didn’t really get a good spot for us to stay at. There was no way we would be able to see anything if we weren’t right at the front – I don’t know what happened this year, but somehow all the other festivalgoers seemed to have grown way more than us. They were all so freaking tall. But, obviously, it wasn’t the time to give up. So while my mum stayed at our spot and watched 6lack (some kind of rapper/RnB artist), I went over to another stage to check out Gang of Youths and then go on the hunt for a good spot. And guess what, we really managed to get front row, right at the barrier and I think even at the exact same spot we were in 2015. It was quite emotional, to be honest.

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So we waited through Tove Lo, who we had both already seen at a Coldplay gig, and then it was finally time for Marty to come on stage. I was so hyped up, not only because I would be seeing Marty again, but also because I would finally be seeing his ANIMA show. Every year Marty and his team premiere a new show at ADE and then work with it until the next year. And this year, it was the ANIMA tour and as for all the pictures and videos I had seen online, I was more than ready to finally experience it all myself. See it with my own eyes. Feel it with my own body. And mentally bow down to Gabe Fraboni and Lorenzo de Pascalis and the rest of the team for creating something as genius and beautiful as this.

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When I look back at how the whole show went down, I still can’t believe that I really got to experience all of it. For me, it actually started as soon as Tove Lo had left the stage and they started to build Marty’s set-up. Because that’s when his team came out. And when I got to see Gabe. I couldn’t believe my eyes. As some of you might know, I don’t just listen to Marty’s music and go to his shows. I watch his videos, behind the scenes clips, heck, I even watched the movie he was in. Usually, when I’m a really big fan of someone, it’s the most important part for me to familiarize myself with the whole team and not just the band. I basically want to know everything and everyone. And Marty’s team was no exception. So I haven’t just been a fan of Marty since 2015, but his whole team. Of Gabe, Louis, Lorenzo, Damien, everyone. And just the simple fact of actually being able to watch Gabe prepare for the show, set up the lasers and get everything ready cranked up my excitement by a thousand. It was all really happening.

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And it didn’t just end there. Gabe (Marty’s show/creative director) wasn’t the only one who was there. I saw Louis (his photographer) and Watse (his manager) and then his mum came around and Julian (one of his closest friends and also DJ) and some of his other friends and I can’t even begin to tell you how happy I was at that very moment when I saw his whole team come together. All the people I had watched clips of for years were suddenly all there. And because of his mum and his friends, it felt like it wasn’t just another show, it felt like a family event, something very personal and special.

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Obviously, my excitement peaked as soon as Marty came on stage. It felt so good to finally see him again and hear his music. And god damn, the show was absolutely mind-blowing. It was really out of this world. I remember once hearing Gabe say that ANIMA was their best show to this day and, wow, he wasn’t exaggerating. There were fireworks and lasers and breathtaking background clips and the phenomenal music and then the team handed out glowsticks so the whole crowd turned into a huge rainbow and it was all so perfect. And Martijn just looked so good. Holy moly. I felt like I was in a dream, like it all was way too perfect to be real. But it was really happening. I was really there, having the time of my life. And once in a while I turned around and looked at the back tower where the mixing board was and where Gabe was working his magic and just watched him do his work. Watched Marty’s mum dance a bit. And I might just add that one point, Louis was suddenly standing right in front of us, taking pictures of the crowd and I couldn’t believe my eyes. I mean, I literally have his photography book at home and now he was standing right in front of me. I was shook.

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Altogether, I can just say that the show was freaking fantastic. I danced and jumped and laughed and cried more than once and I felt so at home and happy, I never wanted it to end. Marty is just such a phenomenal artist and live act, I could go to his shows every single day and I wouldn’t get bored. If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend going to one of his shows. You won’t regret it, I swear. And I loved Marty’s energy. You might know that about two months ago, he had to have an operation on his foot and then wear a plaster until about two weeks ago. I bet it still hurt a bit, but he fought through it like a trooper and just jumped around on one foot. Talk about being absolutely adorable. And he also looked so happy. And I was so happy that he was happy. In short, the field was packed with happiness.

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But that actually wasn’t the highlight of the day. No no. The highlight happened when the show had already ended. You should’ve seen me at the end when Marty played his last song. I cried so freaking much, but not because I was sad, but because I was just so happy and full of gratitude and love. First I had watched his mum film the crowd from the tower during the last part of the show. And then after Marty had left the stage, everyone came up to Gabe and they all hugged and clapped and celebrated and by witnessing all of that, I felt like I was part of that too. Like I was seeing something very special. I cried so much, I think my mum was actually weirded out a bit, but in a good way. I mean, she knows me and she let me hug her very tightly and shed a few tears on her shoulder, so it should be fine. And then she followed me through the crowd, because, obviously, now that the team was packing up all their stuff, I had to try and get a closer look while they were still here. So I dragged her back to the tower and there he still was, Gabe, the first one to show up and the last one to leave. And I just stood there, looking up at the tower, watching him. But, you know me, obviously I had to say something. I don’t even know what got into me, I just knew that I probably would never get the chance again to talk to him. So I went up to the barrier and called his name. And what happened then is basically the cutest thing ever. He had his back facing me and then turned around when he heard me, but at first he didn’t know who had called his name, so I called again and then he looked at me and suddenly the biggest grin spread across his face. I’m sure I must have looked like a total mess who had just cried her eyes out, but I was smiling at him nonetheless. So we grinned at each other and I shouted how amazing the show had been and thanked him for everything and he thanked me back and smiled. And although the whole interaction probably lasted for about 30 seconds, it felt like an eternity for me. But it didn’t end there.

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After having packed up everything, he came down from the tower and proceeded to head to the stage and then backstage, which meant he had to walk past us. You can probably guess what happened then. Of course I had to walk up to him and talk to him. And he was literally the nicest guy ever. I again told him how much I had enjoyed the show and thanked him for his work. And then mum took pictures of us, which turned out to be the cutest pictures in existence. And then he left, but not without taking the time to talk to everyone who was waiting for him. I wonder if it feels weird for him that Marty’s fans know him as well and want to have a chat with him. That he has his own fans too. I just hope that he knows that he’s an absolute genius and that ANIMA is a total masterpiece and that there’s a reason why people adore his work. Meeting and talking to him was the definite highlight of my week at Sziget, because, for me, he’s an absolute role model when it comes to believing in your own work and talent and to working your butt off to create something you can be proud of. And I never thought I’d ever get to meet him, but it truly happened and I’ll be forever grateful for that (after I’ve finally realized that it wasn’t just a dream).

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After that, being all high on happiness and emotions, mum and I headed to the STMPD stage. The plan was to at least stay there until 4 am, so we could also see Julian, aka DJ Julian Jordan, so we knew that we had a long night coming up. But a fun one. I remember when Sziget announced that Marty would be playing again, the next thing I was hoping for was a STMPD stage. And I’m still so grateful that that dream really came true as well.

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Overall, these were all the acts we saw on that day:

Wild Front

Grace Carter

6lack

Tove Lo

Martin Garrix

Bart B More

Mercer

Justin Mylo

TV Noise

Julian Jordan

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I don’t think I have to mention that the whole night was absolute craziness. At one point, mum and I were even sitting on the ground in this huge tent, leaned against a pillar and having the music blasted into our ears at 3 am. Yes, we were tired, but I can promise you that we couldn’t have been in a better mood. All the acts were absolutely fantastic and I’m so glad I got to see them all. Also, at this point, I have to thank my mum for being basically the best mum ever and a real trooper and for staying with me the whole night. She’s the coolest and I’ll be forever thankful that she endured hours over hours of EDM music, that she’s not even the biggest fan of, just for me and just so that I could see all these acts and be happy. Mum, you’re the best. And I love you.

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I went to bed at a quarter to 6 am that night (morning?). It’s the longest we have ever been at any festival and although I had little to no voice nor hearing the next day (which I will tell you all about in my next post on Monday), it was all totally worth it, because it had been such an epic night that I’ll never ever forget. Even the walk home was magical. The sun was just coming up, the sky turned into beautiful shades of pink and orange and I introduced my mum to the sunrise, as they hadn’t seen each other for a long time. Altogether, it was an absolutely unforgettable day/night and I loved and cherished every single second of it. And I can’t even put into words how much I miss Marty and his team already. I can’t wait to see them all again soon (hopefully).

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And yeah, that’s basically the whole third day of Sziget. I’m sorry this post ended up being quite lengthy, but I just had to share all these phenomenal memories with you, guys, so I hope you still enjoyed reading all about them. Being able to share all of this with you means a lot to me, so thanks if you’ve made it this far. As always, please don’t hesitate to leave your thoughts and comments down below and, of course, I wish you all a nice weekend and thanks for reading. x

Sziget Festival – Part Two Hola everyone. And welcome back to my blog and another Friday. I hope you've all had an amazing week and that you're doing good.