The opening shows Antaro loading his portable DAT players, which would become the quintessential equipment of the ‘DJ’s of the time (the term did not carry with it the idolatry it does today), who favoured the digital players over vinyls in a hot, dusty setting (although standard cassette and video players were also used in the early 90s).

But of particular importance is the near invisibility of the DJ booth: at the time, the parties were about the music and the experience of each individual on the dancefloor. With speakers set up in surround-sound fashion, dancers had the opportunity to move freely around and interact directly with the music and each other rather than all facing the musical shaman. This 360-degree experience of the space helped party-goers to open up to a more expansive state of mind where one’s sense of direction was not rigidly defined (is ‘up’ really ‘up’ in the context of space? where IS this music coming from…?)

So as we begin another year of partying, perhaps reconsider your orientation on the dancefloor at the events you attend: engage, even just with a wink or a nod, with the other dancers who are sharing their individual journeys with you in the same time/space setting, and move around the dance space to experience things from different angles. Your dancing and enjoyment of the space is a co-creative aspect of the party with the DJ and the richer your experience, the more it supports the musical shaman’s creative space and purpose. So even if the party has a stage and is not set up with 360-degree sound, perhaps moving around could liven things up a little bit, molecules on the dance floor moving around to raise the energy and create more chemistry…