The Lebanese scene is by far the most active in the region...events, parties, raves just name it we have it...but it seems that the last year we are witnessing an unprecedented decadence...event-wise, music-wise, legally-wise...
event-wise: 3 or 4 years ago we would all have been jumping in the joy if we knew Tiesto or Paul Van Dyk are coming...3 years later we don't bother reading the flyer when we hear about those names...a lot more DJs came but for some reason you can feel that there are no freshness...we have been welcoming DJs in a repetitive manner for quite a few years now...the buzz is gone...and you may bring Sven Vath or Steve Bug or any other name we will be witnessing for the first time...I really don't think that will make our scene better...dullness and repetition killed the vibe for most of us...of course every now and then you get that one gig that aurally pleases you but you get frustrated by many more gigs that will follow...you can also blame it on the lack of clubs...Basement and B018 are doing the best they can to bring some new names but what's the point...a lot of the clientele of these 2 clubs go there simply to take pictures and drink...could it be the music?? could be...but enough talking about international names...after all we people mostly get to hear the local DJs spin...and talking about the local DJs...is everyone today one? it's like everyday a new name pops out in a new place announcing a massive event or an exclusive residency in a Gemmayzeh pub that can contain up to 37 person standing...everyone is trying to burn stages and try to reach the top with no regards to the music or in a matter of fact basic DJing skills...nowadays technology has made everything accessible...one tutorial on a free site and BAM some kid considers himself a decent disc-jockey...FUCK.YOU. I'm not only talking about myself when I say that a lot of the DJs out there exhausted themselves learning about the music and what it takes to be tagged a DJ and shit...we still have loads to learn...I like to browse facebook every once in a while and just see what kind of fan groups that are out there...and a couple of days ago I lost count...it's plain ridiculous...whether it is the music or even on a more basic level, the name and look...every one started awkwardly but it seems it's getting weirder...DJ names are getting more and more associated with drugs (lovely image just what electronic music needs) and a lot of other things we don't need to mention here...kids basically fooling around a 500-pioneer mixer desperate for some attention...and the horde of class-mates who haven't reached puberty yet following them blindly...ridiculous isn't it?
Music-wise: this point can start and NEVER end...I can understand that radio and commercial tunes get critically over-played in night clubs but for the love of Zeus take it easy in the events...how many times do you hear Infinity during one night?? exactly...people are browsing less and less for quality music...which makes this decadence even more dangerous...last summer witnessed the Rise Up revolution...this summer it's the Infinity rage...promising signs for next year...very much...people who want to hear good music stay at home and listen to internet radio shows hoping to get a glimpse of a tune they love or wait for this one DJ to come once a year and hit the crowd with a quality set...it is up to the local DJs to live up to the standards...but do they? oh hell no...Infinity (Glace remix) (PS yeah it's not Klaas it's Glace) makes the crowd on fire...get over it...I really think if you compare the sets played by some people at the beginning of the summer till now you will see no difference in the tracks that are played...it's like a copy/paste...the only reliable DJs are from mix FM, NRJ and Radio One who really try their best to produce a new and fresh set every week (yes guys I didn't forget you
)...what is the solution??it's not like you can take a gun and shove it in people's heads to make them listen to the music...it's anchored in the mentality which is practically impossible to change...
Legally-wise: Need I commenting on this point? we all see what kind of crowd is out there and what kind of attitude they use...you can ban them form your nights...but will you break even?? certainly not...the real listeners are at home avoiding those 10-year old who are hornier than a cat in February...apparently there is no more drinking-age here and drug consuming is well...at an all-time high and will keep rising...this the quality of the crowd that will be haunting our nights for a long time now...and you also have on the other hand the show-offs who attend nights just to get their picture in a magazine...those people are worse than the horny rabbits because their laziness kills the vibe for everyone around them...it's like a football game with a public in ties...no excitement whatsoever...it's a major turn-off for the DJ...I don't see laws getting applied anytime soon unfortunately...government seems to be getting its share of the profit and what if 1000's of kids are drinking illegally??as long as we get our share of the profit...and we keep wondering what makes this country so great...
I'm sure many of you will not get half-way through this piece because a lot that has been written here has been previously discussed...but I would love to get your real prediction on how the scene will become...do you agree with me that the decadence will remain or are you more optimistic and say no...it might just work...for so many times I keep telling myself is it worth it?? I can totally confirm to you NO...I have much more important things in my life myself but somehow electronic music has become more than just a hobby...I cannot throw it all away...but if things keep on getting nastier...ah well...we might just give up...
Sorry for the long piece...but I had some free time
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