(This is for nerds. Just scroll to the pictures if you want.)
Sound systems exist as a boundary object at the center of dance music culture creating
a common source of identity between multiple points of reference within a community.
Multiple roles such as DJ's, organizers, engineers and audience, interact with a sound
system through their own pillars of interpretation.
Fig.1 - Credit: SIM (DJ), Montreal.
Community System Philosophy
A strong community is self reliant and autonomous when it respects the sound system
as a central boundary object through which participants achieve fulfillment. However,
all pillars of interpretation must remain in balance with each other and with respect
to the community at the center.
In more recent trends, the visual iconography of dance music has displaced the
community from the center of the experience in favor of the non-resident artist as a
central boundary object thus forcing each event to be transient along with their
communities.
Maintaining Balance
To bring balance back to the community system, the pillars of interpretation must be
corrected; namely between the symbol of the artist and the audience. The symbol of
the "DJ" (seperate from the DJ themselves) creates a separation between the artist
and the audience by reinforcing a false idea of social superiority through physical
means. For example, a DJ is usually elevated above the audience with lights
and decor directing the viewers attention to a focal center where the DJ is
commonly located. This dynamic gives favor to the idea of a person often at the
expense of other aspects of the event such as the opening acts, the sound system,
and the social rewards of sharing a common experience within a community.
Fig.2 - (Sweeping generalization)
Instances of corrective action has been demonstrated in various ways. Some
organizers may choose to conceal the lineup on their flyers while others may
take it a step further. Many
renegade events in Los Angeles, for example, may
completely obscure the DJ by placing them behind a wall of speakers. In these
instances though, their psuedonyms are present on the flyers. This tactic has
proven to be successful in certain cities where a cultural history that pre-dates
the internet has been well established.
Fig.2.5 - Tonka system
In Salt Lake City however, that is
not the case.
While there has been dance music in Salt Lake since the 90's
(as far back as my knowledge goes) it hasn't been able to fully take root
in a way that its fruits can be directly traced back upon. Because of this,
attempts at obscuring the symbol of the DJ have not been entirely successful.
BLAQVOID, while maybe not intentional, is a perfect example of this phenomenon.
Many names on their flyers are replaced with question marks, leaving only the
nightly genre indicators for their audience to decide whether or not to attend.
In a way, this is a very successful demonstration of the first half of this
concept because much of their audience relies on the consistency and quality of their
events to make their decision. This would help balance some of the aforementioned
pillars in favor of the social and technological aspects of the event. In
another way, it reinforces the problem by encouraging the audience to chase
the symbol of the DJ like a carrot on a stick. You just don't know which carrot
it will be.
Fig.3 - Perfect world.
Leather Veil Of Toyota
Our solution is simple. Conceal the DJ entirely. The only hints of identification
being a disclosure of genres that may be heard within the realm of possibility,
but without gaurantee. To conceal the DJ during the event, a semi-transparent
leather curtain will be used. This attempts to remedy
the problem in a way that is unique to Salt Lake City, a city that contains little
cultural history in dance music.
The curtain completely conceals the identity of the DJ, but unlike some events in
Los Angeles, it does not remove the DJ from the audience's perception. Based on
anecdotal experience, that only causes confusion for an audience that already may be
missing the preconceptions of what the DJ, the sound system, and these events
mean historically. By doing this, we can achieve three things simultaneoulsy without
breaking the event.
Remove the symbol of the DJ from the audience's perception
Maintain the comfortable and widely accepted format for which these events take
place.
Create a socially energetic vacuum within the community space to be filled by
the previously pictured pillars.
Open Bar
(While supplies last)
The open bar serves only one purpose: a social lubricant. While it is extremely
important to respect the space and the dancefloor, we understand that given the
novelty of this type of event, some audience members may have a hard time initially
finding the courage to interact within the vacuum created by effectively
removing the DJ. We want to encourage the audience to find and interact with each other
and with the music in a way that may not have been done before in this type of setting.
Hence, free alcohol for anyone who has a TICKET.
(Access tickets for LGBTQIA+ available via DM)
7,700 Watts of Power
The sound system featured on this night will contain 6 high powered "top" cabinets and
6 Subwoofer cabinets. The drivers add up as follows.
6x 1" Tweeters
6x 8" Midrange
6x 15" Bass
6x 18" Subwoofers
5+ Hours Of Music
Toyota has chosen five plus curators for you to listen to and experience. Each DJ will be
pushing themselves to their creative limits being free from the scrutinizing pressure of
performance. Expect a lot of DJ sets to intermingle throughout the night.
