With the web series Journey Through Transformational Festivals not expected to deliver the first of four episodes until winter, I've had a hankering to watch some of the documentaries out there that explore the culture that has evolved around electronic music. Read on for five rave docs worth checking out.
Summer of Rave
About as fun as a history lesson gets, Summer of Rave shows how, if you mix Thatcherism with an unprecedented heat wave, add a generous dose of youth disgusted with the normalization of greed, toss in a new type of music and sprinkle generously with an empathogenic drug, you get raves.
Watch the whole doc on YouTube:
Dust & Illusions
Burning Man is hardly a rave, though certainly a strong rave component is ingrained in the festival's DNA. Five years in the making, Dust & Illusions is still probably the best doc I've seen on the event. Exploring Burning Man's 30-year history from its birth in the San Francisco underground to the largest (and most complex) counter-culture event in North America, and quite possibly the world, director Olivier Bonin isn't afraid to upset the faithful.
Get a taste with the trailer:
Shambhala
Malcolm Levy's 2008 documentary on Shambhala is an attendee's-eye-view of the festival, sharing perspectives of performers, festival-goers and volunteers. It's especially interesting in light of the recent death at the festival, as it shows the above and beyond efforts of the festival's first responders working to keep people safe.
Find it at your friendly neighbourhood video store.
Watch the trailer:
Electric Daisy Carnival Experience
Top-notch production quality, but a little light on substance. (Probably not unlike the festival itself.) Pair it with the aforementioned Dust & Illusions for an evening of juxtapositional fun.
Find it at your local video store.
Watch the trailer:
Raving in the Black Sea
After watching Raving in the Black Sea, a Vice doc on a large rave that moves around the sunnier parts of Eastern Europe, I wasn't sure as to whether I wanted to go, or call in an air strike. Disturbing and apocalyptic, yet entertaining in a typical Vice sort of way. (NSFW, viewer discretion advised.)
Did we miss any docs you think should have been included? Let us know below.