Smile and Dance in THAILAND
When winter comes to the Northern Hemisphere, you meet lots of psy artists from all over the world in Thailand. The island of Koh Phangan still is THE party-center.
One of the highlights of Thailand’s trance scene surely is Greenspirit-Festival around New Year’s Eve. More than 2000 people showed up 2005/06 at the three-day festival in a beautiful rubber tree garden in Ao Nang/Krabi. The Swiss expat and organizer Stephan of Wanna’s Place resort promised the party again for 2006 with international acts.
Since the Fullmoon-parties in Haadrin Beach at Koh Phangan turned out to be a monthly mass event with up to 30,000 people boozing, psytrance lovers usually avoid this. Still left of the legendary times of psytrance in Haadrin are the great sound systems at Vinyl Club and Zoom Bar right at the beach and some fluoro-shops like Digital Escape.
For the last three years a new psy-scene has developed around the village of Ban Tai, where parties never seem to stop and where the international trance scene now gathers. The biggest party now is the Halfmoon-Festival by DJ Jao with up to 2000 people and great decoration. Close to its location Andy and DJ Chai organize the Jungle Party twice a month. The Blackmoon party, organized monthly by DJ Leung, is located directly at the beach of Ban Tai. All of these parties have mostly international line-ups and are followed up by the daytime afterparty in Ban Sabaii until midnight. Thailand’s most famous DJ Sabaii Sabaii is frequently seen there. For warming up there are some bars with fluoro-decor (Circus Bar). Phangan psy-promoters have a remarkably well system of scheduling their parties alternating and don’t compete with each other. Beware of (disguised) police at all parties, Prime Minister Takshin’s war on drugs is still going on.
The most renowned psy-trance party in Bangkok takes place during Mahasongkran water festival, this year from April 13th to 15th in Ooze Bar near Kao San Road. In Thailand’s capital you also find smaller occasional parties as well as in Ko Tao, Ko Lanta and even in Sihanoukville in Cambodia the party scene has started now.
Links
 Text
Tom Rom
tomrom24@chello.at |
