Goa

Aum Namah Shivaya!

The first European hippies settled down in Goa in 60ties. he first parties were concerts. People made stages and lots of 70ties punk group played in Goa. In '87-88 season Christopher Chas invented and firstly mentioned Goa trance. Lots people don't like him, because of it. Then Raja Ram (founder of T.I.P.) use "Goa trance" in Europe. Goa freaks asked him don't use it, otherwise Goa become a resort, but he did and Goa became a resort.
Imagine a party on the Arabian Sea coast - very beautiful place among palm trees. There is about 300 people, the dark, loud music. You see around enormous amount of moving fluoro shadows. There is only Black Light. All people're dancing personally, everyone has own dance and it looks very psychedelic. The most psy moment is in sunrise. People who is the first time in Goa would feel an emotional shock. They suddenly realize that all dancers are mature, there is no one who looks younger 25-year-old. But there are lots of women in the middle age about 45-50 and men, bearded men who pierced everything on his body, who covered by tattoos and fluoro fetishes etc. Or a 50-year-old woman whose dance would make you jealous. She stand up near speakers when a party begin and she leave only when the party is over. That's it!
What's Goa trance? Despite common opinion, no one write psychedelic trance in Goa. Goa is a place where DJs and musicians play it on the parties. About 90% of this music is created in Europe. In this terms, the most strong countries are UK, France, Belgium and Israel. At present, Australia, Sweden, Finland and Japan joined. Musicians write one track in July, then another - in September, but they don't sell it to the labels. Well, there are BIG labels and people from such labels produce their tracks very soon after the writing, but they aren't popular in Goa because of it. Usually musicians take all new tracks to Goa first. They play it on the parties first, because it's most important to twist people's mind for the real musician. And people feel a real vibe! On the other hand, Goa is a business place. Many musicians , DJs, promoters and art designers come to Goa each season. But it's not usual business. You're just laying on a beach in a palm tree shadow, smoking chillum and chatting with someone. During a few days these relaxed chats usually turn into friendship. In fact, there are people who make business on it. They look around, ask what's this track etc. There are about 1000 new tracks each season, 10% will released in July by the most commercial labels, 20% - within year, but the rest of tracks will die on DAT and will never released. A term "goa trance" was invented in order to define nonstandard music style in trance, then appeared "trip trance" - slower trance, but now there are only main division for trance in Goa. There are morning and night music. The "night" system of sounds make possible to feel psychedelia of music, but "morning" sounds make you feel easier after trippy night and happily dance with beautiful tunes.
Goa trance is best described as a psychedelic dance music. The beat is a steady 4/4 kick but is often hidden deep within the twirling array of analog sounds. Much of the melody comes with a constant barrage of evolving 16th or 32nd note sound streams.

Record labels involved in the Goa trance scene include Dragonfly, Flying Rhino, Perfecto Fluoro, Platipus, TIP; with artists such as Man With No Name, Hallucinogen, Total Eclipse and Astral Projection. There are also noted Artists from Germany (Kox Box on Harthouse), Israel (Har-El) and Australia's Psy-Harmonics label.

Goa trance has been with us for longer than you might think..4 years at least. However it has only really hit the mainstream of rave culture in the last year.

Goa trance could be compared to classical music, because the tracks take you on a journey and have a proper beginning and end, and that it seems to have more substance than other dance music (if you are used to it and know what to look for). Carefully chosen samples contribute far more than empty vocals, meaningless words. The power in a Goa track is in the evolution.On many goa-trance recordings you can fina phrase the "Secret is in the future".