Eclipse 2016 - Circle of Light

How do I condense last weekend into under 1000 words? I guess I'll start at the beginning...

Eclipse Festival has been passing through my ears since 2013. My friends have always talked about, and not talked about, their fond memories of camping and music. I understood the festival was initially as some kind of otherworldly Gathering-of-the-Hippies that happened once every two years like a sect ritual. Despite having been to numerous psytrance events and various festivals myself, nothing could have prepared me for the gorgeous, intense, and rejuvenating four days I was about to spend lost in the beautiful crowds of the Eclipse Festival that took place in Sainte-Thérèse-de-la-Gatineau. 

The site itself was a camp ground by the name of Bonnet Rouge. When it's not offering a temporary home to at least 3000 ravers, it offers rafting and other outdoor activities and is Just. Plain. Stunning. From where I had camped, I got a clear view of the main Solar stage as soon as I left my tent. Covered by a huge expanse of psychedelic string art – it looked delightful. I was already imagining dedicating my entire weekend to being under the sun shaped, multi-coloured butterfly wing; but. I didn't spend as much time as I had initially planned to at the main stage

It's hard to highlight a best-of. The first set I went to was one of my favourites of the entire weekend. Turbo turned out an offbeat, minimal masterpiece worthy of an afterhours – despite it being only 2:30 in the afternoon. As soon as he dropped Mandragora's "La Españolita", I knew the weekend was going to be great. The Lunar stage, where he played, was set up a bit like a cabin, with wooden, fan-like structures surrounding it. The stage also was home to Woulg's mind-bending set performed to a captivated audience (check out my interview with Greg Debicki here). The last element in the Lunar stage trifecta was Thomas Von Party's set. I'm not just saying that because he agree to let me interview him. I say this because it absolutely packed the dance floor and violently entranced the Sunday night crowd.

I had been waiting all weekend to see Arjuna, but after having been chewed up and spit out by Von Party's energy – I couldn't get in to it. However, the lineup of Tetrameth, David Starfire, and Kloud Nin9 kept me at the Solar stage the night before. Boris Brejcha in a B2B with Ann Clue was something out of a dream world where the DJs enjoyed themselves as much as the crowd. The great thing about the Solar stage was that as the sun went down, the music got darker; but it was loud. Much like the sun over the course of the weekend, No matter where you went on the festival grounds, you could still feel the Solar stage's impact. 

Halfway between the Solar stage and the beach, the Stellar stage provided down tempo beats and a chill out environment. It was the hidden gem of the festival. Every time I walked to the stage, I was delighted by talented dancers, excellent music, and company. Strawberry Boy (or so I've named him) provided all of the revellers on the dance floor with fresh fruits while Don Mescal provided us with excellent music and a live clarinettist on Friday night. Tron Sepia delivered an exciting dubstep set. Gabrielle's clean and unique vocals felt like they could be heard across the entire universe as she serenaded us under the stars on Saturday. The group closed out with a powerful performance of their most well-know track, "Below the Abyss". Risa, who played on Sunday afternoon, delivered an otherworldly performance full of twisting and exotic melodies interspersed with the occasional Multi-Culti release that kept me on my feet for the full two hours.  

The weekend seemed to fly by in a collection of hands waving to music, stomping bass lines, sweat, and fruit. Before I knew it, I was collapsing in to my tent one last time before I was brought back to the harsh reality of Montreal and life outside the forest.

I'll see you all again in 2018!

--What will you hear when The Machine Stops? Find out every Friday at 9 AM with your host DJ Thinkbox, only on CJLO!