A Sherpa’s Tale

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The plug-and-play dialog continues along, with this account, via a “sherpa.” The multi-million dollar camps had vets hook them up, and they’ve given an account of what went down. Suffice it to say, shit’s fucked up and crazy. Enjoy the read my friends, and understand that this may not be something that can be reversed. This is the desert of the real, in all its non-participatory glory.

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sherpa porn

This story posted on Facebook is from a Burner who worked as a Sherpa this year at a multi-million dollar camp. We will keep the Burner’s identity anonymous unless they request otherwise. It is a fascinating, some might say shocking, inside look at the fancier side of Black Rock City.

“What!? You mean I’m a Sherpa!?”

A Tale from the K-hole at Burning Man 2014

By: Whatever

The hot Playa topic this year is all about Plug and Play camps and the controversy surrounding the loopholes they find to be able to run profitable business behind their private walls while on the Playa. As someone who appreciates a challenge  and a good story got share, I felt fortunate that I was able to be an employee working in one of these. Yes, I was a sherpa for a camp put in place by one of the members on the board of…

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Plug-n-Play Goes All the Way…to the Top of the Pyramid [Update]

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“Although the “joke” may have been amusing at first due to its irony, it is now no longer a joke: hotels at Burning Man have become a reality. There are multiple camps following in the footsteps of a “quirky luxe boutique on the Playa” – and charging five figures per head for rooms. Since August 6, Weitz has stepped down from the Board, and been replaced with Matt Goldberg – a Melbourne boy who is SVP of Global Market Development at $9 billion home shopping behemoth QVC. Once you jump the shark, it’s time for the infomercials.”

Not only are the money changers in the temple, but they’re selling rooms at the Inn. Amazing & well researched story about the gentrification & 1%-ization of BM. Kudos to Kanizzle for posting the story.

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“self reliance is the greatest art” – my teabag message as I’m finishing off this post.

Earlier this year, Burning Man CEO and Founder Marian Goodell gave a talk at TEDx Tokyo, while social alchemist Bear Kittay, part of the “Burning Man 2.0” team, debuted his new song celebrating transhumanism and the Singularity (you know, that great idea where we’re all going to become one with robots and Google).

Marian released a couple of factoids in the speech that raised our eyebrows. One was that group revenues are now $30 million. The other was that the Burning Man Project board has 19 directors.

To me, that seems extraordinarily high, and Bain Capital agrees:

According to the BoardSource Nonprofit Governance Index 2010, the average board size is 19 and the median is 17. BoardSource reports that nonprofits with budgets of $10 million or more have an average of 18 members and…

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Diplo Is Actually Trolling Everyone & Winning. Hard.

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(Check out this long-form opinion piece I dropped on EDMTunes this week. Give credit where credit is due and hit them up for all of the latest news & info on diplo. In addition to every other DJ ever of course.)Diplo - EDMTunes

The EDM blogosphere has been obsessed with diplo’s latest “faux pas” this week, for possibly/maybe getting booed. He played Turn Down For What (a Billboard #4/#1 Dance Hit) at Robot Heart, a Burning Man camp/soundstage. Pulse Radio & Consequence of Sound were two of the first sites to break the story, which metastasized and quickly became the only thing dance music internet was talking about. A bunch of armchair DJs & bloggers gleefully complained about how diplo had no crowd sense, didn’t “get” Burning Man, had no idea what minimal tech house (the scene Robot Heart caters to) was, and on and on. By the time Burning Man attendees woke up in the default world Wednesday morning, the internet had exploded about this to the point that you could be convinced nothing else actually happened at Burning Man except Turn Down For What. While editors, bloggers and site admins high-fived each other for getting the scoop, the important people (i.e. the burners who were there, <insert famous person here>) offered commentary on why he did what he did. There’s a whole lot of meta-discussion about how this track selection was a mistake, which I find to be taken at this point, something just assumed. Like, OBVIOUSLY that wasn’t the correct choice. Frankly, the idea that this was a mistake is hilariously incorrect. Anyone making it clearly has no idea just how big diplo has gotten and how much of a social media master he’s become over the years.

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#FestFriday – Packing For TomorrowWorld

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My girl Ravelrie does a great TomorrowWorld preview, packing guide and info post. If you’re headed to the hills make sure to check this out!

ravelrie's avatarravelrie

TomorrowWorld

With just under two weeks to go until the second annual TomorrowWorld, and the magical journey to the hills of Chattahoochee, it’s time to start making those final arrangements!

Some things to keep in mind…

  • avicii has cancelled performances for the rest of the year because of his health issues–let’s hope he gets well and gains some weight so that we can see him perform again next year with live artists and feathers everywhere as he takes it to some other leve7s. fucking alcohol and drugs man, they do bad shit to the little organs inside of you… MODERATION AND KNOWLEDGE ARE KEY!
  • which reminds me… if you need a test kit, get one here.
  • wristbands should be sent out by the end of next week; if you don’t receive them by the 24th, bring your e-ticket with you that came with your paylogic order and pick up a…

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Fik Shun Isn’t Real. (Amazing Performance @ World Of Dance!)

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Can we get this dude in something? Are there any more breakdance movies coming out? Can there be an entire one of liquid, popping/locking, b-boying and everything else associated with EDM? I might actually go see that thing, as opposed to the miasma of hip hop vs. ballet & tap vs. contemporary gang war stuff. (via Metafilter)

Midnight Music: New REBOOTED Release! Scott Bond & Marc Mitchell – Airfoil [Trance Rise Continues]!

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I asked for it and it came! The next release from REBOOTED showed up today and I couldn’t be happier with it. The remix pack has 5 proper trance remixes of this Scott Bond/Marc Mitchell track named Airfoil. I can’t wait to hear one of these in a FSOE or a 138 set. Grab the 5pack at Beatport here!

The REBOOTED remix keeps the driving force of the label in the center ring. There’s some souring electric guitar-styled synths and a beat that is worthy of any trance DJ’s set, if they know how to handle it of course. This is a solid, punchy track with a very fulfilling break, one you have to wait like a proper trance head for.

The Simon Templar remix starts off with a bit more of a funky beat, but that pulls into some chilled vibes that bunch together into a playful remix that I’m a huge fan of. Simon Templar is just one of a half dozen artists I’ve discovered because of this label. Good on Scott Bond for this, that’s some amazing scouting. The Templar mix evokes classic Oakenfold feels that pulse through your mind playfully,  the whole thing clocking n at 9 minutes. This takes its time, like good trance should.

The Standerwick remix pulls us back into some more catchy, clubland beats that remind me of almost Voodoo & Serrano or Green Court. There’s a vintage feel that’s complimented by the solitary piano & vocal line, polished to a mirror shine. This is a track I can’t wait to hear Solarstone play live somewhere.

Just in time for Halloween, the Splattered Implant remix has a menacing, haunted twist to it. The beat is half psy-trance, half Blade 1, and I couldn’t be happier. The tune feels like it would be right at home on Planet Perfecto, but it’s here, betwixt 4 regular trance tracks, and this is the kind of forward thinking I’ve been waiting for. The tune explodes after a vocal sample that is totally unexpected and turns the track in a darker, vaguely psychedelic style.

Stephane Badey closes out the EP with a driving, hard trance rework of Airfoil. There’s a dollop of Infected Mushroom-style psy on this thing, but it packs Veracocha-style punch, so it’s not to be underestimated. It pulls back into pure vibes before building deliciously. This is definitely one of my favorite driving crescendos in years and leaves me angry I didn’t get more. A+ work all around once again, so grab it on Beatport and

Who Is This Vocalist?! Alanis Morissette’s “You Oughta Know” Becomes “You Gotta Go!”

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So Earmilk broke this crazy sounding track, and I’ve been trying to guess who the hell it is. It’s cool as hell and the vocals are 100% on point. The cleverness of changing “You Oughta Know” to “You Gotta Go” turns the 90s vocal sadness soundtrack into a huge, punchy dance anthem. This is going to get played at every festival ever. This has the catchiness of Turn Down For What but without the stupid dub-lectro feel and zero heart. But there’s no artist info anywhere! Right now, I’ve narrowed it down to three possible vocalists, and I need your help (yes you, the reader, all 12 of you) to ID this tune! It’s between Ayah Marar, Aja Volkman or Dia Frampton. Check out these tracks by each of them and let me know which you think.



3 Rap Mashups You’ll Laugh At.

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First up is Busta Rhymes vs. Thomas The Tank Engine. This works way more than I thought it would. Also, holy crap Busta raps fast. This gets out of hand, and it’s only 45 seconds long.

Slim Shady beats + Gas Pedal = An intense amount of win. Especially considering a whole lot of young listeners have no idea what this beat is. The end gets a little dumb but that just shows what happens when you turn your knobs all the way.

Last one is kind of shocking. Ludacris + Angry Birds works way too well. Like, I’m kind of shocked, though I really shouldn’t be. This + the Busta stuff proves that we should just make a cartoon with Luda, Busta, Marshall Mathers & Nas fighting the evil Chris Brown Empire. Along the way they learn the meaning of friendship, justice and learning, is this possible? Can we make this happen?