Over my relatively short life span of 17 years I have encountered several life changing experiences. The most recent and profound experience has come from the hands of an event called a "rave". A rave, in it's most basic form, is simply hundreds of kids dancing in front of a DJ but in my eyes a rave is much, much more. First off, a rave is a visual extravaganza. Secondly, raving assaults, your other senses too, like touch, and smell. Most importantly a rave is the ultimate candy for your ears. Raving is an amazing experience that everyone should take part in.
My first ever rave was aptly named Tranceformer III. It's aptly named because that night I experienced a transformation. Having no clue what it was going to be like except for the lame coverage of raves on TV,I was delightfully surprised. For the first time ever I laid my eyes on the exquisite creature that is a raver. Ravers, the people that make raves what they are, dress, think, and act like no one else on this planet. Instead of seeing the boring Gap khakis and vests, I'm faced with teenagers dressed in outrageous colours, baggy glow in the dark jeans, golf hats, over the top jewerly and bandannas, etc. Never had I seen people dress so differently, displaying their individuality and confidence in themselves. Yet the visual beat-down doesn't stop there. The laser effects at Tranceformer III was simply unreal. Dancing now becomes as visually exciting as physically taxing. Kids look like they're dancing in freeze frame because of the popular strobe light and everyone changes colours thanks to the dazzling effects. Tranceformer III ambushed my eyes to the point where I can't go back to a normal dance club setting.
I was more impressed with what a rave does to your sense of smell and touch. At first, you don't think these senses would be touched, yet they get the same treatment as your other senses. Ravers know how to give the best massages in the world. Quite simply, if you haven't had a massage by a raver, you haven't had a massage. Being massaged by a beautiful raver with ice on one's neck and getting a "light show"(another raver twirling glow sticks in front of you) at the same is an out-of-this-world experience. My friend Trevor melted like chocolate on a hot summer's day. Another forgotten sense that isn't ignored at a rave is that of smell. Probably the first thing I noticed at TIII was the smell. Think of marijuana mixed with the body odor of over one thousand dancing kids. You wouldn't think that it's the most amazing smell in the world, but after a while the smell becomes familiar and you welcome it like Cathering welcomed Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights. Raves blast your senses of smell and touch.
The piece du resistance has to be the music. Before TIII I had never really heard techno music. At TIII they were playing trance music, now one of my favorite musical styles. With the turntables running like a mad man, trance music is an exquisite art form. My concept of what was good music sounded like was blown to smithereens. I danced like I had never danced before, not caring what others thought of me. That was it for me. Never in my life had I experienced such freedom. Just doing what I want and not giving a rats ass what anyone thought of me. I didn't care if I was a good dancer or my moves didn't 'fit in'. Everyone in their right mind should experience this little piece of heaven on earth, whether young or old. It opens the mind and sets you free.
