Discovering beat in the house of square

By Andrew Guenzer

COURTESY OF SOCIETY ELECTRONICA

People who passed by GPSCY on Fri., Mar. 27, pricked up their ears to the sounds of a social event unprecedented at Yale. Hypnotic techno strains of breakbeat, house, and goa shook the walls, while blacklit murals and colored lights pulsed under an atmospheric haze. At 4 a.m., the room was packed with frenetic bodies, completely absorbed in the rhythm. Even after the sun rose, the beat went on.

This phenomenon heralded the arrival of Society Electronica, the first manifestation at Yale of a call heard 'round the music world. The genre of electronica, which began as a bunch of nerds playing with computers and keyboards, has fused with dance/funk culture to become one of the most promising musical developments in quite some time. While Yale might not seem like the ideal environment for such a cutting-edge scene, the success of the group's first event, dubbed "One," proves otherwise. Those who attended the party know it was something special. Timothy Barnes, PC '01, said, "It was a shitload of fun, a refreshing and unique experience at a place like Yale."

Barnes is precisely the kind of audience member Society Electronica thrives on: already informed about electronic music and hungry for more. Unfortunately, Yale is not a perfect venue for enjoying techno music; the March event "was the first time an all-night party has successfully been thrown at Yale," according to Society Electronica founder Adam Simons, TD '99.

"All-night" is a key phrase for any techno-fest, as Simons well understands. "I made an attempt last year with a small party in TD," he recounted. "But it was shut down by one. Most people didn't even show up 'til midnight." Perhaps this is because the experienced rave-goers who are the likely audience for these events know, like Barnes, that "it doesn't even get good until two in the morning. That's just the culture."

Simons was disheartened by the limitations placed on the people's right to party all night, but his experience last year only encouraged him to do more. "By the time we had it shut down, the room was full, and people were having a good time," he said. "People came up to me and said `we need to do this again.' I didn't do anything for a long time, because I felt like it wasn't worth doing unless we could go all night. Finally someone suggested GPSCY." Thus, Society Electronica's first dance party was born.

Simons recognized that "there are a lot of people at Yale into electronica, but they're widely dispersed." Robert McCord, BR '98, a core member of the group, added, "Electronic music is under-represented at Yale and it's difficult for students to be exposed to it enough." As a result, Yalies who are into electronica usually "go to New York to get their partying done," Simons said.

Society Electronica is an answer to this isolation, "a good way for people with similar interests to get to know each other," McCord said. Essentially an e-mail list
with between 40 and 50 subscribers,
Society Electronica is open to all;
anyone who wants to join can e-mail adam.simons@yale.edu. The e-mail list is the Society's main means of accomplishing its goal to form a community of electronica fans, allowing fellow fans to get to know each other and to exchange information about what's going on in the techno circuit. Jan Lo, MC '98, a member of Society Electronica and DJ who sums up his love of the music by pithily stating, "It's the beats, man," has found the group tremendously rewarding. "It's definitely cool--everyone united for the love of the music," Lo said. "I met a bunch of people through this."

But the Society Electronica is not content with preaching to the converted. Their parties also function as a way to spread the gospel of electronica to the Yale campus at large. Simons thinks that Society Electronica should be "getting people interested in electronic music, even if it's not dance music."

But Simons sees the society as more than an aesthetic endeavor, saying "the whole environment that we live in at Yale could be improved by having a big party where everyone goes crazy for six hours. The last party was so successful because of the general atmosphere of pent-up Yalies finally releasing their stress."

If you have some pre-finals stress that needs releasing, try Society Electronica's second dance party, "Dos," happening on Fri., Apr. 24, at GPSCY from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. It promises to be an experience no one with an interest in electronic music or intense dancing should miss.

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