hypnotic sounds at the blue hour

23 august 2025 - saturday

a couple months ago, my friend kip and i were discussing how techno as a genre was best enjoyed (in our personal, humble opinions ofc, enjoy music however you like) as a long-form experience, with timeslots longer than an hour, allowing the music to breathe as a steady ebb and flow. he and i have already done several events together, and it seemed time to do another event as he had just come out with a world called 'the blue hour' - an abandoned parking lot surrounded by city buildings, a projector set up as a screen for visuals against an open back of a van, and with the dj decks inside facing towards the projector. the sky is a stark, saturated blue - reminiscent of the early mornings i experienced living by the pier. this space and that timeframe in mind put me into the headspace for a set that takes you on a journey of that liminal hour.

a photo taken during ars gaoetia's set.

i had heard from a homie that ars gaoetia had done a hypnotic techno set earlier in the month, and i was very excited to get them on the lineup. kip had someone come up to him also sometime earlier in the month about playing out a techno set, which happened to be keno tatsu. keno tatsu was a person i have attended multiple of their sets throughout the years, but always missed the opportunity to really talk to them - being in vrchat, time blurs and a lot of hosts, fellow DJs, and event runners all get really busy! it was good that we were finally able to be on a lineup together. with the lineup in place, it was agreed that we would all do sets about 1.5 hours / 90 minutes long, which is rather abnormal for most timeslots nowadays!

mixing techno feels like coming home. my set started off with a poem by william carlos williams, 'evening without angels'. blending in the end of that poem with one of my favorite tracks by juan atkins, 'transport', set me at ease - i was ready to embark on a journey. a lot of this slower, ambient yet psychedelic and acidic techno makes for interesting layers of sound. as a genre, techno's "drops" aren't always the most obvious. i think sensing the shift between tracks and the sounds on different channels is the main draw to techno. yes, at every musical performance you are listening to the music. but techno, again at least to me lol, feels like a puzzle piece that must be figured out through dance, slow contemplation, and finally a release. if i sound crazy describing this, it is probably because i am.

a photo taken during friendship's set

what i love about these longer sets is the variety of the journeys, the mystery to the start by each DJ, the experience of learning of another person thru the music that they share. keno tatsu went after me and started off with an amazing intro, also slowly easing us into a different and new vibe. i appreciate that all of us on the lineup were keenly aware of the others and the music that we shared - it seemed that, despite not discussing entirely what we would individually play, we had adjusted in such a way that throughout the night, the vibe remained consistent: comfy, chill, hypnotic, melancholic, and liminal. i adored how people immediately settled into the cushions kip had set out in this world, sitting with each other and speaking softly and enjoying themselves, all the while listening to the music and providing praise and kind thoughts with a swift eagerness. nights like these remind me why i love this space, this medium of expression, and this community.

a photo taken of someone flying above us in a dragon avatar. the dragon!

people who come to venues like this and understand the energy of it are absolutely lovely. like the individual pictured above in their dragon avatar flying above us, they explored the world and experienced the music in their own way and i loved it. others played with the silhouettes of the projector while some completely passed out on the floor. what surprised me was how willing people were to take in the vibe and settle into it with no complaints! not once did i felt like i needed to moderate or be a "buzzing bee" host as i call it lol. this was a rare time that i as a host felt very much comfortable and in my zone. i wasn't stressing too much about attendance, i had full confidence in the vibe of our event, and no one was being disruptive at all!!! i was feeling certainly blessed. friendship himself passed out towards the end, which i found incredibly endearing hahaha. to be comfy to trust your peers and sleep, to rest knowing the night went well... it made me happy for him too. the night ended with my spiritual cup full of joy.


if you would like to attend events like this or to check out the DJs on this event's lineup, please check out the following links below!!!