ZoukOut Singapore 2007
By Menreet Kaur
December 8, 2007
Siloso Beach, Sentosa
Singapore
Dancing under the stars, with the sand on their feet, surrounded by the hottest creations of mankind and a string of hot shot DJs and live bands that led them to the culmination of their senses. That was what 23,000 revelers experienced at ZoukOut Singapore 2007. All they had left to cool off the steamy night was the booze, the sea breeze and the option of stripping down to their bare necessities.
ZoukOut is the largest dance music festival in Southeast Asia and it attracts tons of clubbers from Singapore and all over the world to have a reason to party for 12 straight hours. With an eclectic audio display of electronica, house, techno, trance, electro, minimal, progressive, alternative/indie, hip hop and the crowd favorite Mambo Jambo, it was no surprise that the beach was still packed with grooving groupies till eight the next morning.
The newest addition to the ZoukOut lineup is the Euro-Slide - the largest inflatable water slide in Asia. Tickets were selling like hotcakes and the exhilarating screams from the thrill ride could be heard from miles away. The boys looked on starry-eyed as the girls adjusted the wedgies they ended up getting from their bikini bottoms.
Another event that was arranged to wow the crowds was set to disembark at midnight with parachutist Chuck Berry jumping off a helicopter and landing on a space marked out on the beach. The crowd, however, seemed pretty jaded and unenthused by this.
The Mambo Jambo/ Hip Hop stage reigned supreme that night. A bevy of familiar faces dished out their quirkiest of mambo moves in unison. Resident Zouk DJs pelted out hit after hit, making the crowd breathless yet completely charged. Mad scratch scientist DJ Craze and freestyle champion MC Armanni led the stage from two till five in the morn' with the sexiest and naughtiest of hip hop tunes. Skimpy-clad girls, topless guys, beer everywhere and the beach. It looked like something straight out of a 50 Cent video.
Local and regional bands such as I am David Sparkle, Caracal, The Fab IQ of David Gunn, Electrico, Deserters and Great Sky Experiment were over at the Live Stage of the event. The crowd energy in that area was pretty much in a lull, right until Electrico came in and saved the stage, drawing the crowd with their excellently engaging live performance.
Over at the main arena, Carl Cox, undisputed king of original UK underground and godfather of UK techno brought the crowd to an intoxicating high with his explosive beats. Everyone had their hands in the air, playing conductor to his range. German duo Ame played Detroit-influenced deep house with soul; a tantalizing uniqueness to this sound had the crowds in an uproar.
The Velvet Underground stage was the place to be if celebrity DJs were your cup of tea. DJ Steve Aoki (Kid Millionaire) was truly the star of the night. His stage antics were a creative ambivalent mess and he knew exactly which buttons to push to get the party people indie-disco crazy! Following through his legendary act, James Murphy and Pat Mahoney (DFA Records & LCD Soundsystem) too kept the crowd yearning for more. The international crowd was especially present here.
Props have to be given to the ZoukOut crew for making the long queues go by as quickly as possible without compromising security and also for their excellent on-site service. It's a pity this is the last year the beach party will be held on Siloso Beach grounds. One can only hope that ZoukOut 2008 would be able to surpass the joyous experience that ZoukOut 2007 had to offer.
MTVAsia.com prowled the beach to hunt down the hottest bods and sexiest bikinis. Click here to see who made the cut!
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