As the underground techno and house scene in the United States continues to grow, it’s vitally important that every single person involved understands proper etiquette and rules of conduct when attending such events.
By definition alone, the moment the “underground” isn’t underground anymore it ceases to exist, and all it takes is careless behavior to bring unnecessary light to great events occurring in your city. Promoters are undoubtedly responsible for ensuring that every single event they put on is planned and executed with attendee safety as a first priority, but they also need your help in ensuring that the event goes smoothly and becomes one of a series, rather than a single burning flame destined for no future.
Here is the truth: promoters bear an incredible amount of risk putting on underground events, often dealing with months of preparation that include long negotiations to book lineups featuring your favorite artists, finding and securing safe venues, staffing the event adequately to service your needs, organizing day/night-of logistics and of course ensuring that it all goes smoothly when it’s crunch time. The emotional, physical and financial stress is not small, and when all is said or done it’s the promoter that puts everything at risk in an effort to put on an event that hopefully becomes a night you will remember for time to come. Don’t forget that almost every single nightlife and electronic music promoter on this planet is a raver and music fan just like you, and that it’s the love for the music and movement that drives them to do what they do.
So where do you come in the equation? Simple: it take the effort of every single person involved with an event, from the promoter on down to each attendee, to keep the underground alive and… underground. Here are some things you can do to keep the underground alive:
This may seem obvious to some, but you cannot imagine how many times people violate this one simple rule. Keep the address to yourself and share it only with those you trust. Absolutely never ever post it on any form of social media.
If you’re getting hit up for the address by a Facebook acquaintance whom you’ve never met you should question the circumstances and, for the sake of the party, not share it anyways. If they are truly looking to attend they can get it from the right sources, period.
Try to take a cab, Uber or Lyft when going to an underground event. The more cars are parked around the venue the higher the likelihood of the location getting noticed. Also ensure you park in a legal spot, again to detract attention from the area.
When you arrive do not loiter outside your car or venue. Don’t make unnecessary noise. Park and make your way into the venue as swiftly as you can, without pre-partying there. The pre-party/pre-game should be done at home and before arriving to the location.
Social media is a double edged sword. It serves as organic promotion for a well-executed event of almost any kind, but can be the easiest way to ensure an underground event gets shut down. Here are some big no-no’s to consider:
Our cell phones come equipped with super-accurate GPS tracking which, coupled with social media networks’ geo-tagging, make it the perfect way to locate where you are checking in from or where your live stream is coming from, whether it’s through Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
While disabling location services and ensuring your app settings do not share your location are a way of getting around this problem, the truth of the matter is that most people will not go through the lengths of doing this prior to every underground they attend. In fact most do not even know how to in the first place.
At the end of the day it boils down to this one simple question: why risk ruining the party for yourself and everyone just for the sake of some social media likes?
I love Berghain’s no photo policy. The underground should be a place of escape, where every single person on the dance floor can be themselves without worrying about ending up on someone’s video or in the background of a group photo.
We do not allow photos or videos at our WORK events in Los Angeles. This not only helps to keep the vibe alive, but it is also important to keep venues and our scene safe.
If you are at an event that allows photos, try to be considerate when using your phone and do not under any