Wednesday, December 14, 2016

420 (Cannabis) and Deep House


Article by Draeko

Billowing upwards, expanding outward from the cracks between the floorboards, wafting ghost-like from its restricted and confidential confines, the 420 culture is now being allowed its due from the sidelines of the illegal fringe. And that’s a good thing. For a good many of us old enough, the Deep House scene in general, that 420 ethos has always been there. In the heartbeat behind the rhythms to which we bobbed our heads, patted our feet, or shook our hips, 420 kept Deep House relevant. It was that unifying moment on every clock, when we knew, either firsthand or from a high probability rate that somewhere, someone was sparking it up. If it was 420 after hours, most likely it was us.

Through that blue haze hovering above at our private parties and discreetly-planned events, the aroma of the fog like some mind-calming mist on the moors, we danced happily and forbidden, baring our souls to its influence. Even so, it was a secret life a second identity. Now, however, the light has come. The dawn of a new day is shining through that morning dew on the grass. The Deep House scene now has some real relevance, both to the old and new school alike.

It has been astoundingly good. Never before have the beats at the Re-bar on a Sunday night, or the Contour during its afterhours, ever sounded so unabashedly, so unashamedly good. With recreational cannabis having become legal, Deep House DJs, the ones I’ve personally spoken with, now feel that their soulful output resonates stronger to an even more receptive audience. Without that paranoia factor of being busted for possession and/or usage, there is an even more renewed focus to simply groove and vibe. By default, the 420 culture and Deep House genre already constitutes a marriage made in heaven. Now, the vibe is government-sanctioned.

As a DJ myself, (Draeko Set) one always adamantly involved in his technique and the theatrical presentation of my sets, I can say (albeit anecdotally) that the mixing style, the chord matching, the beat-matching, all of them, became even sultrier, the phrasing richer in my productions. I not only began really experiencing what I was feeling behind those decks, but I began sensing, without even having to look at them, the vibe of the dancers. There are a few DJs I’ve spoken with, over the past two years, who have mentioned the same feelings.

I am in the process of relocating to California (another state that has just gone legal with recreational 420), I will seek out the Deep House scene there, examining it alongside the Seattle experience.
I suspect the DJs there will tell me the same thing the DJs here have told me. 420 has opened them up. They’re playing better, feeling the crowd more, and laying down some profoundly relevant tracks. It is my goal, once I’ve settled into my new digs, to bring their experience to you. 

Until then, partake, enjoy. And by all means… please inhale.

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