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Transformative. Transcendent. Awe-inspiring. These are some of the ways dance music can – and does – affect us, like when uplifting dance music and magical entertainment intertwine beneath starry skies. And so it was for much of Saturday night at ZoukOut 2005 at Siloso Beach, Sentosa when 18,000 revelers partied till dawn to music spun by top A-list international DJs across 4 music arenas sprawled along the beach stretch…
Just hours to the region’s most eagerly awaited dance music festival; special ZoukOut transfer buses drop off beach-wear clad clubbers who are streaming in by the thousands onto Siloso Beach, Sentosa. They start to queue, some trying to buy last minute entrance tickets and others, eager to be one of the first to secure their pole position in front of the various music arenas. Collectively, they start to form a snake and the spirit of anticipation is running high.
This year marks the 5th installation of the annual dance music event. Dubbed as South East Asia’s largest and most notable dance music festival, ZoukOut headlines were carried in local and international press like Juice Magazine, South China Morning Post, New Straits Times, naming just a few. They were spinning names off the carte du jour of international DJs to helm the various music arenas; and the result: sending thousands of tourists into a buying frenzy for a ticket to Singapore and a full booking of all rooms at the island’s Shangri-La’s Rasa Sentosa Resort and The Sentosa Resort and Spa.
"Iconic events such as ZoukOut contribute to Singapore’s image as a vibrant city with a pulsating nightlife that attracts visitors and locals alike. The scene has grown more diversified and exciting in recent times, thanks to welcome additions that are renowned international brands and most notably, world-class home-grown gems like Zouk that now enjoy strong international appeal. All this boosts the city’s efforts to become Asia’s Entertainment Capital, moving us toward our vision of doubling arrivals to 17 million and tripling tourism receipts to S$30 billion by 2015,” said Mr Oliver Chong, Director, Events and Entertainment Cluster Development, Singapore Tourism Board.
This year, a record-breaking number of 18,000 party revelers came through the party gates– many as early as when doors opened at 8pm. Mingling with friends and queuing with cool clubbers from all over the world – over 6,000 of them tourists – they formed the prelude to the main event.
Of the record number who turned out, 35% were tourists with the highest numbers flocking in from Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Hong Kong. Hailed as the not-to-be-missed dance music festival, one clubber from the UK said, “We have come all the way from London to check this out. We have heard this is the place to be tonight in Asia. We were traveling around Asia and made a special trip to Singapore, just for ZoukOut.”
The music arenas are natural honey pots, each with a different sound genre and drawing its own breed of bees. The four different music arenas feature a range from progressive and tribal house, techno and trance at the Main Arena to soulful house at the Velvet Underground Arena and a selection of retro to current commercial hits, followed by hiphop at the Mambo Jambo/ Hip Hop arena.
The live stage, manned by a stellar selection of local rock bands, caused a massive adrenaline-driven revelation, stunning an ever-increasing audience with their melodic songs, humble good nature and world-class musicianship.
Peripheral entertainment filled the gaps for the clubber-at-rest as the festival mounted a salvo of carnival activities including gyrotrons, reverse bungee jumps, art installations and even a RESFEST screening. Not to mention interactive stations offered by key sponsors like Sony, Heineken, Coke and FHM Magazine.
All those who came felt that the festival was truly outstanding; a genuine and successful attempt at melding the best aspects of disparate musical forms into an uplifting, dynamic new realization, paving the path for Singapore to become the “dance music capital of Asia”. These were the words of headlining act DJ Armin Van Buuren, who also added, “Singapore is one of the top 10 cities in the world to play the music I play.”
The other high point was the short spate of rain that seemed to amuse clubbers, some taking a quick duck for shelter but most continuing to dance oblivious to the showers, in awe of the multi-coloured crystal-like raindrops as the laser swept through them. While there was some discomfort, there were many more great moments. As a clubber put it, ”The atmosphere was brilliant, definitely one of ZoukOut’s best ever.”
Thus the year ended with yet another memorable gig. It used to be that Christmas was the time of year when Singaporeans living abroad came home and met up with friends they had not seen for ages. Now, not only does ZoukOut provide Singaporeans with an added excuse to come back but it also encourages people from all over the world to visit our island.
This festival has been acknowledged as the biggest and best yet. It brings in new economy to drive tourism, showcases our island's beauty and its warm-hearted people to the world as well as provides thousands of people with memories they will never forget. More pictures at www.zoukout.com
(Article provided by Zouk)
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