EXPANSION :: 1997 - 1999
To my surprise, I became a resident DJ with the Moontribe Collective some months after my djing debut at the May 1996 FMG. At the same time, the local L.A. underground was exploding with great talent like Taylor, Sandra Collins, Christopher Lawrence, Jason Blakemore, Oscure, Electric Skychurch, and many, many more. Also, many dedicated, creative promoters were bringing the joy of music and dance to the Southern California community such as No-I-Tu-Love, F.A.M.I.L.Y., EarthDance, E.L.M., Good Vibe Crew, Conscious Groove, Dune, Tropical, and YouGoodMissy, to name just a few. Thus began a period of expanding opportunities for djing, travel, connection and collaboration.
Moontribe djs, organizers, and best friends embarked on two chaotic and unforgettable tours during these years. 1997's Live in Love tour took us from L.A., to Santa Fe, to Boulder, up to the idyllic island of Victoria, B.C., and finally to Eugene. 1999's Summer of Love tour followed basically the same path as we re-connected with friends and cemented many long-lasting relationships. That memorable Summer ended with a first visit to Burning Man the incredible festival art and self-reliant community held in the Black Rock desert of Nevada.
We were recieving national opportunity and success in the midst of a vibrant music and dance scene. DJs like John Kelley and DJ Brian (AKA Brian Seed) were riding high on national acclaim with their popular CD mixes released on Moonshine. Lotus Magazine, FIX, and others were chronicling the wave of underground activity happening in Southern California; Moontribe released it's one and only collaboratively-mixed CD - Sound Without Walls - and my friends and I were djing from Mexico to Canada and throughout the Western USA. The love, the joy, the music were being spread far and wide; tribal dance culture was growing, evolving, and flourishing.
