Dancing in the streets

DJs @llen and Adrian Halter gabbin'. PHOTO: JULES QUARTLY, TAIPEI TIMES

Here for a week is Adrian Halter, who will be playing Bacchus tonight and Taichung Moon Island tomorrow. The tech-house DJ hails from Switzerland but now lives in Brazil and was the promoter behind last year's RioParade, a 200,000-strong electronic music carnival that could be replicated in Taiwan later this year. He has teamed up with local musical strongman DJ @llen to put the event together on Oct. 10 (the nation's official birthday).

The Vinyl Word: You say the concept behind RioParade and the tentatively titled Taipei Freedom Parade is to promote love, peace and tolerance. Isn't that a bit naive?

Adrian Halter: "Well, I can speak for Rio [de Janeiro], where there is a real need for tolerance as there is so much racism there, against black, white, women, everything. There is a lot of violence, with the drug and gang wars. During the Carnival there is always fighting and even though the RioParade was not established, it was the first year, there was no fighting.

@llen: I don't think we can bring eternal peace, but for a night of celebration it can be done. In Taiwan, drugs are always associated with electronic music, which is wrong. We want to show something different and have people dancing in the streets.

Halter: I have the know-how to set up these events. I know Mr. Motte [the originator of the Berlin Love Parade] personally and was involved in the Street Parade [in Zurich], which is now the biggest parade in the world with a million people. When I invited Mr. Motte to Rio to DJ, he said "the circle has been closed," because his inspiration for the Love Parade was Rio's Carnival.

@llen: If we can get support from the government with law and security, if we can take care of this, then why can't we do it? The concept definitely works. Taiwanese people like to watch, it's cou renao (湊熱鬧, rubberneckin'), a lot of people will gather for this type of event.

Halter: There are really good arguments, so they won't say no. There are good economic arguments. In Zurich, Berlin, Rio, there is a movement of about US$150 million when these events go on, with hotels, food, fashion, music and so on. There are also benefits for national and international [prestige], tourism and the media is good. We also help support government organizations, like in Brazil against hunger and for AIDS tests.

@llen: I think we need it now. The [music] business has matured, but for the real music lover there is nowhere else to go. The Parade is for everyone. We want to give a good impression and show that it's about the music and not the drugs. We are an advanced country in terms of tech and democracy, but what police do to clubbers compared with elsewhere is not advanced.

Halter: Drugs are independent of music.

@llen: That's right. We hope to have hip hop and even Chinese or Taiwanese opera if they want it.

Halter: Drugs are a human problem, not a music problem.

@llen: I want to call it Taipei Freedom Parade because I don't feel we have the freedom to dance.