Festival Season
The term 'festival' has been closely linked to religious celebration but I think it's fair to say we could almost entitle music as a religion of its own. Arguably there'll be some people who disagree with this statement but for me and I know for some of you this will ring true.
Famous are the lyrics by Pink who sang "If God is a DJ, life is a dance floor, love is the rhythm, you are the music". I actually think she's underrated as an artist these days but perhaps that's because she's taken a step back from the limelight and into Motherhood.
...Shout out to all the Mum's out there reading and listening and supporting the channel at Stripped FM. We hope you had a wonderful Mother's Day and were treated well. It's one job I don't envy and a job that isn't paid well.
With festival season just around the corner the excitement begins. With the start of spring and now official BST (British Summer Time) as the clocks sprang forward at the weekend we are now officially seeing longer and brighter days.
From balloon festivals in New Mexico, lantern festivals in Vietnam, there's umbrella festivals in Portugal and flower festivals in Japan... and festivals of colour, of light in India (Diwali). There's even a festival to celebrate the lives of loved ones who have passed away in Mexico - Dia De Los Muertos (and I love this idea). There's also water festivals, beer festivals, carnivals such as Mardi Gras (New Orleans). The list is endless and I guess in essence we can find an easy reason to celebrate - the challenge is doing it with style.
The biggest festivals in the music space that come to mind include Glastonbury which takes place in Somerset during June. There's Burning Man at the end of August in Nevada Desert, Miami Winter Music Conference, Tomorrowland in Belgium, Snowbombing in Austria in April and of course Amsterdam Dance Event in September. I always remember the latter because it seemed to be the musical nomad's next leg following their summer stint on the White Isle.
Whilst the season's change and festivals rotate around these I guess we're never short of a reason to celebrate. The ease of international travel means access to a multi-cultural and diverse selection of experiences is right within our realm.
As North Face would say.. Never stop exploring.