That means Fusion brought crazy costumes, stimulants, 5 days of non-stop music, dancing and partying. There was only positivity in the air (except when we found out Michael Jackson died = sadness) as we camped, drank and danced away all anxieties.
At most European festivals, the music is secondary to the attractions. At Fusion all of the cuisine was vegetarian ( as much for animal rights as less of a worry about food poisoning), there was a cabaret area, a theater and a KINO showing new movies (Genuis Boy, Waltz With Bashir, Berlin Calling) along with 16 stages of music.
The festival is known for electronic music and so is Germany in general but there was everything on offer here from dancey American Ratatat to Israel's female reggae funk group Habanot Nechama.
Other highlights included the Swedish duo Lur and Pupkulies and Rebecca
My favorite things about the festival: Tickets were cheap. 60 Euro or around $95 dollars for a five day festival including camping and non-stop music. 55 Euro is you bought your ticket in advance and automatic 5 euro back for returning a bag of trash before leaving the grounds.
The food was cheap and you could bring in whatever you wanted - glass, cans, beer, wine ANYTHING from the outside. Bringing your own stuff was not only enouraged -- there was a shuttle bus to the local grocery store everyday all day if you wanted to buy anything.
That shuttle bus also went to a nearby lake. .. I actually think it went to more than one lake where you could shake off the shakes by diving into water, canoeing and playing on nearby swings.
There was no advertising at all for the festival. Every year it grows and grows but not a single flier or poster is created for the event. There are no major brands (besides on noticeable one which is an alcoholic energy beverage) and there's no corporate sponsorship.
I went with my Aussie friend Timmy and his Israeli friend Alon. Once there we met up with Irish Jane, Canadian Evan and Germans Lisa and Bella. At first I arrived on the grounds with no tent - just my sleeping bag and a baby pool. After a minor freak out and a beer run, Timmy found me sitting on my own by the entrance and we had a tent and a crew!
After a shaking start - the entire festival was amazing. We filled up the paddling pool with water and had a mini pool jam in the center of the festival. I forgot about a lot of the music but each stage was innovative. One had boxes of running water with different colored lights, another was in the middle of the forest, another was an ewok village beach party. The sun didn't come out until the last two days of the festival making me doubt European summer but the entire event was a success.
Count down: 49 weeks until next year's Fusion which will be June 24 - 27. I will get there by Schtephans bus from Ostbanhof directly to the festy for 10 euro. Amazing!
No comments:
Post a Comment