As a skinny college kid making my way in the muck that was the mid-nineties, the concept of raves was something I only heard about in after-class conversations over fishballs and buko juice. There were whispers about these mysterious events that were held at the unlikeliest of places, where people supposedly danced until their legs and lungs gave out and they had to drag their sweat-soaked bodies to the sides for some much needed aqua or cerveza break. These roving dance-parties that went by the name “Consortium” were always a source of wonder to me, mainly because I never got to go to any of them. By the time the early 2000’s rolled around, I hardly ever heard the term again.
Fast forward to today. The text message from Toti Dalmacion confirmed what was being buzzed about for weeks since his one-off return to the turntable at Warehouse 135 earlier this year: Consortium was back. That he chose to send out the announcement during Easter was appropriate. It’s a rebirth of sorts for the pioneer of the underground rave scene in the country.
For the uninitiated, Dalmacion is widely regarded as the godfather of house and techno music in these parts. Cynics and naysayers might raise their carefully tweezered eyebrows and insist otherwise, but nobody can deny what Toti, who now also runs the independent label Terno Recordings, has done for the local electronic music scene. Through Groove Nation, a record store-turned-alliance of DJ’s, musicians and music lovers, he introduced to the country a movement in electronic dance music that was sweeping the globe. Disappointed and uncomfortable with the local club scene, where venues required guests to dress up in long-sleeved, collared shirts and leather shoes, Toti was bent on overhauling the landscape with the kind of music and unbridled, unhinged clubbing experience he was exposed to in the US and the UK.
And so Consortium was born. The first major Consortium event was held at the National Library in October 1995. From the get-go, Toti and his cohorts’ ideals were simple: discriminate against no one and showcase the truest essence of techno and house music. Whether you were from Dasmariñas Village or Dasmariñas, Cavite, as long as you were looking to groove to some serious underground dance tunes, you were in.
And the music really was underground. You wouldn’t hear radio staples like Ace of Base, Venga Boys or Robert Miles in a Consortium set. Instead you got the real deal – they flew in artists and DJs like Derrick May, Laurent Garnier, Josh Wink, Fantastic Plastic Machine and many others for their one-of-a-kind meets. It could be at an abandoned warehouse in Tondo or the unfinished basement of a mall in Makati. Wherever it was, it was pure, unrelenting, head-shaking, feet-tapping, arm-twisting, soul-shaking dance music.
The Consortium turntable stopped spinning in 2002, partly because more and more entities were getting in on the action and setting up their own rave parties, and partly due to some internal issues within Groove Nation. But now, after a six-year hiatus and at the prodding of the guys from Musiclokal.com and Warehouse 135, Toti is bringing Consortium back, ready to dazzle partygoers and scenesters with some genuinely spasm-inducing beats. The man himself is spinning, along with special guest Nathan Coles of the UK and DJ Benjie Lopez. It promises to be one hell of a “welcome back” party and, as a Consortium virgin, I can’t wait.
Those looking for Hed Kandi and Bonnie Bailey to pop in the set might do well to steer clear of Warehouse 135 this coming Saturday. Doors open at 9pm.
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