Years active 2005–present | ||
 | ||
Genre Drum n bass
Breaks
Electro
Dubstep
Electronica
Techno
Hip hop
Ambient
Minimal
8-bit/lo-fi
Reggae Dates 31 December – 1 January (2 days) Location(s) Cape Town, South Africa Founded by Yalena Razis
Grant Mason
Juan Coleman | ||
The Sound Squad is an events company based in Cape Town, South Africa, which focuses on outdoor events, primarily the New Years Revolutions festivals. Sound Squad promotes emerging electronic music by offering a platform for local artists, and encouraging interaction between different genres.
Contents
History
Sound Squad has built up a substantial following over the three years that they have been in existence. Now approaching its fourth year, the New Years Revolutions event has come a long way since its inception. The event was born out of a common love and passion for electronic music and the absence of such an event where friends could gather en masse and celebrate the turning of the new year in a beautiful environment. Previously, in order to enjoy the freedom and the benefits of an outdoor event, namely the beauty, fresh air and nature in South Africa, one had to look towards the trance scene.
Each year's festival has been held at a new venue. The venues are selected after an intensive search based on factors like facilities, access and beauty. The venues are not more than one hour outside of Cape Town.
2005 – 2006
New Years Revolutions 2005–2006 was held at Lievland Wine Farm in Stellenbosch at the foot of the Simonsberg mountains and was one small stage, a makeshift bar and 20 DJs. The dam was a major attraction with people spending all day swimming in the scorching heat. Lievland is a fully functional wine farm and the dance floor area was held in an open field in between the vineyards with camping around the edge of the field. A large dam provided much needed respite from the heat on 1 January, when tired party-goers needed some relief from the burning African sun. The lineup consisted of 20 DJs and four MCs who brought in the New Year at 12:00. This was the first time that electronic genres of such a wide variety had been combined in one festival in the Western Cape.
2006 – 2007
Another stage was added to the festival in this year, with one main stage, and another more ambient, chill stage by the river. The lineup increased from 20 artists to 40. Live acts were added as well as DJs and hosts prepared the countdown to midnight. The venue was changed to Mola Adventure Centre in the Sir Lowry’s Pass Village. Situated in the valley just underneath the mountain range of the Helderberg Mountains, the venue provided more scope for separating the areas and better camping facilities.
Main Stage
Live acts Sweat X joined the lineup which had previously consisted just of DJs and MCs. Including most of the original DJs, more were added to the list allowing a bigger variety of sets.
Chill Stage
The chill stage was situated by the large river, and featured artists playing reggae, dub, hip hop, electronica and ambient drum n bass. Accompanied by a large water slide leading into the river, canoes, and other water toys, this again proved to be a huge source of attraction on the day of 1 January when the scorching heat came down.
The full line-up included:
2007 – 2008
The third Revolutions event was held at De Drinken Farm up the west coast of South Africa. Another full stage was added, thus bringing it much better sound and a fuller lineup than the previous year. The chill stage was upgraded into a full dance stage, and the chill area was moved to a games-specific area which had large robots, chairs, canoes, a food area and other attractions. The music on the Riverside stage showcased the more upbeat DJs while the Grassy Knoll stage featured the darker and more experimental DJs in each genre. A truck broadcasting radio was set up at the entrance to the festival.
Riverside Stage
The "Riverside Stage" featured a fully programmed light show with moving head spots, two projection screens, smoke machines and a dedicated lighting engineer. Over and above this the surrounding trees were decorated with a myriad of parcans and stretch decor. The night had a full VJ line-up, both national and international with visuals on two screens.
Grassy Knoll Stage
Situated on a plateau above the Playpen lies the Grassy Knoll Stage. This stage consisted of a slightly smaller but similar sound setup to the Riverside stage. Stretched tents, decor and pillows were used to create a cozy, intimate environment ideal as an alternative to the Riverside Stage. Parcans and other lighting effects were used to set the mood. A fully stocked bar under an existing lapa accompanied the stage as well as an array of stalls selling everything from coffee to clothing.
The Playpen
A pathway leading to an interconnecting bridge joined the Riverside stage with the Restaurant and Playpen. The restaurant featured stalls from three food providers, and hence catered for all the food groups and offered a variety of healthy, tasty options set in a shaded area overlooking the Berg river. The Playpen featured various games, as well as water sports and entertainment. Tree nets and chairs were placed in and around the Playpen for relaxing.
The official line-up included:
2008 – 2009
The fourth Revolutions festival was held on Nelson's Creek Wine Estate, a venue with a swimming pool and two stages. The main stage hosted live acts as well as DJs.