There is one major difference, though, and that is in the music: the Warp had trance and live bands, but I always felt that the music was a secondary thing: at Synergy, there seems to be more emphasis on music, with a greater diversity of sounds.

There were two rooms of live music: one showing global music bands with belly dancers, the other, which I immersed myself in, was a room where two MC’s called Double Negative – an Asian guy and a white girl, who sang positive lyrics about unity. They went down well with the crowd, and, personally, they were my faves on that night.
Every room seemed to be dedicated to a particular cause – that room featured artists involved in the Peace Not War campaign. Check http://www.peace.fm
There was a chillout area run by BinglyBongly; and on the main dancefloor, Dark Angel, Liquid Ross, and pumped out psy-trance. Earlier, Whirlygig resident DJ Monkey Pilot made a rare outside appearance, playing global trance rhythms.

In the main room, the visuals are always worth a look. This time, Survival for Tribal Peoples had taken over the projector, and images of tribesmen were mixed with distorted photos of George Bush. There was also a show by tribal drummers from Ghana, which went well with the vibe generated by the friendly crowd of hippies and traveller-types rockin’ to the beats.
For me, parties are as much about people as the music: there’s a crowd of people who go to Whirlygig and Planet Angel, then there is another lot who go to Raindance and Resonance, as well, of course, lots of other people from the underground scene. And they all seem to bump into each other at Synergy.

As the name suggests, the Synergy Project is more than just a party, it is a gathering of various groups involved with the underground scene.
What makes it unique is the sheer variety of things on offer: you can listen to poetry, or see films, look at artwork, or meet activists from groups such as Campaign against the Arms Trade, the Green party and others. All the organisations represented there come from the green/left political spectrum. As well as the bar, you can also get a cuppa and a bite to eat, or you can have a massage, buy some new tunes, or check out the ubiquitous fluorescent clothing and jewellery stalls.

All in all, Synergy is a great place to take those friends who don’t normally like clubbing, as well as the diehard ravers in the family! For info on the next party check
http://www.thesynergyproject.org

Minnie Mouse