Tecnopal is a seasonal outdoor underground dance music gathering culture. Zeke Noevol, DJ/Producer, is the mastermind behind the event. In this interview Noevol talks about Tecnopal’s birth and the evolution of electronic music and culture through his experience.
FM: How did u come up with the concept of Tecnopal?
ZN: As with all the names of my events, I like the names to have purpose, depth and meaning that are deep and not just shallow. The name is Spanish for Techno Cactus. The concept of Tecnopal is a rebirth of traditional desert parties we use to do in the early to mid 90s.
FM: Why is it important for you to feature local DJ’s that people don’t normally hear at clubs or on radio?
ZN: I have always look for ways to showcase and expose local talent that otherwise you will only see sporadically. The DJ’s are selected accordingly by me, I look for the hardest working and most talented DJ’s. It’s a way for our city and the world to recognize our wonderful talent that otherwise goes unseen and unappreciated. I appreciate our talent and this is done out of pure love for them.
FM: There have been three Tecnopal’s – all at different locations, how do u find these spots?
ZN: As with all parties, the location tends to select us, it calls to us, its a spiritual thing, like when Indians seek a camping ground, you just can’t camp anywhere, the land must permit you to camp there, it calls to you.
FM: The spots are usually announced the day of the event, leaving people with mystery and anticipation, why is this done?
ZN: We withhold the location for a few simple reasons, the first are like you mentioned to create mystery and anticipation, so it keeps the idea fresh, as opposed to you knowing right off the bat, that dulls out the flame of excitement. Also for security purposes, we don’t want any schmucks trying to sabotage the event. This is not fool proof but it helps, all the Tecnopal’s have been completely legal and on private property.
FM: You’ve been hosting parties for over 15 years now, how has electronic music changed since then?
ZN: I am grateful to still be a part of our culture. I was out of the loop for many years, but I never abandoned my true spirit. I worked on learning how to produce from 2000 till now. With the new technology, music has only gotten better and easier to produce. This is awesome since it has opened the door and paved the way for new music artists to create music that otherwise would not exist due to how expensive it was in the earlier days to produce, you literally needed access or to own very expensive gear and studios. We are embracing this evolution like a cyborg, part man, part machine in all efforts to bring you new creations.
FM: How has the scene changed? How have the people changed?
ZN: The scene has gone through about 4 generations now. The people have not changed, but the message and purpose of the promoters has. Greed has always been a factor and so has hatred. But I deal with it differently. I embrace all the negativity and convert that energy into positive love energy. Its easy to get offended and let down, but I discovered real strength in absorbing the hate and negativity. I learn from it. The leaders are responsible for educating a scene, the leaders being the promoters. Obviously our new leaders are unfit for the job, they have mislead the new generations, they have taught them thats it’s ok to behave like a corporation engulfing mom and pop shops, they have taught them that it’s ok to hate and compete in small cities, they have taught them that capitalism is ok even if it means destruction of something people have worked hard to build. Its surely not the same anymore as back then, but we are here to stay and we have more love than ever before, with love we will defeat the negative and with forgiveness we will harness that power that only love can give.
For more information on Tecnopal go to
www.facebook.com/pages/Tecnopal/238277659558877
TXT: Alex Duran | [email protected]
photos by: Hector Riveroll (c) All Rights Reserved
www.riverollphotography.com