South Africa: Capital of Psytrance

The Mother City is often described as the “African capital of Psytrance.”

South Africa, Cape Town

Locals and travelers flock to Cape Town to experience the unique Psytrance culture which brews in our back garden. With countless outdoors festivals hosted during the months of summer and a stream of indoor events happening throughout the year, there is no shortage of psychedelica to appease the hearts, minds and souls of Trance enthusiasts from far and near. All the international DJs and producers who visit South Africa agree that what we have got going on here is very special and unlike any other scene in the world. While all Trance destinations share similar attributes, like common beliefs and similar styles of music, the energy (or “gees”) that our crowds emit is unforgettable.
South Africans are diehard psychedelic warriors. We’re prepared to weather the weather through rain and sunshine. In winter, Vortex throws a very special kind of gathering called the “Phoenix Festival of Fire”. It’s amazing to be on the dance floor at one of our outdoor festivals. You can literally feel the frequencies rising as the whole floor moves as one entity. It’s such a high.
We have incredibly talented people who come to perform live art such as the Psychedelic Theatre and the Flow Arts team with its fire poi and hula hooping. The décor also plays a huge role in creating a real Goa-inspired experience. We prefer to utilise a local team or individual to make the magic happen. This year, the décor for Open Source was created by an extremely gifted individual, Callum Adamstein of Atmosphere Art.

South Africa Hot Spots:

We are spoiled for choice when it comes to getting our fix of Psytrance in Cape Town. There is an abundance of psychedelic destinations to choose from with weekly events taking place in both the city bowl and the surrounding suburbs, such as Spectrum (Wednesday nights) and Reboot (Friday nights) at Bazinga in Long Street. There are also monthly indoor/outdoor parties like the Valley of Psy for example, which caters to trance lovers living in the Southern Peninsula where there is a very strong Trance influence (many of our most prominent DJs hail from the “dirty south”). Somerset West and Stellenbosch also have their own Psyscene with events such as Pulse at the Nameless Pub happening quite frequently.

Groove-Setters:

The amount of local talent there is in South Africa is overwhelming. It’s not uncommon to see a world-renowned DJ perform on an ordinary Wednesday night in Cape Town for less than R100 at the door while the very same artist will get booked for international events at some of the world’s biggest festivals. Whether you go out on the weekend or during the week, chances are you won’t be disappointed in who is performing. In terms of international acts, you can expect to see a foreign headliner on almost every outdoor festival’s lineup (and the occasional indoor event too).

This article appeared first in our printed edition.