ADE Next: how to throw a successful party

It is the dream of every young lover of electronic music and parties. Throwing your own successful party. A party that attracts only the right people, a party which is filled with exactly the right amount of people, a party on the best location of the whole world. Irfan van Ewijk, Marnix Bal, Marcel Pantera, Maarten Kadiks and Gomes tell about their experiences.

By DjBroadcast

Within a few minutes it becomes clear that this is such a subject where there is no right or wrong. Irfan – from ID&T – represents a company that exploits concepts all over the world, where Maarten throws small parties on Wednesday nights. Gomes wants to keep his parties underground with not much show elements, whilst Marcel Pantera is a pure showman. Marnix Bal loves some attention to detail, but doesn’t want to sell his concept to other countries.

One thing that everyone agrees on is that throwing a party should always be done for a passion for music and the need to entertain people. The music is the most important part, then the location and after that you should take a look at decoration and lighting. Marcel:  “In the twenty years I’m doing this, nothing really has changed. Sure, the technology is different, but the feeling, the reasons, they’re all the same. Yes, maybe one thing. When we just started there was no video, no screen, people where watching to each other. Now people are all watching to the screen.” But… They’re also looking at something else.

Marnix: “I thought of a concept of a party where everyone has to leave their phones and watches in a locker. So nobody is texting, nobody will know what time it is, and everybody will enjoy the music and the people around him or her.” Everyone agrees that those new portable devices interfere with the atmosphere. Maarten also thinks that having no timetable is a good thing. People come early and just have to deal with the music.

It also may be no surprise that promotion was one of the subjects of the debate. Marnix threw away a huge load of flyers for the first party he threw. I got scared, and thought there may be a to big crowd coming. He was wrong, almost nobody showed up. Nowadays he thinks that mouth-to-mouth promotion is the best. “You just have to make sure that you throw a good party. People will tell about that, and that works better than any kind of flyer or poster.” Marnix also did some unconventional promo for Loveland Festival. A mobile roller disco for instance, and rollerskating stickers stuck on bike-lane traffic signs. Irfan tells that he ended up in jail a few times doing poster rounds. “It gives you credit when people know you’re going that far to promote your party.”

So once again, a debate with no clear consensus. Just do it for the love of music and the need to entertain people. Promotion and decoration strategies depend on the kind of party you’re throwing. And – the final tip from Marnix, who says he’s been driving the same shitty car for twenty years – get an accountant.

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