Should dancefloor privacy be upheld by banning phones?
Dancefloor privacy is where the real freedom is at.
The dancefloor is a place of liberation from the mundane, a celebration of the now and freedom from inhibitions; well, that was true until cellphones invaded every orifice of our lives, including the sacred dancefloor.
Now, you can’t be at an event without running into the flash of a phone and so you become self-conscious of your actions and then letting go becomes holding in.
Last year, we covered the story of a study revealing that 70% of UK gig-goers surveyed find phones on the dancefloor irritating and that it takes away from the live experience.
Clearly this is becoming a thing, and so we look at FLY Open Air Festival in Scotland, who are banning phones from its Boiler Room stage this weekend.
How, you may be wondering?
Revelers will be given a Yondr phone case upon entering the sacred ground which locks their phones away, only gaining access once leaving the floor by tapping the case against specially designed base units.
No phone zone
Berlin’s legendary clubbing scene has been opposed to the invasion of privacy for years. Is that part of what makes them so alluring?
In South Africa there are also clubs that ban phones, like AND Club in Joburg which hosts mega line-ups of electronic music extraordinaire and Cape Town’s techno haven, Modular.
UPDATE: We’ve been told that “Modular puts a sticker over your camera as you enter and the bouncers and cleaners will tell you to put your phone away if you try take pics or video. Works really well. No need for fancy covers etc.” Thanks Cal Heyburgh.
There’s definitely an air of excitement surrounding the mystery of a ‘no phone zone.’
Dancers are able to completely let go and let the music and the moment take over- those are the nights you will talk about forever, and not because you have a million photos telling the story.
Banning phones from festival floors in SA, however, isn’t likely to catch on- unless organisers invest in Yondr phone cases.
Let’s face it; no reveler in SA will give up their phones to a stranger.
Try it out; leave your phone in the car while at a club or festival and see what liberation truly feels like and what dancefloor privacy looks like.
