Renata Carmen Writes

I present my first massive, first guest list, first Raver's Digest article: Electric Daisy Carnival, June 30th, 2001 (Hansen Dam, SoCali son!).  Re-reading this for the first time in years, I sound kind of smug (and this was before I was an Angry Junglist!), and certain aspects of the author's mindset are so foreign to me now it almost seems like a different person wrote it. But I was young, and very proud of the underground... and I guess in many ways I still am. Here it is, in all of its unedited glory. Enjoy. 16 years old and kandi beaded up! Note: I was known as NadaClu, hence the nickname, and this was when we had pagers, before cell phones got big, so each Raver's Digest staff member had a designated pager code ID number, mine was 31.  I've been going to small parties ever since I went to my first rave in '99. The biggest party I'd ever been to had around 6000 capacity. I'd tried many times to make it to a massive, but failed ...

reset flow so good you'll want to read it slowly hand crafted for you by the one and the only renata hernandez a.k.a. number thirty-one (she braids werdz into poetry just for fun) its been such a long day, am i ready for a long nite? my mind's beginning to fray and body feels wound and tite but i think i can rebound for the night cuz 26c knows how to put the sound and vibe together right i round up the homies and we take flight for the Orion and to my delight there's no line at all, just the usual slight gathering of promoters standing near the door always handing out more and more flyers to passerbyers by the score we pass through security and enter: the first floor where house pours through speakers, bass cabinets and onto the floor leaving behind a muck that's crusty and unsure a constant reminder of raves from before i scrape it off my shoes as i walk upstairs to check out the funky trance that blares into people's faces it erases any traces of d...

March 3 rd 2008 City of Angels: Underground style jungle party in LA!!!!!  Jungle jungle jungle!!!!  My heart races, thoughts pound, feet skip, as we near the brick building on the corner of Broadway and 38th in downtown.  My City of Angels.....its so good to be back!  Too long have I been chasing the mainstream scene in the Inland Empire and Hollywood, too long have I neglected my underground roots for big names and bottle service.  Now here we are, back on the streets where my love, my addiction to BASS all started.  I am excited to be back here, and the feeling only grows as I near the front entrance and suddenly hear barred windows shake and rattle with a bassdrop released from within.  My belly tingles, and I can't wait to be inside.  I already know in my head what it will look like.  We will enter thru the frontdoor (hurry up get inside, no standing in the street u will burn the venue!!!), and only guys will be searched, and e...

I was trying to find this on the Ravers Digest archive but it is not there and that made me sad. So I decided to post it here so I can find it when I want. An oldie but a goodie, from a time in my life that I thought of for a few years as "closed". But I learned there is no such thing as a "semi-retired raver", and I find myself still going out when I can find a worthy enough event and my body allows me to indulge in such activities. Enjoy the article! The night of Mardi Gras 4 was perfect. It started with getting from north of LA to San Bernardino in a record time of one hour and ten minutes, and ended with getting a green and white piece of kande that reads "I love ganja" from an adorable little girl at her first rave. But I am getting ahead of myself. I got off work that night earlier than expected, hyper and excited for Mardi Gras 4. I had been waiting all week for this evening to come, and now it was finally here! It felt like Christma...

-This was featured in the July issue of 2010. For those who aren't familiar with this mag (http://www.autorestorermagazine.com/ar/), Auto Restorer is a low budget monthly periodical that is geared towards the old school domestic crowd. It's filled with wonderful how to's, tips, tricks, and other such information. Anyways, my article is slated for a series they have been running called "Gearheads Under 30", where young mechanics submit bios and pictures of their work.  I hope you enjoy this article. Huge thanks to Jason Simons for his tireless assistance with the editing! Before I tell you about myself I would like to take a few moments to introduce you to my car—she is far more important anyhow; without her I am but a lowly ape that happens to possess a modest tool collection. How does one begin to describe the enigma known as the Toyota MR2? Well, one way to start is by examining the specs and history of the vehicle. There are three main gener...

I present my first massive, first guest list, first Raver's Digest article: Electric Daisy Carnival, June 30th, 2001 (Hansen Dam, SoCali son!).  Re-reading this for the first time in years, I sound kind of smug (and this was before I was an Angry Junglist!), and certain aspects of this article's mindset are so foreign to me now it almost seems like a different person wrote it. But I was young, and very proud of the underground, I guess in many ways I still am. Here it is, in all of its unedited glory. Enjoy. 16 years old and kandi beaded up! Note: I was known as NadaClu, hence the nickname, and this was when we had pagers, before cell phones got big, so each Raver's Digest staff member had a designated pager code ID number, mine was 31.  I've been going to small parties ever since I went to my first rave in '99. The biggest party I'd ever been to had around 6000 capacity. I'd tried many times to make it to a massive, but failed due t...

March 3 rd 2008 City of Angels: Underground style jungle party in LA!!!!!  Jungle jungle jungle!!!!  My heart races, thoughts pound, feet skip, as we near the brick building on the corner of Broadway and 38th in downtown.  My City of Angels.....its so good to be back!  Too long have I been chasing the mainstream scene in the Inland Empire and Hollywood, too long have I neglected my underground roots for big names and bottle service.  Now here we are, back on the streets where my love, my addiction to BASS all started.  I am excited to be back here, and the feeling only grows as I near the front entrance and suddenly hear barred windows shake and rattle with a bassdrop released from within.  My belly tingles, and I can't wait to be inside.  I already know in my head what it will look like.  We will enter thru the frontdoor (hurry up get inside, no standing in the street u will burn the venue!!!), and only guys will be searched, and ...