LIVE EVENTS
Heard of this trend? Silent Storm, a dedicated provider of silent disco sound equipment, describes the format as a unique way of experiencing live music whether it be a DJ or even a live band. Guests wear wireless headphones and a silent atmosphere instantly transforms in to a high energy musical performance.
If you wanna get thoughtful about it, the idea is fascinating in that you re essentially creating a kind of duality: two wholly separate experiences in the same space. To guests wearing the headphones, they feel like they re participating in the real party , that their voices and words are masked by the volume of the sound. To guests with headphones off, it s almost as if they re looking beneath the veil created by chest-thumping noise. The result of combining these two parallel experiences in the same space is fascinating to watch, but you don t have to be a social scientist to throw one of these shindigs.
Check out a couple of these videos to get a sense of the look-and-feel.
Uh, why?
Lots of reasons:
1) Amped-up bass carries a lot further than the buzz of human voices. Particularly in densely-packed urban areas, you very well may have the perfect space that can handle the noise created by guests speaking to each other, but isn t soundproofed for powered audio.
2) You may be able to get your hands on a crate of headphones more easily than on projective sound equipment, or your space may not be rigged up to handle amplification.
3) Even the guys in the back can hear the music perfectly.
4) The format opens the door to creative variations, like different performances happening in adjacent rooms at the same time, with a different broadcast channel for each.
5) Guests can get out of the noise without going outside. Anyone who wants to speak to each other at normal volumes can just take off the headphones without being separated from their
6) The real reason, though? It s something different. It s a new experience, and people like new experiences. People flock to these things for the same reasons they love launch parties and restaurant openings: doing something new means something to talk about on Monday.