Posts Tagged ‘Trance’

Jerry Ocol (DJ Anak) is a DJ, scout, and organizer for the Jyotih Network.  Born and raised in Vancouver, BC, he is both an electronic music DJ and an acoustic songwriter.  As a DJ, he has performed at outdoor festivals such as Pollination and Intention.

Although Jerry is an old-school DJ at heart and loves vinyl, he also works with CDJ’s.  He plays a wide range of musical genres including ethnic and acid jazz downtempo, house, techno, trance, and socially conscious rap and R&B.  As an acoustic musician, he plays guitar, piano and harmonica and has performed both with bands and as a solo artist all over the world, from clubs in Vancouver to train stations and festivals in Japan.

Jerry’s work for the Jyotih Network brings together his passion for social justice and music.  He is currently studying towards a Social Service Worker Certificate and hopes to further serve the Downtown Eastside as an Outreach Worker.

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I’ve been taking Djing seriously on and off for the past twelve or so years, but I have been dabbling since I was in my early teens. I was into hip-hop, dancehall and R&B mostly. I worked security and primarily the door at many events, festivals, clubs and raves all over the place but never really took part in the events. They were mostly representing trance, techno and house which were not, at the time, interesting to me. I was a hip-hop head through and through.

A trip to Australia and a divine moment of truth turned me onto progressive trance and I played that for 6-7 years as well as concentrating a lot on the chill stage – usually shooting for the bumpy dance floor down through mid tempos.

A few years ago on a half day road trip and weekend festival in Alberta hanging with Ooah of the Glitch Mob changed my musical path.

That festival was my last trance set and I took a full year off to re-up the music crate. I decided that midi was the way to go, but not feeling Ableton for DJing I was inspired by a friend and went with a DJ controller and I dig it. I don’t use any syncing or anything like that. Just loops, filters, effects and samples. I like my pitch control and platters.

I have been trying to mix tracks from different genres that create a unique and emotional setting without going too hard, too cheesy, too glitchy, too dubsteppy, too hip-hoppy, too predictable, disjointed, too well planned out or boring. I have my moments for sure and am still working at it and learning every step of the way. I have slayed, I have just held it down and I have completely missed the mark. People are still booking me and I am playing as much as I would want, so somebody’s feeling it…

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I have been dancing ever since I can remember…that was my joy…that was my passion. And to this day the dance is what brings me back to my essential self, to my ecstasy!

I started studying ecstatic dance in 1998, when I was given the book, Sweat Your Prayers by Gabrielle Roth. I had just finished my training as a modern dance performance artist at Main Dance (Vancouver, BC) – it was a time of both physical and spiritual illness for me – and the words of this dance shaman reminded me of my true purpose. It has been a healing journey since then, and I have studyed the 5 Rhythms(tm) in Vancouver with Jonathan Horan and Lucia Rose Horan, with Kathy Altman in Mill Valley at the Moving Center School, and in Nelson with Maryanne Wood.

In May 2005 I traveled to Australia to study with Leyolah Antara, creator of Kundalini Dance and I am now a certified Kundalini Dance Facilitor. I have been teaching Kundalini Dance ever since…

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Rara first exploded on to the scene with his hit debut CD “Beneath the Radar” in 2003.  Subsequently scouted by his favorite indy record label Six Degrees Records, Rara began remix work for artists on their roster and production a 5 song digital EP entitled “Shaktified” released in 2005.

Since then he has been nothing short of prolific releasing a solo or collaborative album every 3-6 months including regular work with Shaman’s Dream and Desert Dwellers, in partnership with Sounds True and White Swan Records respectively.

Whole heartedly embraced by dance floors all over the world and Rara has also had a deep impact in the rapidly growing yoga and conscious lifestyle community.  Writing music for well known yoga figures such as Shiva Rea, Duncan Wong, Jai Uttal, Max Strom, Sharon & David Life (Jiva Mukti, NYC), Desiree Rumbaugh, Hemalayaa Behl, Ashley Turner, Hala Khouri and many others.  His music bridges the worlds of conscious dance with positive lifestyle making it the ultimate companion soundtrack for the conscious consumer.

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