As a teenager during the 1990s, Rick Curiston remembers what would happen in Whistler on the night of a full moon.
“You would call a cab company and tell them it is a full moon night.” Curiston said. “Then that cab would bring you to … [a] party wherever it would be.”
The parties were typically held in fields or random out of the way places and featured rising DJs.
“It was a full moon celebration with music,” Curiston said.
By the late 1990s, Curiston says those types of parties happened less and less and eventually stopped happening all together.
“They stopped happening,” he said. “Things went more legit and … things have changed.”
While times may have changed, Curiston, now 35 and a resident of Nanaimo, hasn’t forgotten the spirit behind those full moon parties.
“[It is] the idea of local people all gathering together to have a local show,” he said.
Since April, Curiston has been co-organizing Revolution 2015, a two-day, three-night festival-style music event that celebrates the upcoming full moon.
“This is our chance to get the local talent together,” Curiston said.
Revolution 2015 happens Friday to Sunday (Aug. 28-30). The festival will feature more than 20 DJs, including Neon Steve, A Thousand Kings, Froland and Curiston, who will perform under the name Second Hand DJ.
“We have a feeling that it is going to be really great,” Curistion said.
He came up with the idea for the full moon festival while he driving back from a pub in Pemberton, adding that the event has grown a lot over the last few months.
“This thing started really small and now all the sudden it is two nights instead of one,” Curiston said. “Now there are two stages, not one stage. It seems like the locals really want to get involved.”
Revolution 2015 is scheduled to take place on a private property located near Barsby Lake. The site has multiple spaces for camping, public washrooms, food vendors, a first aid tent and a designated smoking area.
Curiston stresses the importance safety, adding that no alcohol or drugs are allowed on site.
“We don’t tolerate it at all,” he said.
Curiston says he, along with the property owner and organizers, want to eventually see future events held on the property and want to work with the City of Nanaimo and the RCMP to ensure everyone is happy.
“We want structures built and a concession stand that stays there all year round,” Curisotn said. “I am hoping that this is the start of something really amazing.”
Tickets for Revolution 2015 are $25 for single day passes and $50 for a weekend pass. Tickets can be purchased at www.thehubl.com. The location is on private property and will be revealed on Thursday (Aug. 27).
People are encouraged to bring their own food and water.
For more information, please visit http://on.fb.me/1NAz6bm.
arts@nanaimobulletin.comTwitter: @npescod
