The sun rising over southern Israel’s sprawling Negev Desert paints the sky with bright oranges and reds and yellows, the light making the dry, rocky ground seem to glow. In a way, adding Shpongle to the dawn doesn’t seem so odd — if you’ve been up long enough to watch such a colorful, bold sunrise, chances are your mind is already in a place that Shpongle aims to take you: euphoric, buzzing, engulfed in sound.
Less than two hours south Israel’s hip, metropolitan center, Tel Aviv, Shpongle’s November 26 show, held at a middle-of-the-desert location undisclosed until that week, drew a few thousand from all over the country. Israel’s Moksha Project building a 24-hour festival of international DJ’s around Shpongle’s 3:30 am set only fanned the flames of one of the country’s most hyped shows of the year; that Shpongle’s show would be a rare, live band performance pushed the excitement over the edge. Continue reading
