The year was 1999 and barely out of high school, I heard of an events group called “Big Fish.” I admit I was a late bloomer in the clubbing scene and have steered away from big room events in favor of the usual dinner plus movie night outs. Add the Ozone Disco Inferno incident back then and you’ll see why I was traumatized (remember that, kids?). Fast forward to ten years later and today most of my exposure to these sorts of events was thanks to my job with the media where Embassy, Ascend, A Venue, Warehouse 135, and the World Trade Center are staples for work, not pleasure.

People will tell you that they’ve outgrown loud music and the air of frivolity. And you tend to agree. But you also get to a certain age where you need the relapse of losing yourself, away from your daily responsibilities. It’s not about being pretentious or an exercise in frivolity. You just want the night off.

So my early memories of clubbing were actually late ones and it was only then that I got to experience the good stuff – Tiesto, Chicane, and smaller pocket events usually organized by Motorola or Nokia.

So that’s the context of this contest I’m running – I’m giving away 10 tickets to TRANCE ALLIANCE:

Brace yourselves for the 2 groupâ€™s opening salvo! NOVEMBER 29, 2008, SATURDAY, DRIVEN MANILA and WORLDWIDE WOMB present TRANCE ALLIANCE featuring Superstar DJ JOHN â€œ00â€ FLEMING & DIGITAL BLONDE in a never before done big room dance experience as they perform their LIVE SET at the A-Venue, Makati Ave. This is the launch of a new movement and you are all invited to be a part of it. See you all on the dance floor!

Thanks to a high school batchmate, I met up with Domini Primero and Hilary Favila-Bautista of W135 and we talked about the “younger days” of this very interesting “clubbing industry.” It was always about the music – and yes readers, if you want a shot at winning a ticket to TRANCE ALLIANCE check out the contest mechanics below.

Driven Manila and World Wide Womb, headed by Domini Primero and Stephen Ku respectively, have come together to form TRANCE ALLIANCE! A team-up of two of the most successful dance event promoters in the country. After a 2-year hiatus, Domini Primero, the original creator of the Big Fish Crew back in 1999, now Driven Manila and WAREHOUSE 135â€™s head honcho, is back at what he does best â€“ doing big-room dance events. Teaming up with World Wide Womb founder & Embassy Promoter, Stephen Ku who produced Tiestoâ€™s record breaking massive concerts in Manila, Driven Manila and World Wide Womb are both fueled by the positive energy that stems from the dream of giving that perfect musical experience to the dance community.

Contest Mechanics

1. This contest is open from today till 11:59 PM of November 28 2008

2. I am raffling off 10 tickets to DJ Fleming and Digital Blonde. To enter the raffle, simply leave a comment with a valid email address answering the question “What do you love most about Manila’s clubbing scene?” (i.e. I really miss Mars and the campy red lights!)

3. You can only win once, but you can enter the raffle as many times as you want by leaving different answers.

4. I will be using Luck of the Draw for the raffle.

Tgst! Tgst! Tgst! See you there!

Had the very rare chance to spend some time backstage with Chicane. I think this is their third time in Manila, but this was the very first time for me to see them live at the World Trade Center. People often mistake Chicane for a DJ when in fact they are a band of four (at least for this tour) – drums, vocals, guitar and keyboards / programming.

Despite the many sound f*** ups (I’ve never seen a concert go on dead air twice on the same night!), this was one of the best live shows I’ve ever experienced. It wasn’t Chicane’s fault for the sound system. The guys from Big Fish said that their equipment was being harassed by dust particles *shrug*. Sucks that the technical glitch happened while they were playing Offshore. Seriously, this could have been one of the best concerts I attended if not for the sound system! It’s a huge blow to the sponsors.

A huge thanks to Nikka from Nokia for scoring us tickets. I was with fellow “Chicanenees” Rico, Jane and Christian, Phoebe (who manged to score an interview with vocalist Natasha Brocklebanks!), Helga and Rockstar Fritz.

If you wish to grab these photos, feel free to do so. I’d just appreciate a photo credit. That’s not a lot to ask for since these photos aren’t even watermarked. More photos after the jump.