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Review Ecstatic Dance Oakland Wednesdays

Review Ecstatic Dance Oakland on a Wednesday Night 


This review written circa early 2014:  Ecstatic Dance here is the ultimate dance night. The music is more controlled by the DJ and his mood/specialty than by the Ecstatic Dance format. Variety – form ethereal almost ‘old goth’ to club with an edge

Rhythms varied with multiple peaks – whether you stayed for one hour or three, you got a full ride up and down the spectrum of movement.  Crowds stayed to the end – this says a lot as dancers found the energy to stay for the whole thing as it was a special night you knew was precious.

This space, the Oakland Sweets Ballroom holds a hundred plus dancers on the floor plus three (yes, count ‘em – 3!) altars honoring ‘Dance as temple and Body as Temple’. A nice space, a great venue, good vibes.  

One of the musical differences between club music and music at Dance Jam, Barefoot Boogie, and Ecstatic Dance is "words". Yes, the same riffs and rhythms exist in both venues, but club music has the words which add a little "edge" to the mood. Knowa gets that edge selecting music with and without words to create a powerful mood mix that infects all with energy, love and movement. 

Loudness Rating: 5 Optional: Uber Bass for sure, but also has quieter beginning and end, if you usually wear them OK, if not OK you will need them for the fast middle.

Level of Dancers: High

Crowd: mostly under 30 but also at least 25% over 30 and up up 70  (END 2014 section)

This review addendum written circa early 2015:  The club has changed to a very crowded scene and has become the number one Conscious Dance scene for people under 35.  The dance style has shifted away from slow-ethereal to a more energetic hip-hop.  

Some of the change is style and music comes from the dancer person movement space being so compressed due to this venue's popularity.  

Sweet's Ballroom became the standard for successful large dance floor events, beautiful windows, seating, wooden floor, and ambiance.  Upstairs yoga mats and tea area, great large restrooms etc.  Of course all this beauty has been there since 1930 when it was created, but now it is successful in 2015.  

Recommendation:  Do this night - every night you go is a personal attendance in the history of the Ecstatic Dance boom.  

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