Danis Kool's Poppin Review for 2009

As the year of 2009 comes to a close, we take a look back in the Australian poppin scene. As i write this Gstyle (Tempo and Slick) are still in town. We wont know the full impact of their stay stay until they leave because everyone is still crazy about Gstyle.

Note (28th Dec): As i am finishing this review, im enjoying the sceneries of Vietnam! Gstyle has already left the country after recruting a few new members in the Australian chapter.

Danis Kool's Poppin Review for 2009

Its this time of year again, here we go!

The People:

Pretty similar to last year, not many newer dancers stepping up and breaking out of the class mentality. The current dancers are still maturing and stepping up their skill level from previous years.

I've also noticed that there are some poppers that has not been as active this year due to other commitments (work, school etc).


The Styles:

I would say boogaloo or boogaloo flavoured movements are still the most dominant in Australian scene. I've noticed a rise in straight popping. I'm sure that after the G-Style tour, people will be doing a little more waving. Other than that it will be good to see people do a lot more glides.


The Mentality:

Hmmm, I would say the general mentality of the scene is quite healthy. People are more opened to other styles and approaches to the dance. Of course there are those who are refined to their perspective of the dance.

What I've learnt this year as a dancer, from a certain conversation at a party. The dance is very subjective (because it is art.... I'm sure some people may think otherwise), hence there will be many different views from different people. Each view is (or has) their own truth. Yes some views may sound totally bs to you (because you based their views on your own). The trick is to understand/see from/through their eyes, even if they are not willing to see it through yours, at least you did your part.

Even if you don't agree (based on your views), at least you understood it (to some degree).

"Your truth! My truth! It is a war against truths".... just take religion for example.


Cities:

Again (3 years in a row) i would say Sydney is probably the most active scene in the country. There is a lot more jams this year at the Entertainment Centre and at Exhibition Centre. Maybe im just biased?

Melbourne really stepped up this year in terms of events, skill level and abundance. I've been there 3 times this year for a comp. I've seen the scene grow from when i was at the Fed Square battles in Feb (wow it's so soon!), then to Montanasa then the Dsoul Anniversary battle. I think the new faces in Melbourne (Karla, PJ, Jamison and Jimmy) really helped the scene find new light.

This year I havent heard much from Brisbane, but i assume they are still growing steadily from last year.

After the Encryption battles in Canberra, i hoped that the scene would of grown a lot more. At least we are getting some sort of movement there.

Our Westcoast buddies in Perth seems to have a healthy scene going there.

Finally ive manage to get to meet some Tazzy poppers this year. From what i have gathered from talking to them (two), is that they love the bounce waves and the scene is still quite small.

I haven't heard anything from Adelaide and Darwin. Is the scene dead there?


Music and DJ:

DJ Libre was probably the most used DJ for popping. From his debut at last year's Super Round Box he has pretty much taken DJ Naiki's place as the Popper DJ in Sydney. Some people likes his song choices, some people don't. It's so hard to please everyone.

Funny note: For some strange coincidence Keanu always dances to Poplock Funk by Dogg Master when DJ Libre plays.

I feel that especially in Sydney, we kinda of moved away from the 'traditional' funk music that was over played a few years ago. It is now underplay, and i crave it when im at a jam and comp.

"Supply and Demand" I guess.









Jams, Events and Competition:

I feel that this year there was a lot of jams and events this year to satisfy people's hunger.

A lot of small events, Dancekool's $2 & $5 Battles, Next Gen Jams and Youth in the Mall which was pretty consistent and throughout the year.

Im only mentioning the more recent events because the others were so long ago haha.

Encryption was the second competition that I've been to that was held at ACT, it is probably the first Canberra popping comp to be held there. Though mainly Sydney and Melbourne dancers entered the comp, there was a few local poppers that entered. The event was held there so it could inspire the scene there. It brought back a lot memories because the event was held in a club.









Montanasa was held at Melb's Crown Casino. Though it didn't feel as prestige as the first one in 2007 (where the competitors were invited) i still enjoyed the event. They had a live band that played during the battles (except for the Hip hop and Poppin) which was dope, it really showed who had the better musicality skills. I don't think there will be another Montanasa wont happen again any time soon because I kind of overheard (while i was walking backstage) a lady who said that they "made a loss" for the event. The audience turn out was a bit disappointing, heaps of empty seats, that could explain why that lady said that. It was also held during the same day as Shadow Warz (a bboy event) which was held in Sydney.




D Soul anniversary was probably the most enjoyable event this year that I've been to, maybe because i was feeling the atmosphere there. The judging system was a peer based, meaning that all the competitors was judging. It worked out because the skill range of all the competitors were pretty close. If there was a wider range of skill and experience then it would not have worked out. Was good to hear the 'traditional' funk music again at a comp. Continuous Zapp and Roger songs was a bit unexpected, i guess the dj ran out of songs? The one minute time limit for each set was alright.







Dancekool 24 was the first National (unofficial) comp. This was the first time we ever had that much representatives from most states/territories at one place. Making this the highest standard competition ever that I've seen, who ever didn't go missed out. Who cannot forget the battle between Poppin Jack and Boogalama. It has been many years since Lama has entered a comp, he still has it. We had a whopping 36 entrances and they had to be cut down to 16 after the first prelim round. This would be the highest turn out for a 1v1 comp. I think the record for the highest turn out was at Dancekool 21 where they had 22 teams of two.




The Gstyle Down Under event was probably the most hyped up event I've been in a long time. Not only it was outdoors on a very warm day (lucky it was in the car park), the battles were conducted in a cipher kind of formation making it even warmer and more hyped. The turn out for the event was pretty big (24 poppers?) even though a lot of the 'main players' and interstate poppers were absent. I wish that they didn't have the 30 second time limit for each set, even though it was an only popping event/comp and they had a lot of time to spare.





What I realised this year that a lot of the bigger events had some sort of time limit system going. Yes a time limit system should be implemented especially if an event has to run on schedule. A one minute time limit should be a minimum if they have to have time limit in place, less than that it gives poppers not enough to time to successfully build up and pace their sets. Especially annoying if a popper wants to dance to the chorus of a song but doesn't get a chance to because of the song's long introduction. Slick Dogg negated this problem by allowing the poppers to wait until the chorus or the main part begins. I feel that this year majority of poppers didnt really drag their sets but we haven't really shaken off the "Poppers drag their sets" label that was created in the previous years.


International Guests:

This year we had a handful of guests a lot more than last years. Some were unexpected and some were planned for months.

Poppin Hood
From Germany, I can say he is an all-rounder popper that can do just about every style. Was good to be able to jam with him. A really chilled and friendly dude to talk to (even with his limited English).

I haven't met a gf that is so patient with their bfs dancing for hours.

What stuck from him was the 'one liner' move he showed us in his workshop. There was close to no routines (except for the tutting part) and for every technique he showed us he showed us (and tried to explain) how to apply it differently or a variation of it. I like this way of teaching.

I knew i should of written everything down.

"Go deeper!"

JR Boogaloo
His visit was very short, and almost started in a disaster, but everything worked out. Was good chilling with him and to hear his perspective, how he came to where he is today and some westcoast history. Was good to talk about stuff other than dance.

A handful of poppers managed to jam with him, which was dope.

What really stood out in his class was his Filmo strutting.

Again i should of written stuff down.



Icon
Met Icon at the Circus Ser-lay auditions (yes i know i spelt it wrong). I kinda knew he was going to be in the country, but didn't know if it was for a holiday. While i was standing in line i started to pop a little then he goes in an American accent.
"You're a popper?"

His stay wasn't long as well, but a handful of poppers managed to jam with him and get inspired (and a kick on the bum for some) by his tuts!

He disappeared (left the country) without anyone knowing haha. We both got cut on the second day of auditions.


Gstyle (Slick and Tempo)
I would say they are the most influential of all the guest that was here. Was really good to have them here to give their perspective on the dance. Slick Dogg preached a lot (I'm sure everyone was already aware of this).

I've only managed to take only one workshop, they showed in that workshop how to balance and weight transfer to speed up your transition and not moving to a point where you have only one option. Though I already did it to some degree, I wasn't conscious at all about it. Knowing the why really gives another level of depth to the how.


From what i have gathered after my limited time listening and talking to them is that their motives for the dance is a positive thing. I know a lot of people may think otherwise based on how they portray themselves on the net and their shows. You have to really look past all that to see their positive message. It is very easy (especially the younger dancers) to take their persona at face value.

How they were perceive before their arrival deterred a lot of people (that mattered) to get an opportunity to listen to their perspective.


Conclusion and Prediction for 2010

Ive realised that Australia doesn't have many poppers that look a like and that is dope! Yes some of us may look a little bit like people overseas but majority of poppers i can't really find someone that looks similar to internationally. We take inspiration from all corners of the world and from each other but we do our own s**t!

I haven't heard much about international guest coming to Australia in 2010. Gstyle has just left the country and I'm not really sure what are their full impact on the scene would be, give it some time and we will see. I'm sure it was an ego and confident boost for some.

Hopefully us Australian poppers will start to make our presence noticed overseas in 2010. The planned trip to HTWWW (in August) is still being talked about. I know Slick Dogg will be making some noise for us on the internet, but we have to make it physical! I'll try to make some noise in Vietnam!

As for myself, my life has come to a point where I must focus on other life aspects (especially in the career department). Dance is a passion of mines yet it is still a hobby. I know if it becomes a career, my motives and priorities will be different. Dance will only be a tool for making money. So depending how January 2010 turns out you might be see me dancing a lot less next year.



Have a safe and happy new year!
Danis Kool (in Vietnam)