Picture a place where true freedom of expression is exhibited in its most divine form, and hear the sounds of organic beauty everywhere. This is an introduction to the existence of one of the greatest creations in the world of music, art, consciousness and unity alike. Often are there groups of people attempting to communicate a like-mindedness and oneness through various vehicles of artistic manifestation, it rarely is able to be produced with such magical flawlessness as Lightning in a Bottle.

The Do Lab has proudly abstained from focusing all of their energy and expenditures on the biggest mainstream acts, but rather retains focus on the vibe, art and community. This has proved successful and has carried down remarkably to today’s generation of LIB goers. Nevertheless they put up a performance that surpasses any expectations of an epic  festival experience. This year expect to see UK giant Rusko, as well as Tycho, Nicholas Jar, Paper Diamond, PantyRaid, Eskmo, Griz and just recently added, the Canadian Electro-pop duo Purity Ring. Lucent Dossier will of course be blessing the crowd with their visual and aural magnificence. This names just a small handful of the great line-up they carefully picked this weekend. Expect many other stages throughout the festival, as well as individual musicians roaming the grounds and offering you blessing of musical splendor. Last year the Temple of Consciousness surprised us with some 5 am jams that were compiled from music and sounds recorded from all over the world. Things like that, which make you take a step back and reread the sentence to grasp how unique this experience really is, are why we love Lightning in a Bottle.

As talking about music maybe like dancing about architecture; explaining an experience that permanently changes who you consider yourself as a person, is very complicated. In the words of co-foounder / curator of The Do Lab Jesse Flemming, “Our goal with the music is to create a positive and uplifting experience, with a good balnce of beautiful melodic music and good old party music. After 4 months of in depth research and a lof of listening we tried to cover as many genres as possible that we feel fit the vibe that we’re trying to create with Lightning in a Bottle.”

As the next chapter of this festival unveils a weekend closer to the middle of the summer (July 11th to July 15th 2013), with the gift of warmth that will bring us all to a more natural state, expect The Do Lab to bring us some refreshing treats; hopefully similar to what we see at Coachella in The Do Lab Oasis that everyone goes to for a mild wet recovery from the scorching Coachella Valley.

Live painting around every corner, all benefiting The Do Art Foundation, keeps the community going, and your experience blends with the paint on the canvas. This offers you an opportunity to influence the art permanently with your vibes and existence, as they will be influencing your experience. Over 300 various experiences at the magnificent temple of consciousness including yoga, awareness speakers, workshops, and world music will offer your an infinite amount of things to do, as well as a place to come and find yourself. 

The LA Based group is changing people one artistic expression at a time, and I dare you to find yourself when the Lightning in a Bottle strikes.

For more information about Lightning in a Bottle, and to purchase tickets, visit http://lightninginabottle.org. Follow LIB at  www.facebook.com/LightningInaBottle or The Do LaB at www.facebook.com/thedolab or www.twitter.com/thedolab.

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ABOUT THE DO LAB / LIGHTNING IN A BOTTLE
Based in Los Angeles, The Do LaB’s mission is to craft experience as art and bring communities together. Aside from showcasing electronic music artists throughout Southern California, The Do LaB is well known for creating unique art installations/stages and curating cutting edge acts at the inner misting Oasis stage at Coachella in addition to producing Southern California’s Lightning in a Bottle and the game changing 2012 Winter Solstice event The Great Convergence which took place at the pyramids of Giza in Egypt. The Do Lab’s work has also been showcased at Virgin Music Festival, Global Gathering, Portugal’s Boom Festival and many more.

Tonight Gramatic posted something on the FB that was rough around in the edges, however extremely beautiful at the core. He touched on the inability of his existence to remain bound by borders to stay in one genre with his music.

“…. I can never confine to a single genre, it’s like asking a painter to just paint the same environment over and over again for the rest of his life. You can only paint it in so many different ways before it starts boring the shit out of you. You need to understand that artists are not just listeners, we are CREATORS and most of us have an unstoppable apetite, an endless need to EVOLVE and will always swear by DYNAMICS and DIVERSITY! Why? Because that’s just the way we fucking roll.”

He truly respected the essence of his music with a statement for the liberation of skeptics for new thought. Coincidentally the name of his other half in this duo Grizmatic is none other than Griz who’s last album that he offered for free was called Mad Liberation.

This song is called Digital Liberation Is Mad Freedom Is Mad Freedom

Grom refers to his intricate masterpieces as Easter eggs, and takes time carving away to splendorous perfection.

Einstein to physics, Dali to surrealism, Android to digital art; Andrew Jones is a pioneer claiming some of the most visually stunning territories in art today. Since amercing  himself into the world of consciousness, he has had an ability to take the festival art world by storm. Taking his work to the next level Android Jones now collaberates with Phaedra Jones to bring Phadroid. This combination brings an incredible blend of live projection on interpretive dance that comes together fully and with swag. This combined with David Block from The Human Experience and music is not added to this perfect cocktail of psychedelic splendor. Enjoy! This piece was taken directly from the 25th anniversary of MAPS in December of 2011.

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A beautiful tree stands alone in a dry Arizona valley “Windswept Lady”- photo by David Drost

Still images are wonderful in that they can capture an array of life, ranging from the everyday, physical objects that we take for granted to the majestic beauty of nature that can only be found outdoors. Whether you’re behind, or in front of a camera lens, either experience undoubtedly creates a sense of permanence in the world. With so many images circling the web, many beautiful pieces by independent artistic photographers go unnoticed. In a highlight of its 2012 contest entries, National Geographic has released a wonderful variety of sample pictures from current contestants (Boston.com). Some images are downright beautiful; others are moving in their own sentimental and powerfully evocative way.

With the November 30th deadline a little over a month away, amateur, hobbyist, and professional photographers are urged to submit their entries. The photographs will be categorized in 3 classes: people, places and nature. As part of the unraveling process, one may see a photo or the opportunity to take one in an entirely different light. In the end, it is not about the complete image or the still captured from the  lens, but the essence of the surroundings that create that moment. Everything from the light, to the casting of a shadow, to a blurry or crisp object because a vital part of the permanence that is recorded.

If you’re someone who enjoys photography as a hobby or does it for a profession, consider submitting an entry. We would love to see the world through the lens of a fellow Unraveler!