Solid Lineup Bolsters Monster Massive

With five stages and more than 20,000 fans, Monster Massive sounds like an event that lived up to its name. And in some respects, it did. But the party, held Saturday at the Los Angeles Sports Arena, earned its title as arguably the best rave to hit L.A. this year by scaling back the spectacle.

Go Ventures, which produces the annual event, did a superb job of making the large arena feel intimate by effectively spacing the five stages, which showcased such electronic music styles as house, jungle and hardcore. The arena floor was given over to the “House of Horrors,” which was anything but.

With plenty of room to dance, sit or walk up to the front to see DJs such as Junior Sanchez and Derrick Carter spin, the “House of Horrors” provided a comfortable center for the peripheral stages to revolve around. On opposite ends of the floor were the hardcore and jungle stages; the Clipper Club housed the “Phantom Chamber,” and the popular “Tomb of Doom” stage, where Richard “Humpty” Vission and Angel Alanis were among the DJs of note, was situated outside.

From a musical standpoint, Monster Massive booked a solid, if not jaw-dropping lineup that offered two headliners, Carter and Sanchez, and several quality acts around them. Neither headliner disappointed.

Sanchez relied primarily on large trance hooks to fill the arena floor and provide a soundtrack compatible with a large psychedelic screen and a laser light show. Woven into the mix with the trance beats were some expected house grooves and a nice percussive solo with a samba feel.

Chicago house legend Carter, immediately following Sanchez on the house stage, was more spectacular, if not as consistent. He did have a couple of lulls in his 90-minute set, but the peaks were more than enough to offset them. Using a lot of jazzy tones as his foundation, Carter displayed a unique style, so smooth it made the beats sing.

The only drawback to the house stage was that the size of the space didn’t allow a lot of interaction between ravers and the DJs. Recognizing this, Carter could have placed a few more flashy transitions in his set to energize the crowd.

Also turning in noteworthy performances were jungle mixer Aphrodite, San Diego’s Barry Weaver and DJ Colette, whose singing over the tunes she spins could give her crossover appeal to a more mainstream audience.

And of course, it wouldn’t be Monster Massive without the costumes. Among the most popular items were angel’s wings, tails for the women, book characters (Alice in Wonderland, Mad Hatter, Snow White) and a few patriotic ensembles, including Uncle Sam.