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WHERE WILL YOU BE WHEN THE MADNESS GOES DOWN?
The Gathering (Nelson, New Zealand)
The Gathering is one of the quietly realised success stories of alternative music culture in New Zealand and this is set to be the best yet, no question. Set in the tranquil surrounds of Takaka Hill Nelson, all 6000 tickets sold out weeks ago and it is to The Gathering's credit that they've resisted the temptation to sell twice that, which they could have done easily.
The lineup is far too big to list here but some of the highlights include Presha, OB1 and Kog Transmissions (Auck), Grind, Eden and The Roots Foundation (Welli), Point Blank, Scientific and Sure to Rise (ChCh) and Eudaemony (Dunedin). There are six different music zones but our pick has to be Clinton Smiley and Gideon going back to back as the grumpy old men of techno, playing 9pm-midnight on NYE in the house tent.
Tickets have been bought from countries as diverse as Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Holland, Israel, Japan, Norfolk Island, Singapore, Switzerland, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, and the UK. The Gathering is also reportedly no. 7 on Oprah's Top 10 Millennium events list.