Well, it’s been about two months now since Cornerstone and I finally have both the piece of mind and time to focus on what exactly I experienced there. As always, this is about the third time I’ve started to write this piece. I don’t know why, but with me, it always takes at least three false starts before I hit “gold” when it comes to writing. Let me simply start by saying that it was an awesome time for me. The keyword for the week wasn’t spiritual high, but rather fellowship.

You see, back in 2002, I had my last spiritual high. I had just taken the reigns at Tastyfresh and I was ready to really shake things up. It was an awe-inspiring time getting to learn from both Scott Blackwell and Andy Hunter’s seminars. If there was one thing that really stuck with me that year though it was the viewing and discussion we had of the documentary “Better Living Through Circuitry.” Now, I won’t call it the end all rave/club culture film. It probably isn’t and it really shouldn’t be. What the movie did though was solidify this idea in my mind that secular or Christian, the rave culture is really built around the idea of worshipping something be it drugs, the dj, God, a false god, the desire for peace, love and unity and so on. The point is though, that the promoters know this and tweak events to this purpose. There is an inherent craving for the spiritual in this scene and it is something that can be “bought and sold” to some extent. I left Cstone that year with a spiritual high that simply hasn’t worn off yet and I hope it doesn’t.

So let’s fast forward to Cstone 2006. It’s been four years since I had last been and a lot has changed. For the second year now, an organization other than one of the two traditional dance music labels ran the Dance Club… or Dance Barn as the club’s patrons more accurately call it. To me, what this signifies is that the event has moved from the control of the labels to the control of the fans. This is very important. Nobody was there trying to sell you the latest half done dance CD. Nobody constantly reminded you to buy merch. It was all about the music this year. It was great and to be perfectly honest, it was perhaps the best line-up we have ever had. The only year I know that might have rivaled it was 2003’s with Jason Dunne and Trancelot on the line-up. It’s really hard to beat out Shiloh, Stryke and Evol Intent’s AJ though. I was a little disappointed with the turnout this year however. By my guess, each night averaged between 150 – 250 people in the barn at any given time. It could hold at least 100 and maybe 200 more than that. Still, the shows were awesome shows and I can’t complain one bit.

So I said the word this year for me was fellowship right? Here’s the ticket. Unlike the other years I had been to Cstone, this year I didn’t plan to promote my music or myself and I didn’t even care to really promote Tastyfresh. I didn’t feel like I needed to and I didn’t feel that this year was the right year to do so. Having run Tastyfresh for four years and released music on an annual basis since 2001, there simply wasn’t a need to get my name out. So… I did what I really needed to do which was hangout and make some new friendships and nurtured some older ones as well.

I cannot tell you what a blessing it was for me to simply sit back and chat face to face with close to 20 people I chat with on a regular basis here on Tastyfresh. It was like coming home for a family reunion with a family that could put aside all of its dysfunctional tendencies and not only get along, but give selflessly to do what needed to be done before the Dance Barn opened its doors every night. Maybe… just maybe… I’m writing that unity series for nothing. Then again… I still think we should come up with some focused goals.

One of the coolest things for me was meeting Greg Chin aka Stryke. I will fully admit, I am not a huge follower of his work. He’s got some great stuff, but I’m just too busy with writing my own music and running this site to pay attention to everything that everyone releases. Well, we have a mutual friend in Bill Sikes who occasionally writes reviews here and sometimes blabs to each of us about the other. Greg and I clicked instantly the moment we shook hands… or was it a hug. I can’t remember. In fact, it felt like we had been friends for years. But… you know what, that IS a real part of Cornerstone. You show up, you hangout with some people you know. You leave knowing more people than you did before you got there and you keep in touch with them for years to come. I could say the same thing about Justin and Colin of Shiloh as well except that Justin has been bugging me at work over IM for over a year now.

In the end, I truly feel I got to see what God wanted me to see this year. I saw a group of people who were gathering together to celebrate God through dance music and to have an awesome time of fellowship. This group wasn’t tied directly to some commercial organization like a record label as it has been in the past. It was people who pulled together simply because they like dance music and for the most part had contact with each other through this website. It was a picture of the unity I have been talking about in my unity series and yet it was just people who were hanging out and having a great time.

I have no idea if I will make it to Cornerstone 2007. I may. I will have the vacation leave for sure. The question is… does God want me to be there next year. I hope so, but you never know. In meantime, I would like to extend my thanks and gratitude to Chris and Cindy of the Underground and simply say thank you for all of the blood, sweat and tears you put into the Cornerstone event this year. I know it was hard, on short notice and that we on the Tastyfresh boards were often impatient with you on this. You did an outstanding job this year and truly impressed me. I would also like to thank the Club Worship crew for taking time out to come show us not only how you do your shows back home, but for running the lighting rig all week. Your set up was amazing. To everyone else… it was great. Oh btw Oneel… “Here comes the gravy pipe!”