Serenity Link | What happens when LA’s sex appeal becomes an action item?

Ascension has been weaving through the city of angels. If you know you know, and if you don’t know, then you don’t know the right person. From in-the-know-to-know to “No flash photography please”, Serenity Link has given the LA party scene a much-needed reboot. We meet with the minds behind this up-and-coming party series over a camcorder and a joint. 

Lil Risk: Hi, I'm Lil Risk, one of the resident DJs at Serenity Link. Oh, do I add more? 

Karen: Hey I am Mapamota. I am a resident at Serenity Link and also the founder and co-organizer. Thank you for being curious about us. 

Edward: Yeah, I'm Stealth Angel. I'm also a resident DJ, founder and co-organizer.

We settle into the conversation as Karen’s baby chihuahua, Pecan, joins us on the couch. The joint travels from one acrylic-decorated finger to the other as we discuss how Serenity Link came to be.

Edward: So what really happened was I had been throwing stuff on and off and I think actually the first rave that Karen went to was one that I did some years ago. 

Karen: It was, in 2015. 

Edward: It was pretty difficult to get something to stick and be consistent in LA. Sometimes it would go very well and then other times it would just be really hard to get people to commit to going out. I tried doing it on and off for years and booked some artists that I really love. But at a certain point, it just became too tough and I was mostly doing it all on my own. I was just doing everything pretty much by myself and during the pandemic, Karen reached out to me. 

Karen: Going off of that, I moved to LA in 2015 to go to college. I was 18 and I started going to raves and the first one I went to was at this one venue called, “Werk,” which used to be in the American Apparel building. It was one of Edward’s parties, but we didn't meet then. We met maybe the following year or something like that and he was putting on really cool shows. Like he had booked one of my favorite DJs, Tayhana from Mexico and I remember going to New Year's Eve parties that he used to throw, one with Total Freedom, and he used the book my partner at the time, so I would go support. And then, I started going to this party called, “Rail Up,” a lot and that was super influential for me, I feel because when I think about Serenity Link. I guess a goal of mine when I think of ours with Serenity is kind of merging these harder techno club sounds with a warmer, Latin feeling. I feel like those two different types of parties were so separated before. I would honestly not really have fun at techno parties that much. It was really just dry and boring and not sexy, you know? Rail Up was really fun. They played Reggaeton and all these amazing sexy sounds. The parties were lit, you know? That was kind of my upbringing in the club. I think that Edward was interested in a similar vibe and energy that I was.

Serenity Link popped off before Resident Advisor could keep up, spreading via word of mouth and IG promotion. It was one of the first parties that were acceptable to post on IG due to its outdoor setting and timing. Coronavirus, amongst many things, made a mess of the entertainment industry and completely destroyed any underground recreational organization. Not to mention, the state of the nation drew every party-goer to reallocate their organizing skills to the greater good, like bringing a noz tank to city hall for the Black Lives Matter Movement and bringing a noz tank to protest the Echo Park Sweep. The thing that drew us all closer together was our non-secular God-given right to party. At Serenity Link, you may see the hardcore scene interacting with LA’s techno sweethearts. The punks were too busy making sure no surface goes un-screen printed to show on time for the headliner. Indie rock however seems to have remained banished to the illustrious 18+ section that we’ve all known and loved, and then hated (see “The Fall of Burger Records” or “RIP Spaceland Presents”). Regardless, we were all looking for something to do—somewhere to be and to be seen. LA’s self-proclaimed misfits found they were nothing without their communities.

Lil Risk: Yeah, I think what's really special about Serenity Link is that there's a real, truly diverse crowd across many ways it's like queer, but then there’s also straight people there. I think it's reflective of the type of music we play because we all bring something different. And then also the bookings that we have, there are so many incredible local DJs that have played. And then Karen and Ed have done a really good job of bringing DJs from out of town that are our favorite DJs, like music nerds again. The people that they're bringing to play the party are people that we fucking love doing, like DJs that we know, or that we’ve asked to come. I think I love it for that. I think Karen and Ed have done a really good job of making sure that we are safe at the party and including drug prevention or harm reduction. And then I think also we just do a good job of having our actual community there, who look out for each other, who care about us, and who care about the party. I always feel comfortable and welcome in the space and I hope other people do too.

Karen: I also feel so comfortable in this space. I feel like in my experience with it, it really feels like they're being less of a judge or it's less judgmental people in the party and just the vibe. And that's definitely the energy that I try to communicate as a host because I really just want to center the actual experience of dancing and being in that moment in your body and experiencing pleasure. There's all these, like,b social and weird layers that are obviously present, but I think that we do a good job in just centering what it's actually about. So I feel like that's really a great feeling for me. As an organizer, sometimes I have gone to raves and I'm like, “How did they let this happen?” Or like, “How did they not think about this or something?” And me and Ed are extremely detail-oriented and everything is a conversation between both of us. Yeah, I think there's a lot of responsibility. I know people realize that throwing these events. It's so important to me to keep the people that come to my party safe because I actually wouldn't be able to sleep at night if something happened because of me, under my responsibility, you know? Every day we're getting better and better and we're improving and obviously, there's a lot of things to improve, but it's a super important part of me, safety and harm reduction and just overall safety. 

Libertines know best: the best thing to do, when you don’t know what to do, is to follow what feels good. The DJs of Serenity including, but not limited to: Sevyn, Syd Falls, and Severine, have mastered the visceral. Tension and release are the ultimate pleasures of the human experience and give way to the sounds of Serenity Link. The non-verbal rules the space and illustrates the shapeshifters of the underground. Attendees have found that this is a place to let your [alter]ego play and mingle with others. Freed of that weight, bodies feel light enough to move. Our organizers walk us through the energy of the space from their perspective.

Karen: I relate to that feeling of just playing and being like, “What the fuck y'all? You know, I feel so full of love and, but also it's so fun. I love it. People screaming. People are really like taking off their clothes. Making out. Everything. 

Edward: Yeah. My big thing was, like you said, you go to certain events, like techno parties, or for me it was a lot of experimental electronic music. Not necessarily strictly techno, but you go to these sorts of events and they're not sexy. People aren't feeling the music in a visceral way, people are either there and it's a scene thing or maybe they appreciate the music, but they're not moving, they're not getting physically engaged and engaging the people around them in a particular way. So you have that on one end and then you have parties like Rail Up, which are amazing, where you totally have that. Where you have music from all parts of the world that make people move and make people connect with each other and connect with their bodies. But that blend of the two, being able to experiment and do weird stuff, and find weird sounds, and take people through a sonic journey while people are still engaging with their bodies, so they can engage with the people around them. Both of us felt like it was so hard to find that blend. 

Edward: So I guess my personal style of playing has evolved a lot over the years. I grew up in LA going to The Smell and punk shows and stuff like that. And noise. I was in a noise band. That's still definitely really an important ethos for me. The raw energy. I guess what I found, though, is, again, you go to a noise show and there'll be a certain kind of energy. People will move around and thrash around, but you don't have that visceral, flowing bodies, where people are vibing with each other in that kind of way. So for me, if you can have both, that's the ideal. I had a noise background when I was a teenager and started to move more and more into electronic music. At first, it was definitely really crazy shit. And then from hours and hours, devouring stuff on the internet going on spirals on YouTube, and just finding infinite amounts of music from all different time periods. I found more of a balance of sounds. I feel like when I would play a couple of years ago, I found that audiences didn't really seem to tap in, quite in the way that I wanted. I just realized that there’s an arc that you have to take people through and you have to connect to an audience in an initial way, in a way that may be more immediate, more visceral, with beats that keep someone moving and feel familiar, kind of like a heartbeat. But then once the audience is with you, you can do whatever you want. And that's like the coolest part of this. It makes me love this. 

COVID brought about more than a few noteworthy parties. One of the first I can remember was a Mad Max-esque block party outside what used to be Rec Center which featured hydraulics, drones, and at least 800 people. An address exclusively retrieved through a Rave hotline appealed to that summer’s 2000's revival circa t.A.T.u., and absolutely not Spice Girls. Let’s not forget the Cave Rave of summer 2020 which brought about a dangerous mix of spiritual awakenings, drugs, and bad cell reception. Of course, Theresa Duncan-inspired series, Inconspicuous Consumption, gets credit as the best house party we’d all been to in a long time, made up of “debauchery, fun, chaos, beauty, burnouts, and a booming sound system (shout out Brent Becker)” (Jasmine Johnson). We were urged to start getting creative with our vices, and as a result, found ourselves amongst a rave renaissance, and we weren’t getting rolled not a second before 4AM. Yet, for many, nothing quite compared or had as lasting of a presence as Serenity Link. 

Lil Risk: I was going to say, cause that's been the joke about LA, is like people are so fucking boring, which honestly it was true. But [with] Serenity Link, consistently people are dancing on top of speakers, it goes fucking crazy and it's so fun. I get really nervous when I DJ, so I'm zoned in on the decks, but then it's Serenity Link. Sometimes I just look up and I can't help but laugh because I'm just like, “Are you fucking serious?” People go crazy. And also, I'm sorry, we have to talk about The Alley. Iconic. Like, Serenity Link debuted the fucking Alley. And that's a moment in LA. That's iconic. 

It’s worth mentioning that there's a dark space that has revolutionized the LA party scene, one that has always been the butt of the joke since the turn of the century. Too boring for New York, too based for LA, just right for the alley. The best night of your life since the 2020 fall of civilization costs $10 if you're BIPOC and $20 if you’re not. LA has always been about the visuals. We are, undoubtedly, a sexy city; but what happens when LA’s sex appeal becomes an action item?

Karen: There's a feeling that I want or that I chase or something. I like being between a lot of bodies. You're hot and it's sweaty. And that feeling is actually the visceral thing that I want to recreate. Just little sensory things that can be altered with light or scent or something, you know, like those visceral experiences I think are really what allows people to fully kind of just give into it or something, you know?

Edward: I think the most important thing is that people feel safe, that's what allows them to be able to really have an experience. I feel like Karen has put in so much thought to that and is always thinking about it. We’re always talking to each other about it.  There are so many components to it. On one hand, there's very practically, how can we keep people safe? Just making sure that people are taken care of. Once the environment is right though, something special happens. I've talked to so many people now and it's been really beautiful to hear people reach out to me and talk about how magical the experience was. Like how much magic they felt in the night. And that for sure only happens with that level of safety. But, yeah there are some things that you can't even plan for and we all feel really grateful that it's been so blessed. The right people come and there's a community that's gonna help everyone and then people can really start to let go. And honestly have healing experiences. I don't think people talk about it all that often, but definitely, from doing Serenity, people are telling us all the time how healing going to these Serenity has been. That's more than I could ever ask for. And I think that’s something else not really happening in LA. 

Lil Risk: I will say, everyone who plays, including people sitting here, it's like the whole experience is ethereal. You guys bring that to your sets always and there is that common thread. Everyone there just feels really otherworldly. 

By this time, it was about 8PM on a Friday, meaning we were all already late getting ready for our next good time. It was a pleasure to connect with the organizers of Serenity Link. If you’re curious about joining the revolution, there’s a party tomorrow night at the legendary alley. See you all then and good luck finding the address!