suffer as well as induce the deterritorializing effects of “time-space compres sion”
(Harvey 1990). Digitalization, migration, and media are main processes in the
analysis of how globalization affects Techno and New Age, requiring new
methodologies on translocality and network mapping.
Second, in the context of modernity, Techno and New Age can be seen as
countercultures that critically respond to (or express) the modern apparatus of
“sexuality” (Foucault 1976).^3 In this case, Techno and New Age operate as a politico-
cultural “counter-apparatus” centered on an aesthetics-erotics of the self. Requiring
detailed analysis of ritual and lifestyle, this “counter-apparatus” potentially allows
new forms of subjectivity, sociability, intimacy and institutionality that depart from
the biopower of the nation-state and major moralities.
Third, in contrast to postmodern studies that rely on fictional, literary, or
abstract materials, this investigation of global countercultures focuses on empirical
phenomena that instantiate seminal postmodern tropes: the nomad, the cyberpunk,
and the neo-tribe (Deleuze and Guattari 1980; Featherstone and Burrows 1995;
Maffesoli 1996). It seeks to demonstrate how nomadic, digital, and tribal practices
are empirically articulated in a “counter-apparatus,” which indexes a field of
possibilities and agencies enabled by the complex nature of reflexive globalization.
Freak ethnoscape: aesthetics, nomadism and spiritualityAround April, global freaks arrive on the Mediterranean island of Ibiza (Spain),
before the mass of Anglo-Saxon tourists. They live and work throughout the tourist
season (May-October), after which they leave again for faraway locations. And so
did I from 1998 to 2002, living with a DJ, a yoga teacher, a neo-sannyasin, and a
couple of eco-workers in various circumstances throughout my anthropological
fieldwork. I was researching Techno and New Age experiences in various sites, such
as mega-clubs (Space, Privilege, Amnesia, Pacha, El Divino, Es Paradis, Eden),
trendy bars (Café del Mar, Bar M, Khumaras, Dome), and trance parties, as well as
alternative markets, sunset meditations, and Biodance, yoga and Reiki workshops.
In terms of national cultures, I circulated within three main groups: the Spanish
inhabitants and club workers; the seasonal mass of British tourists and club/bar
workers; and the multinational community of cosmopolitans dedicated to the
shaping of an eco-expressive “style of life.”
“Ibiza” dazzles as a charismatic icon of freedom and pleasure, a golden Utopia for
European youth. In addition to its 100,000 residents, each summer the tiny island
hosts 2 million tourists, an impact that has left Ibiza struggling with the pattern of
hotel concentration initiated in the 1960s. Consistent with the rise of tourism as the
largest global industry, 80 percent of the island’s wealth derives from leisure, with
major clubs and bars being central to it. While Space is renowned as “the best club
in the world” within the global club scene, Privilege stands out as the world’s largest
club, with a 10,000 capacity (see Guinness Book of World Records). Industry
estimates indicate that around 12 percent of visitors fall directly into the “club
tourism” category, while marketing strategies sell the concept of “sun, fun, and sex
236 GLOBAL NOMADS IN IBIZA AND GOA