It was during the latter period that Paul Weil started spinning records at underground dance music events in Leeds.

Weil moved from England to the United States about eight years ago, and has been living in Saratoga Springs for the past five. A child of the Acid House generation, the 34-year-old hopes to create a scene in his new home.

“I was damaged at a young age. Since then, I’ve been spreading the House message,” Weil said.

Thanks to a partnership with the Saratoga County Arts Council, Weil now has the opportunity to provide folks of the Spa City and beyond with the music he loves in an environment that’s comfortable for people of all ages. His program, “Soundtherapy,” will go from 7:30-11:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 17 at the Arts Center.

The all-ages, alcohol-free event is Weil’s first attempt at putting something like this on in Saratoga Springs. He hopes it will be the catalyst for many more dance parties in the future.

When Weil spins, he goes by DJ Maro and only uses vinyl. His focus is on deep, funky House and Techno tinged with Soul.

“The music has been stripped-down to the bare essentials. It’s hi-tech yet tribal,” he said. “This kind of music is so infectious many people will find it hard not to dance.”

With cutting-edge modern dance music from around the world pumping from a crystal clear sound system provided by ‘Divine Invasion,’ Weil anticipates that the event will be popular and expects the venue to be packed. He hopes to attract approximately 200 patrons over the course of the night.

Attendees of the dance party can expect four hours of continuous music. Although the sounds will change, Weil will maintain a “seamless groove” by beatmatching and beatmixing, techniques a disc jockey employees to alter the normal pitch of a sound, so that transitions between tracks don’t change the tempo or stop the beat.

“Soundtherapy” offers a much different atmosphere than what many people may associate with the raver/clubber scene. Weil said people of all ages are welcome and they can dress however they want.

“No one should feel intimidated about coming down. This is all about being yourself,” he said. “I think it’s really liberating to dance to great music with your friends or with strangers.”

Admission to the event is $3. For more information on the event, call 584-4132 or visit www.saratoga-arts.org.

On a side note, many Americans ruled out electronic dance music as a passing fad which fell to the wayside by the end of the 90s, but that’s simply not true. In fact, the genre and culture are experiencing a considerable renaissance now.