About Pure Lime.

Pure Lime is a 'Fantasy' float that participates in the Notting Hill Carnival. The costume is quite basically, Chocolate covered all over ones body. To join the float, the would-be chocolate masquerader purchases the Pure Lime T-shirt for that year, which usually has an enigmatically themed cartoon design, wears it on the day of the parade and then forms a 'queue' to be chocolated by official Pure Lime members before indulging in the group frenzy called Chocolate Mas.

The Chocolate Mas can be referred to as the band's 'performance' at the Notting Hill parade and this performance comprises of all Pure Lime masqueraders taking part in a mutual group smearing of chocolate and coconut oil. It is important to note that this mixture is edible and must be enjoyed whilst drinking healthy levels of alcohol (adults) or soft drinks and dancing to pumping soca rhythms.

Pure Lime has its cultural origins in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the home of Carnival and hosts of the largest of the Caribbean carnivals. The bandleader of Pure Lime is Edison, a Trinidadian of mixed African and Indian heritage. The Pure Lime Chocolate Mas experience is organised by himself, with his wife Theresa by his side, and a committee of six individuals from Trinidad, England and Serbia.

Edison's brainchild of using chocolate in Carnival draws on one of Trinidad Carnival's oldest traditions of using mud in J'Ouvert to represent the dark and decadent side of human beings. Pure Lime however transformed this idea into the celebration of the fun and fetish that live within all of us and recognised that the substance, which most symbolises this, especially in the UK, is Chocolate.

2nd July 2007.