A Bugged Out Weekender - Saturday March 8th 2014 - DAY 2

A Bugged Out Weekend – Day 2 – Saturday 8^th March

It is when I awake on Day 2, I realise what a glorious situation we had found ourselves in at this festival. No scrambling around in a small tent, with the almost impossible task of brushing teeth with a water bottle while hung over to buggery. Here I arise at 11am, from an actual bed, with an actual pillow and perhaps somewhat fortunately no banging headache. A little groggy I delve right into the shower the chalet provides. The shower room light flickering away like a bad horror movie, I am undeterred and absorb myself into the luxury set out before me. I suddenly realise the gods have smiled down at me, I am clean and I feel fresh and best of all, no hangover!

After awaking my chalet mates and telling them of the good news. We set out to find the pub on site, The Queen Victoria. Today is FA Cup Quarter Final Day and I am a big Everton fan and we are playing Arsenal for a chance to go to Wembley. I have bought a scratch card from the shop and won £3 (It Cost me £2) and feel this is a good omen, victory is all but certain. Upon finding the pub, we are met with a blank screen, and most people are still sat down having their breakfast. It’s a little early and kick off isn’t for half an hour. So we order our pints and decide to wait. It is here we first realise that perhaps not everyone was feeling as fresh as ourselves, with our party mascot “The Steed” in tow. We realise that carrying around a horse this early was not the best tonic for the people who had over immersed themselves into the substances the night before.

@PartySteed

I’m not sure I know who to blame for the next 90 minutes of my life. But a lot of people are in the firing line. First off, the blame lies with Pontins. Firstly for putting on the wrong game for the first ten minutes, secondly for there being no sound to accompany the first half and thirdly because the expert channel hopper who eventually found the right game, did so at the moment Arsenal scored! I also have to mention that I blame Arsenal for being better than us on the day and Everton for letting me down again in a quarter final. We lost 4-1. There was now only one thing to do to get over the result, and that was go to the pool party.

I was told of a pool party earlier in the week, excitedly I packed my Bermuda shorts ready for a picturesque dance next to some scantily clad ladies in bikini’s, drinking and splashing about while 2 Bears played old school Ibiza style dance music to accompany the setting. It turns out that in my head I had hopped on a plane and gone to Ibiza Rocks instead. Upon entering the pool area, I soon realise this was not what I had envisaged. 2 Bears are playing but the music feels almost secondary as no one in the pool is paying any attention to them and instead most are throwing the rather large inflatables at each other for entertainment instead. That being said I strip to my bermuda’s and decide to take on the croc run. A giant inflatable assault course shaped as a crocodile. Kid’s stuff I snigger as I stand at the side waiting for my go. And as my first foot bounces off the crocodile I fall helplessly sideways into the pool. How embarrassing. Inevitably I do what everyone else has decided to do at this “pool party” and that is having a go at throwing the ridiculously oversized pool inflatables up into the air, before getting out, drying off and leaving.

Pool party

The second night of acts were upon us. And tonight after the success of the steeds outings to the pub and pool earlier, we decide why not take our horse with us to the big disco as well. Though inevitably going through the vigorous search process with a toy horse under your arm, certainly warranted some unwanted attention from the big burly bouncers.

Ten walls are on in room 1, which will be our first act of the night after opting to drink a lot more in the chalet this evening rather than take our chances with the bar service. I feel that this would have been better served in the early hours though rather than the 10pm time slot it was given. A huddle of girls taking selfie’s at the very front rather than listening to the music told the story of a crowd not really knowing what they were supposed to be doing. Then comes the irresistible synth tune “Gotham”. The crowd instantly more onside and paying attention, this song is one of the big house anthems at the moment and really is the highlight.

Ten Walls

We now make the move into the more preferred room 2. There is just something about this room that seems to make it a better atmosphere, the bar decked with the slogan “It’s just a big disco” and “Viva Acid House” this you feel is where the party people and the music lovers have come to let loose this weekend, and we are not disappointed when Kerri Chandler pops up next. A behemoth of the house scene, Chandler hurls us all into madness. It is tune after tune of explosive house anthem and I can’t stop my dancing feet. Personal favourite Chic "I Want Your Love" destroys all my inhibitions and forces me into a frenzy of shape making. Many ask how I dance in my Chelsea boots, well as long as brilliant DJ’s like Kerri are playing, those winklepickers will be moving fine. He ends with MK's "burning" and it is an immaculate finale, everyone throwing themselves to the vibe.

Heidi continues the party on stage and it’s halfway through her set when I first realise the attention our friend the Steed is receiving, wave after wave of girls coming to give him a kiss and party revellers taking him above their shoulders and pumping him up high, he is their party mascot for the evening and it adds to the occasion. Murmurs of a Mixmag party now start to surface around the room. This party would take place in one of the chalets we were all staying in, and as Jackmaster takes to the stage, we ask him if he is playing, he is and even he now takes the steed and hoists him into the air. This was going to be a special night!

Jackmaster

An intense build up at the start of Jackmaster’s set really increases the energy around the room. Everyone ready for the moment the beat drops and then the madness begins. Incredible party tunes from a DJ who really knows what songs to spin to get everyone dancing like crazy. There was an incredible feeling between crowd and stage as the other acts, as well as host Heidi danced away together and raised their drinks, saluting this magnificent set from the Glaswegian. Fast becoming song of the weekend Todd Terje’s “Delorean Dynamite” thrust us into a frenzy and the only downside to this set was the fact that it ended.

But all was not lost, we had been told of chalet 951. And at 6am we were on a mission to find the Mixmag Chalet party, after a couple of wrong turns, we had done it. Only to have the door well and truly shut “I’m sorry, there is already far too many people in here” Our heads down and our eyes like puppy dogs, we were about to turn away in disappointment, when in a flash the door swings open. A god of a man in a yellow basketball shirt bellows and screams “There is still plenty of room in here” we charge through the door and into the party. It is crammed, hot and sweaty but we were in.

Jackmaster had made his way over too, already stood behind the decks in this tiny room. A tequila bar stood where was once a chalet kitchen and drinks were free. Everyone in attendance revelling that they were one of about 60 people who would get to witness this special set. The door was now locked and everyone inside told “No one gets in and No one leaves” No one is bothered and a  big cheer erupts as Jackmaster explodes into “Delorean Dynamite” once again. And to truly emphasize how small this party was, it was in this moment that someone leant on a plug socket and mistakenly turned the power off. For a couple of minutes, the party was halted. “Put another £1 in the meter” was the cry showing no humour was lost. The party is soon on again, with some glorious moments, Jackmaster plays Prince’s Controversy and Purple Rain back to back for the real hands in the air moment with everyone singing along.

Jackmaster @ Mixmag Chalet Party

It is around 8:30am when the party starts to wind down, but not before Jackmaster cries the eternal words of “Tops Off” no one argues and suddenly everyone is waving their shirts above their heads wildly as we dance to the last couple of tunes. As we all leave that miniature chalet, it’s a feeling of utter euphoria. What a night this had been.  The football result long forgotten, a heel now breaking on my Chelsea boot from excessive dancing but in our hearts a love for life and moments etched forever in our memories.  It was a night that those in attendance will not forget in a hurry, this was the night we could say we were there.

A playlist featuring some of the songs from this night can be found here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_PzTxqJEDw&index=2&list=PLJGKdp0TfS-fW5uuGGIOUglRkYeoW2GzA