Gatecrasher Summer Sound System Diary

 

Another weekend, another festival…Doesn't the weather make all the difference? As fair-weather clubbers, Gatecrasher's Summer Sound System was a far cry from the mud-slick of Homelands and Glastonbury. Even the flyer booklet boasted "16 hours of Summer heat - Ibiza starts here!" and it wasn't wrong. Eventually, anyway. The usual hour-and-a-half journey had taken close to four hours.

With temperatures approaching the 90s and the sun beating down in the Oxfordshire countryside, along with thousands of others, we are sat in traffic listening to Judge Jules on the radio. Across the fields we can see the big tops and hear the deep bass - so near yet so far. Pedestrians are making the four-mile trek from Brackley to the site and are moving quicker than us. Cars are overheating and dropping like flies, blocking the narrow country lane to Turweston Aerodrome. "Let's worry about it later and large it!" the lads said after abandoning their ageing vehicle. Fair play. The local residents must have thought the circus was in town with the myriad of costumes ambling by.

Eventually we make it on site where the cyberkids are out in force - dehydrated and burnt from drinking in the sun. We make a mental note of the car's location and brave security. The site boasted five arenas, radio 1 sound stage, funfair, enormous video screens for the England v Germany Euro 2000 game, and Strongbow loafing lounge which curiously had people queing… a would-be home to 25,000 people for sixteen hours of bedlam. Planes circle the site above - one trailing "Come on England! From Gatecrasher" - everyone's sentiments exactly. The whole entertainment is centred around DJs - there are no live bands, which was a shame and one of the few criticisms. That and the kiddies rollercoaster. However the DJ line-up was nothing short of inspirational.

We spend a couple of hours wandering around the site going from arena to arena - funny as fuck seeing people off their nut in the afternoon! We were gutted to miss Subliminal's Harry "Choo Choo" Romero and Richard F - normally they'd be playing in the evening but with so many DJs to slot in, many clubbers would miss their idols. With sustenance from a half-pound lard-burger, we are ready to party.

It's 6.00 pm and we head for the Gatecrasher, Radio 1 and MTV arena for John Kelly. The blue tent looked like a fairytale castle with its turrets.

Close on 10,000 must have been packing out the main arena which was a sea of foil, glowsticks, u/v wigs, and flashing lights - all giddy with excitement. In the Bed Arena, Erick Morillo is playing a full-on chunky vocal house set following Harry and Richard F and even this early on the crowd are in rapture. Rob Tissera takes no prisoners in the Hard Nation Arena which is really kicking off early evening. Stamina levels were at an all-time high - and they'd need to be. But as the clock approaches 7.00, most arenas face a mass exodus. The busiest "arena" was in front of the giant TV screen.

We join ten thousand others sat on the grass in worship for the England game. It is like school assembly with everyone sat cross-legged, vying for space. Even Radio 1's soundstage had a video screen on top - and respectfully they kill the music for the second half. Danny Rampling is in the studio in London broadcasting the Lovegroove Dance Party. A lot depended on the score - we would either be celebrating or hopelessly gutted drowning our sorrows. Everyone was friendly supporting the national team, passing joints and giving Gatecrasher Summer Sound System a true festival vibe as the sun set spectacularly across the site.

Then the most deafening roar of all as screams, cheers, whistles and horns go off in unison - Shearer had scored! For most of the clubber's in attendance lifetimes, we'd not beaten Germany. Like a re-enactment of early raves, everyone is hugging as the referee blows his final whistle. Thousands of others are blown in unison. Now for some serious partying as 10,000 hurriedly disperse to the arenas.

By now Judge Jules has them crammed in the Gatecrasher Arena as he thumps out the tunes - huge screens behind showing Shearer and the squad in ecstasy. Many that had been in the sun all day were now sporting indelible messages across chests and backs from strategically drawn sun cream. Even the police with their luminous yellow vests blended into the surroundings! It's a pity they hadn't caught up with the South London dealers who were selling paracetamols daubed with anti nail-biting polish for a tenner.

Huge £25k green lasers and searchlights pierce the night sky. Horns, whistles and trumpets ricochet around the aerodrome. We bump into Craig Richards who has just flown in from Turkey and got to the event twenty minutes before his set! After a blinding time in the Progressive Arena where he is spinning a myriad of beats, he tells us of the many DJs like Nick Warren and Anthony Pappa who were delayed due to traffic and the air traffic control computers going down. Ashley Casselle looks like he's gonna be playing the longest set of his life in the Progressive Arena! Norman Jay is beaming, "I wish I'd been playing when England scored!" he cried. He'd been playing in the makeshift VIP after Tom Wainwright. Jeremy Healey was dishing out the party tunes behind dark glasses. We are then herded from tent to tent by Gatecrasher's PR, Louise. Security at this event was as serious as you can get. The organisation was superb and all staff friendly. There were golf buggies which went around the site moving DJs in and out of the arenas and VIP. The stage managers had to be placated whilst two-at-a-time, we were allowed a few minutes on stage. And there was plenty of reason.

Paul Van Dyk, Gatecrasher's messiah, was enriching the minds of his disciples. The energy in the Gatecrasher Arena was awesome as Paul electrified the air with soul-searching melodies. Next door in the Metalheadz Arena, James Lavelle is playing Leftfield before handing over to Coldcut. It could've done with being louder for the technobeats in this bass-driven Arena but its dark and moody vibe with video walls packed a punch.

Roger Sanchez is letting rip before a giant mirrorball in the packed Bed Arena. US house fans never left the Arena with one of the strongest line-ups of the event. Rampling should have followed Sanchez but in a cruel twist of fate, as almost an insult he is consigned to the VIP due to the inflated egos of some of the American agencies. In a room with badly placed speakers and shockingly awful monitors, Danny made the best of a bad situation playing feel-good vocal house and had them up dancing - especially with an acetate of Joey Negro's latest Love What You Feel Inside. He turned a sow's ear into a polyester purse! Headliner David Morales, sporting his dyed blond hair which he had done in Israel, comes in for a chat before his set in the Bed Arena. A buggy comes into the VIP loaded up with bottles of Evian - and after literally cutting up the dancefloor doing a five point turn, just as it was disappearing through the tent flap, a case of water was lifted off the back to a huge cheer. Within ten seconds the bottles were nabbed by thirsty VIPs. Funny as fuck. Outside, punters are recuperating around makeshift bonfires, smoking.

Back in the Metalheadz Arena, Goldie livens up proceedings before the headliners Fabio and Grooverider take it in turns to diss the competition. The swirling void it now packed out. Condensation rains down from the tent.

The Hard House arena was bloody bedlam as Trade's Alan Thompson was doing what he does best - squeezing every ounce of energy from hectic clubbers. Jimmy Van Mallaghan from New York's Twilo is creating a sensation in the Progressive Arena with the sparkling Gatecrasher emblem spinning beneath a sea of arms amongst an atmosphere of dry ice resonating with beats. Huge screens show a close-up of his deck technique with the sound system coping amply. The sparkly gatecrasher logo spins above raised arms.

Eventually Jimmy Van Mallaghan arrives by buggy from the Progressive Arena to take over from Danny. He starts playing funky house but now it was time for some American talent. We fuck about with one of the buggies before heading off to the The Bed Arena. And it rocked for two hours with the awesome talent of Morales - although it should have been three. The Arena attracted a different crowd from the usual Gatecrasher cyber kids throughout the event. Gatecrasher's Scott Bond is backstage taking in Morales' magic. He knocked 'em for six!

Back in the Gatecrasher Arena, a messy Sasha looks at the decks, pauses for a few moments and then launches into a mind-blowing set on autopilot. The kids go mental sounding off their horns and whistles to get on the radio. But after eight hours of sheer bloody mentalness, it is all a bit much. By now the make-up and u/v paint has run, spiked hair is in tatters and foil is creased - but smiles remain.

We head back to Morales and enjoy his wind-down before Washington's Deep Dish arrive. By the skin of their teeth they make it to the event having been stuck on a runway in Portugal for five hours with no food and drink. However by the time they had taken to the decks, the nightmare had been forgotten. However, after an hour or so, we grab the next buggy to the entrance and head back to the car. Gatecrasher, the Summer Sound System lived up to all the hype and promises - fair play. It's not very often that happens.