Competition - London Remixed Festival

Two or three years ago I went to the inaugural event of the London Remixed Festival and had a totally banging time. I liked it so much I went back the year after as well. Having taken a year off last year it is back and bigger than ever with a two-day event on Feb 6^th and 7th. This festival is really unmissable for anyone who enjoys ‘remixed’ music such as electro-swing, Balkan beats, afrobeat or brass band remix, to name just a few.

Friday night sees Electro-blues rule, whereas Saturday has a more varied lineup including Sam and the Womp, the London Afrobeat Collective and Stompin’ Dave Allen all being housed in Rich Mix, making it easy to flit between stages. A few earlybird tickets are available from here.

Sam and the Womp

OR, you can enter my competition to win a pair for the whole event! Simply follow me on Twitter or visit my Facebook page, and either retweet my competition tweet, or Like and Share the Facebook post for a chance to enter. Winners will be picked at random and notified Monday 2^nd February.

For more information on previous years and the full lineup visit London Remixed Festival.

Slamboree competition

You may remember a couple of years ago I went to the excellent London Remixed festival in Shoreditch, showcasing a huge range of alternative music spanning everything from electro-swing to gypsy punk and more.

Well, if you liked the sound of that then you’re probably also going to like the sound of this – Slamboree, with Caravan palace doing a DJ set, being held at the ElectricBrixton on November 15^th from 10 pm until 6 am. It promises “hyper-immersive, circus themed, bass fueled, off-the-scale mayhem” from the likes of Dr Malaka, the Rumpsteppers and DJ Chris Tofu. There’ll be plenty of electro swing, Balkan beats and mashups to get your feet stomping all night long. It really does sound like one hell of a party.

And if you like the sound of that, then you’re going to love this: cos I’m giving away a pair of tickets! All you have to do is follow me on Twitter and tweet (or retweet) the phrase “Wham Bam thank you Slam-boree! I want those tickets @ginglesnuff @slamboreeMusic!” Or, you can Like my facebook page and comment on the competition post with that same phrase. 

I will then pick a winner at random from the entrants (You must be 18 or over to enter). Competition closes at noon on November 13^th and I will notify the winner via Twitter, and you’ll be put on the guest list for Saturday’s all-night extravaganza. (Please be available to go - no prize substitutions available.)

London Remixed Festival, 24th November

I was invited to review the London Remixed Festival and after taking a look at who would be playing and who was behind it, I thought I would be a fool to turn it down. So I didn't.

Wristbands were collected from Rich Mix, and while we were there we thought we'd see what kind of acts they had on. The downstairs was the African Rootmaster area, while upstairs was playing host to the Acoustic Boutique. The foursome on stage downstairs weren't doing much for us - a little too easy listening so we hopped into the "Disco Lift" to go upstairs.

Disco Lift Operator - (c) Gareth Reid

I wish all lifts could be like this - instead of an elevator operator you get some groovy dude playing music for your delightment while you travel between floors. We had something cheesy on the way up, and some D 'n' B on the way down!

Upstairs we came across one of the most truly unique acts I've seen in ... well... ever! His name was Ichi and he was a one-man-band. I don't know how many instruments he managed to go through in his set - there were really too many to count and too many to name, especially as some of them seemed to be handmade and wouldn't otherwise exist. He had bells on his feet, used a pedal to hit a drum, played a sort of banjo and 'sang'. He introduced each song but it was impossible to understand them. I'm really not sure if they were in English, Japanese, or other. It was very odd, but also transfixing. Almost impossible to describe, so just watch this video.

After he was through we had things we wanted to see in the Polka Tent at the Bedroom Bar so we went directly there. We were just in time to catch Cut A Shine leading the crowd in a barn dance. I get the impression they are used to bigger spaces to work in, and it was necessary to take out all the tables and chairs to allow just enough room for people to jig about.

Some of the dances were quite intricate and definitely not doable with a drink in your hand which means we didn't get involved in the first three or four. But we did dive in eventually. A dance which involved running in two massive circles, then doing some sort of dosey-do with several strangers until you got to 'lucky seven' with whom you just span around for a bit. It was exhilarating! I was beaming at the end of just one song. Actually, I didn't even make it to the end, it was so high energy, I was getting a right sweat on and decided to sit down to catch my breath. My other friends soon joined me, having the same idea. 

Cutting a rug with Cut A Shine - (c) Gareth Reid

We then went upstairs to catch the last bit of the Horndog Brass Band and we stayed up there to see some of the Monster Ceilidh Band as well. Both were good, but the MCB were a little on the quieter side compared to the Brass Band and Cut A Shine so we went downstairs to watch the last of Gypsy Hill, who I had seen at Rumpus recently and knew would be playing some upbeat foot-stomping sounds. We had a bit of a jig around to them before finishing off the night at the one destination we hadn't yet been to - the Latin Quarter at Village Underground.

Ska Cubano were playing when we got over there, the last act of the night at that venue. They were bloody brilliant, a great way to finish off the night. Everyone was in high spirits, the music was upbeat and fun. People were dancing around with smiles and abandon. 

Crowds at Ska Cubano - (c) Gareth Reid

I left this night on an absolute high, and really hope it becomes an annual event. The only negative thing really was that there were so many acts it was hard to see them all. I'd love to have been part of the 'walking taxi' with Perhaps Contraption for example (though I have seen them at White Mischief), or seen Molotov Jukebox.

Hopefully next time!

Coming up...November 2012

I haven’t done this before, but I might just make it a regular thing if I like it. A lot of the time I go to things on my list at relatively short notice, or only one thing at a time, so giving any forewarning or a ‘coming up’ wouldn’t make much sense. But it so happens that I know I’m going to cross a few things off the list in the next few weeks...

 London Remixed Festival 

If you’ve read my posts on Rumpus and White Mischief and like the sound of them, then I reckon this is for you. It’s a bit of a global end-of-festival minifestival, taking place as it does over three venues in Shoreditch. One wristband gets you entry to all three. Firstly, the venues they’ve picked have a great reputation for delivering fun and/or culturally rich experiences – Rich Mix, Village Undergroud and the Bedroom Bar. 

The lineup, if you like this sort of thing, also looks excellent. I have only seen a few of the acts so far, but that’s what I like about it – I like to see something new. It also helps that Cut a Shine will be there and they’re also on my List. 

So yes, we have the likes of Gypsy Hill performing as part of the Polka Tent at Bedroom Bar who I have seen before and highly rate–. Fun, make-you-want to jig music. And Perhaps Contraption who I’ve also seen and loved are in the Acoustic Boutique upstairs at Rich Mix. Then, on the other end of the spectrum we’ve got African inspired beats downstairs at Rich Mix in the African Rootmaster, and Latin music in the Latin Quarter at Village Underground, and somewhere in between the folks from Cut a Shine are doing their hoedown thing, again, in the Polka Tent. There’s something like 30 different acts on over the course of the night – something for everyone (if you like your music slightly alternative and global). Global Local, the people behind this new festival have also contributed to lineups at festivals such as Bestival, Shangri La at Glastonbury, Lovebox, Secret Garden, Wilderness, and the Big Chill and are the people behind White Mink, so you’re in safe hands. You can see why this night is highly anticipated by me, and at £13 quite a bargain. Obviously I will be reviewing it once I’ve been so stay tuned for that. 

For the full lineup and more info, click the link http://londonremixedfestival.com/  

Supperclub 

Also coming up soon will be my first supper club. It took me a while to decide to even put on one my List, but really, it had to be done. After reading a post by the London Foodie on a night he went to hosted by Two Hungry Girls, and completely drooling over all aspects of the menu, I brought them to the attention of my boyfriend and he promptly booked them for a bespoke private birthday meal. Does a supperclub count if it doesn’t include the bit where you mingle and dine with strangers? You can probably guess my answer to this – Yes. Again, come back for the verdict. 

https://www.facebook.com/TwoHungryGirls?sk=wall&filter=12 

The Blitz Party 

Many’s the month that has passed and I have longed to go to the Blitz Party. I have either had plans, or they have sold out far too quickly for me to get my hands on a ticket. But finally the planets have aligned and I am both free on the 17th and have bought a ticket so it looks like I’ll be able to get my ‘air-raid’ on. These parties transport you back to the era of wartime England with the drinks, fashion and music that entails. Stop by to see if it lives up to my expectations. I went to the B & H Prohibition night, and while I liked it, I didn’t LOVE it. I think these ones are more popular, so we will see what I make of it.

The Blitz Party