WILD WEEKEND V reveiw in Headpress 26

Just found this review of last years wild weekend in my favourite but completely erratically released periodical Headpress.

https://securehost2.zen.co.uk/headpress/Online_CG_WildWeekend.asp

Headpress.....ahhhh, hadn't realised they were still going. Like you say, very erratic publishing schedule.

Cool article, though he makes it seem like there was hardly anyone there. I felt I got there early at 9:00pm - what he was doing at 7:30 is beyond me.

Trader Woody

I just dug up my own 'diary' of the pre-show & the first night, so if anyone's a glutton for punishment, read on....

"
Pre-show party

First night of the Wild Weekend for all intents and purposes is the pre-show party at the Sunset bar as we get to pick up wristbands, grab a schedule of events, see a bunch of the more 'high octane' bands, and get an idea of which old faces have made the trip this year. First, I've got to meet fellow Tiki Centralite thejab at the Mai Tai Tiki bar, just along from my hotel. I get there a little early and it's closed, with no idea of opening times (well, the sign said 7:30, but at 7:45 there was no sign of any movement) So, I resigned myself to sitting in one of the seats outside a nearby pub, and had a pint of lager to while away the time. The allotted meeting time came & went, and I finished off my pint at 8:15, so decided to wander over to the Sunset Bar and check out the scene there.

A quick look at my passport, and the wristband was on, so the party had begun. I wandered downstairs, and things seemed a little quiet, and the beer was being served in little cups, so I went back out and found a nearby place selling San Miguel in nice glass, handled pint mugs at €1 a pop. There I could just sit back and check out the line-up and events for the weekend while the club filled up a little.

2 Pints later and I was back at the club. Thee Flying Dutchment had set up shop at the bottom of the stairs, so I bought a few goodies and wandered over to where the bands had set up. I was just reading a copy of Caveman's Digest when I heard a voice - "Woody?" Hey! Dean "thejab" had made it! They were running a little late after their bags had gone astray somewhere between London and Alicante. I guess the San Francisco-Alicante route isn't one well-travelled. So, we soon found a place to sit and talk in a slightly quieter bamboo-themed area.

I realise the beer has washed through me, so I make my way upstairs to the toilets and bump into Gary of the Monks! Great to see that they are there for the duration and aren't one of those bands who just turn up, take the money and go. In fact, it turns out they have been in Benidorm for a few days already, just soaking up the atmosphere. I tell him how much I'm looking forward to the show and wish them well.

I stop to pick up a gin and tonic at the bar upstairs as the bars downstairs are busy, but then I'm told I'm not allowed to take drinks from one bar to the next. Wha? I don't want to stand there drinking it by myself, so I manage to persuade the security guy to let me take it down in a little paper cup. Of course, this overflows, causing more hassle as it's all over the floor at the top of the stairs. When I finally make it down, people are drinking out of glasses anyway, so what was the point of that charade? Anyway, I get to Dean and Jeff, and have a good talk about bands, booze and stuff for a while.

We realise that we've not checked out any bands, so we go and watch a band from Spain whose name I didn't catch. It's a little packed out, possibly because of all the mirrors everywhere creating a weird maze effect, but I manage to get up to the left front of the stage somehow. This is good fun, low-grade schlonk and the band seems to be having a good time - the crowd too. I take a few snaps and try and stay out of the way of the guy filming a lot more professionally.

Next up are Thee Flying Dutchmen, which I've been looking forward too as I love bands with that choatic vibe. I'll never forget the party in Los Ass Draggers chalet at Camber Sands (WW2) when they smashed a huge hole in the wall that seperated their chalet from the next one. They soon stroll up, plug in and start kicking our asses around the floor. The organ soon loses power, but it doesn't seem to matter too much in the sprawl. By the second song, the crowd has realised what they are up against, and the line between band and audience has blurred. The Duchess shouts for more beer, picks up a bottle & takes a big swig. Uggghhh - it's water, so it gets spat back out and the bottle smashed on the floor. And so the show goes until all the energy has been wrung out of both band and crowd. Great stuff! Anyway, that's me finished for the night, so I make my way back to the hotel for some zzzz's.

Night 1

Part of my theme for the week is trying to pace myself a bit better than last time where I overdid it, and felt like crap for days after my return to the UK. So, one part of that is to pig out at the hotel buffet beforehand, so I don't go with an empty stomach. The buffet stuff is pretty good, and I have a little bit of pretty much everything so I've got those vitamins inside me that'll help out in the morning. You can buy a bottle of wine there, drink a glass with your meal, put your room number on a little collar for the bottle, and they'll bring it back out to you the next evening. Cool idea.

I was going to take the bus up to the casino, but it's getting late and I make the decision to walk instead. It's a half hour walk to the Sunset club in the 'wrong' direction, so probably won't take that much extra time going the other way to the casino. So, I walk up and out of Benidorm, glad not to have to deal with the scrum for the bus. Turns out way too many people went for the bus anyway, so it was a good choice. There's a few bars at the top of the hill, just before the major road to the casino, so I grabbed a brandy at one of them and watched as the bus sailed past. €1.20 for a large glass of Soberano. A few hundred yards later and I stopped at the last port of call before the casino and had another brandy. This was the 24 hour Mitico bar. A group of locals whooped as I walked in because of my trousers. I was tempted to take off my sweatshirt and let them check out my fine pink Bermuda shirt, but figured this could result in a beating. The Wild Weekend is a difficult thing to define to those who speak the same tongue, never mind those who suspect you of being a bull fruit.

Later on as I walk along the final stretch of road before the casino, a car pulls over, and I start to worry a little. The driver takes a look at me, frowns, then pulls away fast. My guess is that because the road is used by a few prostitutes, my geek get-up made me look like a streetwalker from a distance in the dark! Anyway, I was pleased to get to the casino car park. My estimate is that without the stops it takes about 40 minutes from hotel to casino.

Looks like the Wild Weekend is being held in a different part this time. Perhaps it was last year - my wife and I had tickets & flights booked, but couldn't make it. Wow, the tent looks cool - some great art up there on the sides. I take a few photos before the place gets busy, then go to get a beer. Hmmm, you have to buy tickets first, then pick up your drink, Soviet Union style. Turns out to be a simple enough process, though, as there are no Soviet style queues. €3 for a pint of beer seems a fair price too. I'll stick to the beers as I know I'll end up talking so much that I'll need the constant cool liquid. I'm not used to the way the Spanish pour their spirits either, and don't want to be head first in a bush before midnight.

Josh is making a few last minute adjustments, so I go over and say a quick hello. Then I see someone wearing incredible make-up based on the old Didjits logo, so I go over to take a photo. It's not until I see who he's with until I realise that it's the gang from Aberdeen who stayed in my hotel last time. Really great to see them again! They run a shop up there selling all kinds of cool stuff, and take a whole bunch of it to the Wild Weekend each year. I'm really glad they've made it again. Then the first band, the Stags, are up and running. They have a clean-cut vibe going on (perhaps just for geek night) which fits well with the general atmosphere. "Anyone here from Chorley?" shouts one of the band to cheers from the people next to me. I go over and tell them I'm from Clitheroe, which is just up the road. Quite a surprise as so many of the Brit bands are from London.

I see Heilco from South London Pacific, so go and say hello. He helped out a lot when we did Tikistock a couple of years back, and I told him about how great the Wild Weekend was. Now he's organising the Lounge area, so I don't talk for long, but it's great to see him there. I only caught a little bit of the next band as I was fully into yapping mode, looking for familiar faces and finding out what's been going on the past couple of years. The lounge area needed to be checked out too, so I made a few shuttles across to see what was happening. Great tunes being spun & a nice laid back vibe as usual. Times like this, I could do with a clone to be in one place while I'm in the other. In fact, a second clone would be useful too, as just getting from area to area you bump into so many people.

Up next are the Embrooks who get that freak-beat sound down pat. I really enjoy the first few songs and wonder to myself why I don't listen to more of this kind of stuff. After a few tunes, I realise why as it starts to become to rich a concoction to consume in one sitting, and I go off in search of more adventure.

Thee Flying Dutchmen are there, so I go over, say hello, and show them the photos I took the previous night. "Took a lot of the Duchess huh?" They seemed to go down well, so I'll wing some of the better ones over to the Dutchmen base. By this point, I'm way into just speiling with people, so the Music Machine take a bit of a backseat. They seem to sound ok, but I'm not too sure about the line-up as it's definitely one of those 20% original member deals. I go around taking a few more photos and see a few more people, but the memory is getting pretty hazy from then on in. I manage to get the bus back, but am so tired I fall asleep on it. Another 5 hours in the Sunset bar is out of the question, so I shuffle back to the hotel and go straight to sleep."

Trader Woody

Tremendous stuff as usual Woody. Nice bit about your streetwalker outfit!

Thanks for the reminiscing Woody. I think I had some of the best times in the Club Montepulciano lounge as well. All the DJs were top notch! I can't wait for the next Wild Weekend!

Glad you you enjoyed the piece KH - yeah, those were some tight pants I was wearing....

The Club Montepulciano room was terrific, but I'd spent way too much time in there the previous time, so concentrated on the main room. It's probably the only good argument for cloning - send copies of yourself out to each room and have them report back.

Club M might be coming back, I hear.......

Trader Woody

Trader Woody