astraboy

Uproar touching down at the Sanctuary was easily the most talked about event of 2003. Despite a number of elements which detracted from its enjoyment, the overall event was a real breath of fresh air to pretty much any other Sanctuary rave during 2003. When the promoters announced their return to the venue for more of the same, they also promised the ravers that the problems that plagued their first event there (Gorilla security, Suspect sound, Scallys on tour) would not be allowed to happen again. The blurb on the flyer promised to make each event better than the last. It would be interesting to see if they could deliver that promise.
As the party drew nearer, the promoters ket the ravers up to date with the event's development with numerous releases. These statements included information on aspects that had been improved on since the last event. They included notification on exhaustive talks with Sanctuary Security about their heavy handedness at the last event, an upgrade for the old and wheezy sound system to a full on 100k behemoth job and, of course, announcement of the lineup for the event. The main reason that the Uproars held at the Brunel Rooms did not inspire me was because the lineups were IMO, tried, tested and a little dull. Luckily their first lineup at the Sanc had no such problems. The only bad thing about it was that it would be difficult to build on such a good first effort. Somehow the promoters managed to do just that.
Top of the bill was a highly anticipated live showcase from Happy Hardcore legends, Force and Styles. Not only were the DJs going to be there, but MC Junior and Jenna were also promised for no other reason that to sing the vocals for the tunes that would be showcased. If that werent enough, there were numerous back to back specials from not only the biggest DJs in the scene but also DJs who are just as talented, but don't get booked nearly enough. Dougal and Gammer, Sy and Unknown, Sharkey and the legend that is Marc Smith. This alone was more than enough to get me down there, but it werent the extent of the lineup by any stretch of the imagination. Of course Seduction was there with bells on, as well as Kevin Energy too. Robbie Long and Devastate took as well deserved place on the flyer with DJ Delicious getting the warmup set. Curiosity of the night was the addition of Vinylgroover. It would be interesting to see what someone who was so vocal about the scene a few years back could come up with.
If that werent enough then the sweatbox added a different dimension to the party. The Hard House had been dropped in favour of a full on techno lineup in association with "Technology" and "Uproar HARD". It was, once again, the DJs that made the second arena distinguish itself from downstairs. Mainstays of the techno scene such as Vortex, Clarkee, Mark EG, Dolphin, Ribbz, Mzone, even sharkey was promised. The only question I asked myself was whether I could drag myself from the main arena long enough to experience it.
When evenrything was announced and the party was all set to go, the only thing left to do was to anticipate the event. I was looking forward to this party. It was the culmination of 6-7 weeks of non stop raving and it was definitley a case of saving the best till last. On the day of the rave I was still feeling the effects of Antiworld the night before but I was still 1000% up for the coming night. I was about to make a trip to Slough to get my ticket when I got a call from Jon asking me if I had any spare spaces in the car. As I had one due to a friend dropping out not ˝ an hour before, I thought it would be rude not to. It also meant I had the luxury of a free night out. And all I had to do was drive near 300 miles in one night on no sleep to get it! After picking up the DeeJay and a small collection of Harrow Slags from Uxbridge, we belted up the M1 and turned off into Milton Keynes.
After parking up, we got in double quick. This threw me a bit as I am used to waiting for hours to get into raves, but I was confronted by reasonable security and just a pat down for weapons for a seach. I got a wristband for my troubles and best of all, a little card with lineup times on them. Both arenas. For free. Top banana. I was impressed already and I werent even in the rave yet.
I opened the door and went into the main arena. WOW! I have been to the sanc a few times but this was something else. Hanging off the lighting rig was lots of light blue draping cut to give the effect of ice stalactites. Similar efforts had ben made on the main stage with rubber inflatable stalacmites around the DJ booth. Speaking of which, there must have been at least 15 feet between the crowd and the DJ. That was mainly down to the stage area, it was huge! Seriously, it was big enough to have played a game of football on it, but the promoters had the sense to fill it with MCs and stage dancers instead. Up above the stage were giant faces on big circular backdrops, as well as serious amounts of lighting. A Smoke machine was under the stage, complimenting the big green laser which was exactly where it belonged, right behind the DJ, blasting out over the crowd. The Phrase "No expense spared" is actually a little insulting to the promoters, as even though a lot of money had been spent, 10 times the effort and attention to detail had been put into the production as mere money had.
When I had dragged my eyes off the décor, I remembered, I was there for the hardcore. When we arrived, Robbie Long and Devastate were just finishing up their set to a full dancefloor. Unfortunatly the breakbeat had been and gone, but as it was obiviously Devastates turn on the decks, the double hard tunes were making up for it. By this time Sharkey had done the decent thing and got straight on the mic, but I couldn't dance as I was still full of energy drinks, so I wandered round the rave, taking in the atmosphere and saying hello to familiar faces in the crowd.
Next up was the Essential Platinium boys for their set. I always like Dougal's sets as they are usually given over to a preponderance of rushy, euphoric tunes and this one was no different. The set was split in two with Dougal getting firsties, with Gammer finishing things off. Dougal's set was just a easy on the ear as usual, with tunes like "Taking me higher", "Shine, shine, shine"and "Ecstasy 24-7" all getting a look in, but it was Gammer that played the better half IMO, for no other reason than playing loads of my favourite tunes! Anyone who includes "Injected with a poison", CLSM's "Driftin Away", a monstrous breakbeat tune which I didn't know but loved to bits and "Fire in the sky" gets two great big thumbs up from me! This was a cracking way to start the night, talk about start as you mean to go on, I was dancing like mad throughout the whole set.
When the boys had finished, I was ready to expend some serious energy. Handily, Kev Energy was up next and he didn't let me down. Kev's recent sets have relied less on tune selection and more on the pace of the set being maintained by obscure tunes I have not heard before. Not that I'm complaining, mind. Quite the opposite, in fact. Almost immediately, the BPMs went sky high and the place went bananas with Energy rocking the joint as only he knows how. There were MC changeovers at frequent intervals with Sharkey and Wottsee starting off and Smiley and Whizzkid finishing up the set, but it was the tunes that really made the Nu Energy hour really stand up. I have never been so overwhelmed by a single set before. The kickdrum was up near 175 bpm and was absolutley relentless. I was totally knackered within 10 minutes, but I just couldn't stop dancing. Everyone was pulling out the stops for the ravers enjoyment during this set. Kev was playing near the best set of the night, the MCs were totally on it (Esp Whizzkid, big up to you mate), even the bouncers were contributing by spending

astraboy

the set ejecting chavs and troublemakers It was as close to raving perfection as you could get and it was only 11pm! Surely it couldn't get any better?
Unfortunately I couldn't find out as by the time Energy had stopped doing his level best to kill me, he had very nearly suceeded. I had overheated within 1 hours dancing and I was a sweating shaking mess. I neede to sort myself out so I wimped out of Style's set ( I would be seeing enough of him later anyways) and went outside. In the chillout arena I made a beeline for the burger van and got a bucket of chips with as much mustard as I could get away with. I sat down and chatted with a few people, but made a point of getting outside my food as quickly as possible. Once I had finished, I was feeling a lot better, but needed some music, but I still needed to take it easy. According to the timecard, Vortex was on up in the sweatbox. Perfect. When I got there, Vortex had mysteriously changed into Mzone, but I werent complaining. Ribbzy was on the mic and they were rocking the sweatbox with tunes that although were not as manic as hardcore, were totally wicked and perfect for dancing to while digesting a stomachful of chips.
Even though the place was rocking, I left at 12.55 as I knew what was coming. Once I was downstairs, myself and the rest of the rave quickly worked our way to the front of the arena for the highlight of the night. The Force and Styles Showcase.
In two parts, the first half was a DJ set by the main men, dropping tunes which the ravers knew and loved. "Follow me", Love of my life", "Here I am", "All systems go", and very best of all, "Eyeopener", every time the next classic came on the raver's hands were in the air and everyone was singing along. It was totally brilliant from start to finish and this was just the first half! Soon enough the final tune came down and a huge black dude in a leather jacket took centre stage. MC Junior was in the palce at last and Jenna was right behind him. Taking over the mic from MC Ribbz (Bigup) these two got on with the live showcase. This consisted of the songs that rocked the Hardcore scene back in the day and deserved recognition for the contribution they made. On paper it don't seem like much does it? "Paradise and Dreams", "Heart of Gold", Pretty Green Eyes", Three songs, that was it, but at the rave it was amplified 100 times when it was sung live in front of a crowd that was drowning out the person that was singing it cos every raver singing along knew the words and loved the tunes to bits. I managed to tear my eyes away from the stage in the middle of the showcase and looked behind me. A packed Santuary, a sea of ravers, all with their hands in the air, all singing along with huges smiles on their faces. Those three songs, combined with Jenna, Junior, the Stage dancers, DJs and the ravers to create something that was genuinly special that night. I feel honoured to say that I was there when it all happened. Turely, it was something special. I'll remember it for a long time.
The only downside to the whole thing was at the very end of the showcase when the power to the sound system was lost. In fairness it was only out for three minutes, but three minutes is a long time to keep a crowd of tune hungry ravers entertained, espcially when they had been whipped into a frenzy by the best part of the night. Fortunatly, Vinny the stage dancer was on stage when it happened. Maximum respect has to go out to him for tearing round the stage at warp speed and doing his level best to stomp a hole through the stage to keep the crowd hyped. By the time the power was restored, the crowd had lost none of their interest. Respect is due.
Respect is also due to the next DJ, the man of the moment, Seduction. It was a brave move to go straight on after Force and Styles because it was inevitable the arena would empty out after the main highlight of the night. Sedders put in an unselfish peformance and a workmanlike set. Sharkz, Rude and Ribbz complemented him on the mic with the promoter dropping crowdpleasers such as "Here we go", Opus III's "It's a fine day"and finishing off with CDJay's personal favourite, "Electric"
After Seduction had finished, Sy and Unknown stepped up to continue the b2b specials. Together with MC Storm, these three put on yet another blinding performance with a solid hour of wicked tunes, wickeder remixes, even wickeder scratching and the wickedest performance on the mic. The tunes were head and shoulders though, with plenty of remixes of classic tunes such as "Discoland, "Love of my life", and best of all a fantastic remix of CLSM's "Free your mind" I was rushing HARD when that one came in, let me tell you. Amazing set, surely it couldn't get any better after that.
Well, yes it could. Sharkey, Marc Smith and Ribbz were up next and **** on me if they didn't walk away with set of the night. Going 110% hardcore as f**k and rocking the crowd non-stop throughout their set. Okay the arena did thin out at first, but the boys stuck to their guns and the hardcore ravers responded by dancing just as hard as the tunes that were given out. No-one was taking any prisoners, least of all the DJs who played a remix of "Wicked MC "Hardcore, you know the score" and best of all, Mayhem's very own tune, "Beyond control". Ribbz was the perfect choice of MC to this set, providing the lyrics when they were needed and letting the music do the talking like the professional he is. Top set, danced non stop and loved every minute of it.
To finish off the night, Vinylgroover was brought to the forefront. For someone who was so vocal when he left the hardcore scene a few years back, I was not sure of what to make of his one off "Exclusive Uproar Appearance"Storm took control of the mic for the final hour and announced the DJ. I will admit to holding back, more due to curiosity than anything else.
'Groover played a set consisting of numerous styles. Everything from modern classics such as "Sunshine on a cloudy day" and Raveheart", to big anthems like "Elysium" and "Shooting Star". Best of all, he continued the theme of the night and played something different to finish off, the oldskool classic "In Complete Darkness". When the final tune had faded out, Storm wished us all a safe journey home and the lights went up.

astraboy

Things I liked:

Sound system- Oh my word, what a setup! One of the few times I have been impressed with a Sanctuary sound system. It was damn loud and someone who knew his stuff was twiddling the ***** throughout the night.

MC Ribbz -Never seen him in the main arena of a hardcore rave before and it was very good to see him up there. Most impressed and I for one hope to see him in the same place very soon.

Vinny - One man who definitley earned his money on the night. Respect.

Security -Professional, Onobtrusive and throwing out scallys all night, what more could you ask for? I did hear reports of people getting thrown out unfairly, but to be honest, if you tell Sanctuary Security to f**k off then you deserve what you get.

Time cards -Tons laying about and totally free. Good solution to the problem and the promoters kept it real when it came to what to charge for them. Respect.

Combine all the above and you get -Best rave ever. And I do mean ever. The atmosphere was out of this world and the music was, as before, spot on. Upfront, Old skool and Techno. Totallly brilliant.

Things I liked less:

Where was Livelee?

Techno room -Didn't get a chance to go up there much as the main arena was so good!

Really and truly, the whole rave deserves to go in the "Things I liked" column. The evening was a magical experience, exactly what I became a raver to be a part of. Raving to top quality tunes from every medium of the hardcore scene, surrounded by my friends and run by a promoter who wants nothing more than to throw the best party possible. It was so good that I felt guilty about getting in for free and seriously considered tracking one of the promoters down and bunging him a score to make me feel better. However, I have a better idea. I will save my money and make sure I spend it going to the next one. The last Hardcore rave to go off at the Sanctuary before it is pulled down. I will be there for more of the same to remember the place in the best possible way. See you there.
astraboy.
oh yeah, quote of the night.
Me: Alright Paul, having a good night?
Paul Zykotik: Aye, I've just thrown up in the the Technodrome.