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 As our car came to a standstill, it was obvious from
the long line of traffic ahead that everyone had
taken the advice of World Dance, which was to arrive
early.
It stated on the ticket that if you got there any
later than 9pm, admission could not be guaranteed
before midnight. And with it being the most
important night on the raving calendar, no one was
taking any chances. Road works on the approach to the
Blackwell Tunnel didn’t really help matters, but no
one seemed to mind waiting in the long queue of
traffic as they knew they were only a few miles away
from the London Arena, which was the venue for World
Dances’ first ever New Years Eve event. Most of the
cars were full to the brim with windows down and
music playing already people were wishing each other
a Happy New Year. The atmosphere was really bubbling
considering we were still on the A2!!
As we approached the signs for the London Arena,
parking directed us to a multi-storey car park. It
wasn’t until we were inside that we heard of the £5
fee and by this time, it was too late to turn the
car around and find alternative parking. Finding the
money wasn’t a problem, but I’m sure there were many
people that didn’t have a lot of cash with the,
having already forked out £30 for their ticket.
Obviously this wasn’t anything to do with World
Dance, it was down to NCP chasing in on someone
else’s success and with the car park ram jammed,
they must have made enough money.
It was about 8.30pm when we arrived which must be
the earliest that I have ever been out in my life,
and judging from the length of the queue, I wasn’t
the only one. Mounted police kept the waiting
massive in order the prevented blaggers from making
their way to the front. Being World Dance members we
were able to bypass the queue and were led straight
to the searching tents. It amazed me the amount of
people that still aren’t members. Surely it must be
worth the price of a stamp to avoid the long queues
before each event. World Dance have encountered
problems in the past with their queuing system which
is why they have introduced the rule of no queuing
for members. But tonight was to be their biggest
test yet, to get 11,000 people inside the venue and
all before midnight. To be honest I didn’t think it
was possible, but as I was waiting to be searched
the queue did seem to be moving fairly quickly. This
was mainly due to the speed of the searching which
was well organised and efficient. Within ten minutes
of leaving the car I was inside the venue which goes
to show that being a member really does have its
advantages.
The main arena can only be described as HUGE, much
bigger than the Hangar at Lydd. Steps on both sides
led up to massive balconies which gave a birds eye
view of the vast arena below. Back on ground level
all the usual facilities could be found in the wide
corridor which ran continuously around the outside
of the main arena.
The first set of the night was in full flow with the
Vinylgroover. The sound system was booming, very
loud and clear in all parts of the arena. To be able
to fill a venue of that size with such a high
quality of sound isn’t easy. Sound quality tends to
deteriorate the higher the volume goes, but World
Dance has overcome this problem at their last couple
of events. It sounded as if everything had come
together nicely for World Dance and just at the
right time. Testing the system to the max at 9.30
was Fabio with his own original blend of sounds that
made him one of my top DJs for 1995. I was a bit
disappointed that he was playing so early as I
appreciated his sets later on in the night, but with
classic tunes being dropped, like ‘Circles,’ by Adam
F, his set was a definite winner. As his partner in
crime the Godfather stepped us at 10.30, there were
8,500 people already inside the venue, putting World
Dance on target to have full capacity by midnight.
And sure enough, by 11.30 when Mickey Finn graced
the decks 11,000 people had reached World Dance, the
biggest and most spectacular New Years Eve event in
the country. Big up all security for a job well
done, not just on the door but all night, keeping a
low profile throughout.
With GQ alongside Mickey Finn, we had the ultimate
partnership to take us into the New Year and as
midnight edged even closer the crowd got more hyper.
As the big countdown started, two large digital
clock faces appeared on screens high above the stage
counting down second by second. As the GQ incited
the crowd and called for the lighter crew the energy
level rose higher and higher, as did the noise,
whilst 1995 quickly slipped away. As the moment of
truth arrived, fireworks and glitter bombs exploded
along with a shower of hugs and kisses. It was a
wicked atmosphere, enhanced by the Mickey Fabulous
Finn with what I thought was the best set of the
night.
Since deciding to play all Drum & Bass sets just
over a year ago, Ellis Dee has really impressed me
and has opened a lot of peoples eyes to his
undoubted talent. Tonight was no different, playing
the first set of 1996 in real style. Another DJ that
has been there since day one in Slipmatt,
responsible for one of the best sets of the night at
World Dance in August at Lydd. He played an all Drum
& Bass set that night which I thought he may do
tonight, but instead he played half Happy Hardcore,
half Drum & Bass. Apart from the first set which
many people missed, this was the first taste of
Happy Hardcore which didn’t seem to go down too well
at all. The majority of people took this opportunity
to go and sit on the balconies overlooking the main
arena.
There was none of the same during the next set as
Vibes played the next half an hour. Obviously I am
biased on the subject as I do love my Drum & Bass,
but I did feel that the Happy Hardcore killed the
atmosphere a little. I also heard a lot of people
throughout the night expressing the same view. On
the contrary through there were some people that
loved the happy. An organisation the size of World
Dance has to cater for everyone’s tastes, but the
divide between Drum & Bass and happy makes it
increasingly difficult to please everyone. Our rest
was brief as a surprise guest appearance was made by
Darren Jay at 4 o’clock. He played a tearing set as
usual, before another happy set from Dougal was upon
us.
As we chilled out on the balconies I noticed that
there wasn’t any seats. We had to make do with
sitting on the floor which was wet and dirty, but by
that time in the morning no one was really that
bothered.
Since writing reviews, it has never really been my
style to write about toilets or whether there was
any loo paper in them, but I must mention that there
were cleaners in the toilets all night ensuring they
were clean and tidy. There was also drinking water
taps in the toilets where people could fill up their
bottles. It seems that World Dance really did think
of everything.
Hype played the penultimate set and got the entire
place jumping with the help of Fearless and GQ, the
two best MCs on the circuit without a doubt. It’s
good to hear MCs of the their calibre still coming
up with new lyrics and not churning out the same old
stuff week in, week out.
As time flew by we were already into the last set
with the DJ Rap. The massive used up every last
ounce of energy as Rap played out some of her own
classic tunes like ‘Ruffneck Gunark’. It had been a
hot night and it was starting to show as people just
stood there and nodded their heads to the music. The
general feeling in the morning was that World Dance
had once again exceeded themselves. Not even the
Happy Hardcore could tarnish the night. The
production, the sound system, the DJs and MCs all
the complete bollox! Big up Chris, Jay, Daz and all
the crew at World Dance. All the very best for 1996.
Thanks for everything!
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