Thursday 20 January 2011

REVIEW - The Hook & Sling Soul Weekender August Bank Holiday 2010

Welcome back!

Well the dust has finally settled after our Second Hook & Sling Soul Weekender and I'm back here a little late one week on. My short haitus was due to a lack of internet, cojoined with a brief spell of what I've been reliably informed is just 'Man Flu'.

The weekend was great fun, with turnouts which far exceeded our expectations on all three days! It's already got us thinking just how we're going to better it!

Friday 27th August 2010 The Impellers / Hoppin' John & Mr Double Down


After a swift train journey down from London, I joined up with Hoppin' John to set up The Vestry. After a hastle and incident free afternoon The Impellers arrived nice and early for a soundcheck and we were off!

With myself and Hoppin' John on the decks spinning funk 45s, the venue started to fill out nicely. By 9pm The Impellers were ready to take the stage for a storming two hour set!


Mr Double Down



Hoppin' John


Now as you may have realised, we roll hard for The Impellers and since meeting them we've watched them grow and evolve as a band over the last 12 months. With several tweeks to the line up since we first saw them, I think they found and tapped into a fantastic energy when they perform live.









They've been busy beavering away writing, rehearsing and recording new material and as a result the set they dropped on Friday was one of the best live performances by a new funk outfit I've seen to date.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmnDRQADmtI]

The Impellers - I Predict A Riot


'Lady' Clair Witcher provides a formidable presence on stage which is hard to match. Every single band member more than holds their own and each individual brings something to the table and adds to the unique formula they've got going on.



By the end of the night the capacity crowd were left begging for more, which made for a hard job for us to follow the bnd for the final hour.

A truly great night and I want to extend a massive thank you to The Impellers for gracing us with a truly fantastic show. You're welcome back anytime!!

Saturday 28th August 2010 - What's Wrong With Groovin' (Ed Meme & Beatwell) Vs The Hook & Sling (Hoppin' John & Mr Double Down)


With the initial nerves of the first night gone we returned to The Vestry for day 2. We were joined by Brighton Funkateers, Ed Meme and Beatwell who run ,What's Wrong With Groovin'. For those not in the know this is a on-going night at The Xuma Bar and is definately worth checking out.


Beatwell



Mr Double Down (Left) & Ed Meme (Right)


Being a Bank Holiday extended weekend I was a little worried that peeps may not show out in force two nights in a row but by 9.30pm things were in full swing, entry was one in one out and there was in excess of 60 people queuing outside to get in!

After a swift visit to check out what was going on from the local police, who seemed as bemused as us at just how many people had rolled up, the night got into full swing.



Ed Meme & Beatwell showed up with the goods and certainly impressed our crowd of regulars.

We all eventually dropped into a four way back to back session, dropping 2 records each and the What's Wrong With Groovin' gang kept both Hoppin' John and I on our toes with some great 45s.

In Hoppin' John's words "It was one of the best nights we've thrown to date". I'm pretty sure those that were present would agree and the WWWG guys will definately be making further guest appearances in the very near future. Stay tuned!

Sunday 29th August 2010 - Soul All Dayer - Keith Barnes / Eddie Stenner / Tony C / The Purist / The Popcorn King / Hoppin' John & Mr Double Down


After the full on Funk offensive from the night before we kicked off at 3pm on the Sunday for a 9 hour soul marathon. We were joined by a great selection of collectors DJ's and Bloggers who all played fantastic sets!

A very clued up crowd, including the legendary Dr Bob Jones who bought a tasty sales box of 45s with him, showed up and long with our regular crowds made it a great day/night of music and dancing!


Sunday Night In Full Swing


Keith Barnes a local collector who runs the Northern Soul nights at Hilsea Lido joined us. He collects UK Motown and Northern Soul and has a truly special collection which opened mine and everyone elses eyes to the rarer end of Motor City.


Keith Barnes


Eddie Stenner, the man behind The Talisman Scooter Club backed Sussex By The Sea Soul nights rolled by with a crate of the finest 70's Soul.


Eddie Stenner (Left) & Hoppin' John (Right)


Tony C who has featured here on several ocassions made the journey across the South Coast to join us. Along with a nice selection of Soul and R&B, he also dropped a late Boogaloo set which got all the dancers out on the floor.


Tony C dropping the Boogaloo heat


The Purist who you may know from his excellent blog A Pyrex Scholar joined us with a tasty mixed bag which turned the heads of some of the more clued up Soul gang.


The Purist


The Popcorn King, part time contributor to The Hook & Sling played a great Soul set early on, then joined me later on in the evening for a back to back funk set. Good stuff!


The Popcorn King


Myself and Hoppin' John both dropped short Soul and Funk sets throughout the day in between our guests.

The whole weekend was great fun and certainly something we'll look to throw again in the very near future. Seeing people dancing, enjoying and talking about this genre of music that we all love made the whole thing even more enjoyable!


A HUGE thank you to Ben, Lewis, Mark, Chris, Beth, James, Suan & The Security team, ALL the bar staff who all made the weekender possible. The Impellers, Beatwell, Ed Meme, Tony C, Keith Barnes, Eddie Stenner, The Purist, The Popcorn King and everyone who came and supported us over the weekend. THANK YOU!!


If that wasn't enough we return to The Vestry for our ongoing monthly night on Saturday 4th September 2010. All the details below. See you on the floor!



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