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Fields of Creamy Goodness

Creamfields
Fairyhouse Race Course
23rd June 2001

It's Saturday the 23rd of June and I find myself in a field in County Kildare.

What was I doing in that field I hear you ask? I was attending the most anticipated Dance event this year "Creamfields". With over 60 acts (mostly DJ's with a few live acts thrown in for good measure) this was billed as the biggest dance event held in Ireland. With so many "acts" it was difficult to choose who to see. Luckily the organisers or some entrepreneur had the bright idea of producing "timetables" for the event, great I hear you say but at the scandalous price of £5 (on top of the £52.50 paid for the ticket) it was going to be an expensive trip. As I walked through the meticulous security/queuing process I noticed a vast array of people from all walks of life from the glittery "club chick" to the boiler suit clad "hardcore raver" all here to dance.

Essentially it was just a big field with 5 huge tents (each with a different colour and different music emitting from them) and a main stage with the usual bars & vendors scattered in between. The main stage was to host a more eclectic style from Beck to the superstar DJ Paul Oakenfold...and it was here I made my first port of call. The fine and all-round good atmosphere provided Irish DJs Mr. Spring and John Power (both 2fm residents) to start the day off with a blend of funky techno & house...not too hard, not too soft...ideal for a dance in the Sun. From there it was on to the "CREAM" arena or "blue tent" to see one of the most popular DJ's around Pete Tong. This guy is so popular he's had his name immortalised in cockney slang (Pete Tong = Wrong). "Tongy" (as a friend of mine referred to him as) played his usual house sounds intertwined with some "chart hits" most notably "Da Hool - Meet Her at The Love Parade". It was everything anyone could expect from him...the usual hands in the air & whistles accompanying every breakdown. The only question raised by many was "Why was he on so early?". What we had was one of the top DJ's in the world, a headliner, playing from 5pm to 6pm in the afternoon. He's a busy man I presume.

Next it was to the main stage, where John Power was finishing up his set to a pleasing audience. Next we were treated to the first "Live Band" of the day- The Lo Fidelity Allstars. From the moment the band came on stage the crowd dispersed from approximately 2 to 3 thousand to a mere 500 or so..it was obvious that the Ravers didn't like the idea of guitars & drums. The band themselves had noticed the fact so many had left and quipped "This time next year when we're headlining this thing you are all on the guestlist, we'll get your numbers off ya later".

The Lo Fi's belted out most of their album "How To Operate With A Blown Mind" with great enthusiasm, despite the lack of numbers watching. Their blend of funky breakbeats, distorted vocals coupled with live drums and bass provided the onlookers with an excellent show. It seemed that most of the crowd were actually surprised at the quality of the music emanating from a "live band". The set finished with "Disco Machine Gun" a track which can often be heard on sets by Fatboy Slim and The Chemical Brothers...at this stage the crowed had been whipped into a frenzy and the Lo Fi's had made a few hundred more friends.

Next up on the main stage was Ireland's Al Gibbs (FM 104 Dance DJ)...the first time I saw Al Gibbs it was at the Junior Wesley Disco in Donnybrook about 7 years ago...from Junior Disco to main stage at Creamfields. To quote Fatboy Slim "You've come along way baby". Gibbs played a stormer and the highlight was when he dropped Fatboy Slim's attack on the dance music scene "Star 69 (What The F**k)" at which point the crowd was reaching boiling point.

Next on the main stage were American rap outfit Outkast. With crowd pullers such as Darren Emerson & Dave Clarke playing at the same time in other arenas Outkast managed to retain a healthy share of the crowd. Together with a whole posse of dancers (dressed in Baseball attire) and DJ Cutmaster Swift, Andre and Big Boi blasted into their classic "ATliens" which to my surprise the majority of the crowd knew (and sang along to). From there we were taken on a journey through the hits of Outkast mostly from their latest album "Stankonia" with a few excerpts from "Aquemini", "ATliens" and "Southernpalyalisticaddilacmuzik". Outkast are one of the most energetic bands I have seen live, constantly dancing, running and doin their thang. When they shouted "Are there any Cool Muthaf**kas out there, Are there any Fresh Muthaf**kas out there, Are there any Clean Muthaf**kas out there" the crowd went wild anticipating the laid back beats of "So Fresh, So Clean" to which Outkast obliged. The best reaction came when it was announced that we were "Gonna hear a story about Ms. Jackson" (It always was going to be though , wasn't it!?)

Back To the CREAM arena and America's answer to Pete Tong, Erick Morillo. From his early days producing act like "Real 2 Reel" ("I like to move it move it, I like to move it move it") to his recently released "Subliminal Sessions 1" it seems that Morillo has been involved in some way with any dance music to hit these shores from the U.S. His set was a blend of funky and progressive house...what I found most striking though was the similarities between his set and Judge Jules' "Clubbers Guide To Ibiza 2000" CD with at least four tracks appearing in the same order as that of the "Clubbers Guide". It didn't seem to matter to the crowd though who were clapping in unison to the funky breakdowns provided by Mr. Morillo. One raver even got so caught up in the atmosphere that he decided to climb one of the tents centre-poles and proceed to watch the show from there...his experience ended quite quickly as he was coaxed down by a number of security guards and politely ejected. It was coming close to midnight and now it was decision time...the Big Guns were about to come on, Seb Fontaine (CREAM Arena), Boy George (LUSH Arena), Fatboy Slim (Big Beat Boutique), Goldie (Metalheadz Arena), Chemical Brothers (Bugged Out Arena) and Paul Oakenfold (Main Stage) "Why couldn't I see all of them?" I thought. Having already seen Goldie & Paul Oakenfold on previous occasions my decision was made a little easier...I went for Fatboy Slim.

The Big Beat Boutique was crammed by the time The Fatboy came on stage with his trademark earphones (one ear missing, bandaged up with masking tape) and his customary cheeky grin & wave to the crowd. Anticipation was high when he launched into The Incredible Bongo Band's 1973 classic "Apache" but the crowd seemed to be somewhat subdued...The atmosphere hadn't matched the anticipation...which was obvious when the Fatboy let the first track of his set finish before a mix...disappointment all round. From there he moved into The Black and White Brothers "Put Your Hands Up In The Air" and again...no mixing present before this track finished. I had had enough and duly left the Big Beat Boutique and made my way over to the CREAM Arena and Seb Fontaine.

Seb was playing his usual mix of deep house, techno and trance to an adoring audience, he really had the crowd moving and the atmosphere was 10 times better than the Fatboy. It was surprising that Seb was able to move on stage considering that he had both DJ's that were on previous (Erick Morillo & Satoshi Tomiie), the owner of CREAM (who's name escapes me) and a couple of dancers on the quite small stage. I had a similar problem in the crowd as the tent was packed to capacity. Half an hour into his set I decided that it was too uncomfortable and made my way to the open air and the main stage...where the James Brown of Dance, Paul Oakenfold was mid way through his set. At this stage I was getting very tired and possibly quite cynical!! I have to say I wasn't impressed with Oakie's set at all, he played many of his numerous remixes (U2, Macy Gray & Placebo) but apart from that he was his usual "trancey" self. It was all a bit too late for me & I decided to leave early to make the trek home.

by

Robert Drummond
26th July 2001

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