he said-she said- elrow town london 2018 · 2018. 12. 4. · always about fun, and the saturday in...

27/8/2018 He Said/She Said: Elrow Town London 2018

http://zapbangmagazine.com/music/features/he-said-slash-she-said-elrow-town-london-2018 1/11

Í

He Said/She Said: Elrow Town London

2018

by Mike Barnard August 22, 2018

Elrow Town set up in London for a second year as the immersive Spanish party concept took overa corner of Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on Saturday, August 18th and Sunday, August 19th.More than 35,000 revellers got to enjoy music from acts such as Fatboy Slim, Solardo, PacoOsuna and Steve Lawler while exploring the Elrow Town littered with wacky characters at thePsychedelic Trip main stage, tented Sambodromo Do Brasil arena and Absolut Pink Cathedral.Mike Barnard and Ann McManus took up residence on the Saturday.

Home / Music / Features / He Said/She Said: Elrow Town London 2018



The audience was as equally colourful as the main stage, only with awhole lot more glitter on faces, necks, arms, chests and, well, everywhere.

He Said: “Elrow Town’s dizzying array of colour, characters and confetti means their events arealways far more about getting involved in the action and feeling part of the environment than manydance music festivals which expect DJ worshipping or take a very serious approach. Elrow isalways about fun, and the Saturday in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park had it in spades.

“We arrived to the sounds of weekend guests Solardo blasting out some plinky-plonky technofrom the main stage – a kaleidoscope of fluorescent paint evoking the theme ‘The PsychedelicTrip’. The multi-level structure was alive with dancers fist-pumping the air with wacky props as theDJing duo mixed with smiles on their faces. Looking around at the crowd near the Arc deRowomf, an archway centrepiece, those smiles were everywhere to be seen, as well as all myriadof theme-echoing outfits that ensure the audience was as equally colourful as the main stage, onlywith a whole lot more glitter on faces, necks, arms, chests and, well, everywhere.



“We took up a spot at the Gin Bar to let the visual stimulus settle - something of a live-action, acid-induced dream – then got properly involved with Paco Osuna’s set. Around us we spied dancingfrogs, giant inflatable beasts pumping out confetti and a huge bug towering over the crowd withgymnasts hanging from its arms. A quick detour saw us led into The Cave – a tented spacedecked out like a jungle for the Sambodromo Do Brasil theme – where waFF were serving upsome suitably samba-based house, but we were lured to the Absolut Pink Cathedral to get ourskates on at the Bump roller disco and enjoy a blend of disco and techno.

“Found at the heart of the Elrow Town surrounded by stalls, the inflatable pink cathedral with waslike a beacon of light. Entry through the white church gates we handed over our trusty trainers forsome classic roller skates and then bowled ourselves onto the dancefloor to the sounds ofRhythim Is Rhythim’s ‘Strings of Life’ and Floorplan’s ‘We Magnify His Name’ with varying degreesof success surrounded by pros in wedding dresses and getting a few smirks from the Bump crewwho were on hand if we really lost control. The good-time vibes created by DJs Chaka Kant andRory Phillips for Savage meant we stuck around at the bar drinking cocktails after our sessionwhile we watched fellow skaters stumble or impress us with their moves as drag queens struttedtheir stuff; even by Elrow standards, this was an assault on the senses.



“En route back to the main stage we’d bump into some more zany characters such as a mobilepiano player and a man being carried by his alien friend who was obsessed with making it ontothe stage, then got in a central position with Elrow residents Toni Varga and Bastian Bux on thedecks. Confetti storms came raining down with regularity as a host of hits such as Moloko’ ‘Sing itBack’, Dennis Ferrer’s ‘Hey Hey’ and Basement Jaxx’s ‘Fly Life’ kept us dancing, the only sour notebeing when Paul Kalkbrenner was a no-show owing to a problem with his jet. Even so, Elrow Townkept dancing and the confetti kept falling.”



The piece d’resistance was The Town Square, a huge open-air dancearena facing a giant fully stage decked out in hallucinogenic patterns withvarious platforms for multiple balconies that entertainers would pop up on

and get up to all sorts throughout the sets.

She Said: “It’s been a long summer and London has been spoilt with parties and endlessopportunities to go out dancing. While it’s made everyone happy, weeks and weeks of events inthe summer sun have resulted in an energy deficit among a lot of the party goers. To pull crowdsin, something vibrant and new needed to break the slump. Cue Elrow Town.

Before entering the settlement Elrow had constructed in Stratford’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park,it was evident the crowd were embracing the inevitable nonsense that had been promised withprops and fancy dress all over-the-top. It was like a Carnival-Halloween clash, with all sorts of madone pieces, wigs of all colours and glitter EVERYWHERE.



“Elrow town was running for two days and Saturday’s theme was ‘Psychedelic Trip’ so vibrantcolours and 60s inspired props were key. Entering the backstage area, I was particularly amusedby a guy dressed up as a messiah with long hair and a cloak briefing a large group of entertainersall dressed in the most outlandish costumes – from broken banjo player with a feisty afro and redflayers that were short enough to show off a pair of mismatched stripy socks; to a pair of ladies innaked caveman bodysuits and an assortment of hippy outfit. Parked beside them was a trolleywith a neon coloured coffin. This was backstage, during a briefing, so you can only imagine themadness due to unfold when they went into action up front.

“In a bid to not get injured by roller skating before getting on the cocktails, the first stop was theinflatable purple Cathedral where a roller disco was taking place. Everyone was delighted with thesnazzy selection of glittery boots provided, and helping one another take the first step off thebench provided a good ice-breaker as well as an opening to ask for a crew photo. Skating and fistpumping to Floorplan almost made me a casualty, but I just managed to keep my cool inspired bythe flawless dancers in drag who were busting serious grooves with sass and style. #skategoals.



“The piece d’resistance was The Town Square, a huge open-air dance arena facing a giant fullystage decked out in hallucinogenic patterns with various platforms for multiple balconies thatentertainers would pop up on and get up to all sorts throughout the sets. This was home to afunky house sound all afternoon, hosting sets from special guests for the weekend, Solardo, plusPaco Osuna, Toni Varga and Bastian Bux. Ritchy Ahmed – ‘Can’t Stop Us’ blasting out as a stilt-walking tambourine player with a braided wig in bunches wandered through the crowd from oneside, while a 15ft green bottle fly contraption was wheeled around the other side of the arena witha pair of trapeze dancers dangling from its outstretched arms spinning around in the air is mylasting image of the stage in full effect, followed shortly after by the eruption of a multi-colouredconfetti cannon.



“The jungle set-up in The Cave housed a darker indoor scene, with the tent ceiling extravagantlymade up with hanging branches, birds and exotic animals. Ritchy Ahmed spun out a bouncy setaccompanied by stunning dancers dressed in crystals and feathered bikinis, sending out thetraditional elrow shower of inflatables which got the crowd even more hyped. Steve Lawlerfollowed with an energetic sequence, setting the space up for a spectacular close which featuredhim dropping Chemical Brothers – ‘Out of Control’.



“It had been one of the most immersive festivals I’ve ever been to, and went far beyond what I hadimaged could be created in an open space in such close proximity to central London. The fact thecrowd had embraced the theme and the madness so whole-heartedly added to the experience.Every Elrow I have been to has added another level to its predecessor. I can’t imagine what theBarcelona team will dream up to top this or what on Earth the next one will bring, but we canprepare to be absolutely bedazzled!”



She Said by Ann McManus.

Next up for Elrow in the UK is transforming Newcastle’s Times Square with their magicalEnchanted Forest theme on Sunday, August 26th. For tickets and details go to elrow.com.



All rights reserved.

Nath Bravo1 comment • 8 months ago

Avatar

Natalia Bravo — Thanks for the interview, guys!

Happy monday! x lots of love

Coltana1 comment • a year ago

Avatar

Zan Okwonaja — proper musician there! Proper

London sound. I bet they are pretty awesome

live too! Look forward to hearing more

Colossio1 comment • 2 months ago

Avatar

Fernando Luna — thanks

PapaphonePapaphone1 comment • 7 months ago

Avatar

Krystal Larns — Loving the new stuff Russ!

Sounds so beautiful.Please play Manchester

this year.�

ALSO ON ZAP! BANG! MAGAZINE

0 Comments zap! bang! Magazine Login1

Share⤤ Sort by Best

LOG IN WITH OR SIGN UP WITH DISQUS

Start the discussion…

?

Be the first to comment.

S b ib✉ Add Di t it Add Di Addd Di ' P i P li P i P li P i�

Recommend

About Facebook Twitter Login

he said-she said- elrow town london 2018 · 2018. 12. 4. · always about fun, and the saturday in...

Documents