05 October 2012 (gig)
14 October 2012
Mayhem ensued last Friday night 5th October. The aptly named Rumpus party saw carnage break out in south London. Thousands of partygoers braved the terrible weather, donned their strangest outfits and set about taking part in the self-proclaimed ‘rather big adventure’.
This was the 11th party to be held by the Rumpus crew. The Coronet in Elephant and Castle hosted a whopping 11 rooms for the event, which boasted everything from live music, to a huge ball pit, where us bigger kids could bathe to our hearts content, in a sea of brightly coloured balls. This was certainly the highlight of the event.
It’s difficult to say how the party would have progressed if there had been better weather. As it stood though, the torrential rain put a huge spanner in the works. The queues to get into the party were long and partygoers were swept about by the storm as they waited to enter. As if this wasn’t bad enough, once inside, we were horrified to discover an equally lengthy queue to the cloakroom, which was also outdoors. Many people had made spectacular efforts with fancy dress theme, meaning they were left with damp corsets, wet wigs and soggy capes.
The way the venue is constructed meant that all of the rooms were accessed via an open aired corridor. The crowds surged in their desperate attempts to escape the soggy weather outdoors, which created bottlenecks in the doorways and made moving between the rooms a rather unpleasant experience.
The main room was headlined by band Gypsy Hill. Their big Balkan beats went down a storm. They played a great set full of energy. Fellow headliners Slambouree also never fail to impress, with their eclectic fusion of sounds.
Headline acts aside, I was disappointed not to have stumbled upon more good music while at Rumpus. I wasn’t overly taken aback by any of the DJ’s that we came across. Perhaps it was a case of not being in the right place at the right time.
I was also disappointed not to have seen any circus acts or theatrical performances while at the party.
I had got the impression that Rumpus would be a buzzing hive of varied creative activity, which is not what I found while I was there. It may just be that I missed it. It was impossible to take in everything as there was so much was going on all at once.
The overall vibe of Rumpus was what can only be described as a full on onslaught on the senses. This is not an occasion for the faint hearted, those who like their personal space, or the elderly. This is chaos on a grand scale. I am certainly glad that I went, saw and lived to tell the tail.
