The Block Party 2017, Bournemouth

6 VENUES • 3000 RAVERS • 1 WRISTBAND.

The Block Party’s ‘Summer Shakedown’ promised a night of cutting-edge dance and electronic music across six venues for its latest instalment of the annually sold out music event. Situated in the heart of Lansdowne, Bournemouth, this unique event is known for the rampant swarms of students and locals that unapologetically take over the streets for two nights a year.

After attending last year’s Halloween special, we had mentally prepared ourselves for the crowds and sometimes unbearable queuing times. However, due to the date being smack bang in the middle of the university exam period, it looked like we were in for a much quieter and tamer experience than what we were used to.

We began the night off right by catching the night’s headliners, Amine Edge & Dance (AE&D), in arguably the event crowd’s most loved venue, The Old Fire Station. The crowd was noticeably smaller but the good vibes were no less than what we’ve become accustomed to from The Block Party. In typical fashion, AE&D delivered a high-energy performance with a house and funk blend, proving how the duo has made a name for themselves in recent years with dance music fans. Best known for their rework of Frank Ocean’s ‘Lost’ and their original mixes like the popular house track ‘Halfway Crooks’, watching the pair perform soon made you forget about the smaller crowd.

Oli P was a standout act for me personally as he brought a taste of the Caribbean to The Old Fire Station. He spun dancehall Carnival flavours and had the whole crowd giving their utmost energy. In a student town that is renowned for its love of house, bassline, grime and techno it was a welcome switch up from the norm.

As we took to the streets, the lack of numbers became more apparent, although it made travelling to and from venues carefree, meaning you didn’t have to worry about missing your favourite acts. In previous Block Parties, you often had to accept that you may have to sacrifice seeing some of the more renowned acts unless you are excited by the idea of queueing outside in the cold for an hour.

The numbers, however also gave way to an unexpected benefit. The acts themselves ventured out into the streets in between performances, happy to meet, chat and take pictures with lucky fans. We got chatting to P Money and DJ Q for a little while who were both in high spirits and even enjoyed the night as guests themselves before retiring to their hotels. This was the Midas touch for most as it was a very uncommon occurrence for the festival.

We got a good glimpse of bassline king DJ Q’s set in The George Tapps, a chilled pub venue that is brought to life with the festivities of the Block Party, which had a crowd of festival goers skanking to the high-powered performance. Made famous by tracks such as ‘You Wot’ and TQD’s ‘Vibsing Ting’ the may-as-well-be Bournemouth resident DJ was one of the last acts of the festival.

We ended the night in Le Chic Nightclub, where Milky T played the final tunes of the night. Everyone who made it this far was jam packed into the venue, reminiscent of a true Block Party sell-out event feeling. Although this year extra measures were implemented to increase ticket sales, such as a live feed for queue waiting times and an app with a map and set times, promoted with the tagline ‘More party, less queues’ we found ourselves not needing it as we easily dropped in and out of the different venues at ease.

This was definitely an unusual Block Party experience for seasoned festival-goers, but we were pleasantly surprised with the night itself and we’ll definitely be reserving our tickets for the next one.

THE GIG IN REVIEW

inSYNC Rating – 5.5/10

Guest written by Kyomi Cheyenne