Review: No amount of rain could dampen the last ever, outrageous Secret Garden Party
Thanks for everything SGP
13 years ago, a beautiful, dazzling thing was born. Created in the wake of festivals being bigger than the sum of their parts and formed as an alternative for people who wanted an escape without the hassle of mass crowds and oversized yet underwhelming locations. Secret Garden Party was a movement for festival-goers who wanted something different, something unique and something to call their own.
The boutique, 1000-capacity festival was created in 2004 and is located in Abbots Ripton, a tiny spot just outside of Huntingdon. What began as a little rave with friends became one of the most well-loved, celebrated and frankly beautiful festivals in the UK. Last weekend, the final ever SGP took place and while that in itself is a hard pill to swallow, the four days that would follow were some of the best in the festival's illustrious, mischievous history.
With the line-up bigger, better and more boisterous than ever before, every stage host, tucked-away bar and 24-hour drinking space decided that if this was the last time we'd be partying in the Garden, we were going to do it fucking right. Hotspots like The Pagoda and The Drop played home to the likes of Jackmaster, Craig Richards, Peggy Gou, Soul Clap, Eats Everything, Jonas Rathsman and Archie Hamilton while The Great stage hosted Metronomy, Tom Misch and Crystal Fighters.
Of course, this is enough to cause most experienced dancers an extended bout of excitement but this year, as with most years at the festival, Secret Garden Party's real attraction lies in the little touches. Be that a walk through the sunflower field that's hidden behind a tiny door, or a stop at the open-air party palace that is the Palais De Boob, or even a trip down the winding route towards the Labyrinth where the set times and line-ups are more of a lucky dip than a dead cert.
As with any festival, the weather plays a huge part in anyone's experience and after the wash-out of 2015 (christ, it was a biblical offering of rain) we couldn't help but feel dubious looking at the forecast's in the week leading up to it. Thursday and Friday remained dry, sunny and more than manageable but of course Mother Nature wasn't going to let us have all the fun, was she? Saturday and Sunday (bar some sunny spells on Sunday) were really, really wet. The rain was heavy and after a few hours, it was a mud bath.
But you know what, it really didn't matter. By the time Sunday swung around, everyone had come to terms with the fact the weather was out of their control and they dealt with it in true SGP style. This was the last one EVER, therefore behaviour was stupid, the music was rolling and the mud became friend rather than foe.
So, here's the to the music, to the DJs, to the absurdities, to the costumes, to the fireworks, to the Pagoda, to the Dance-Off, to the Collisillyum, to the sunflower field, to the 24-hour bar, to walking up the and down the hills at 7am trying to find your mates, to stacking it down the hill to The Drop every year, to the dodgems, to the naked sauna and to you; The gardeners who started something tiny and turned into something tremendous.
We'll miss the Secret Garden but we'll never forget.
This is what went down at our last trip to one of our favourite places ever.
Funster is Mixmag's Deputy Digital Editor and he's still trying to find the exit to the Labyrinth, follow him on Twitter here
Gerd Janson & Shan 'Surrender'
Waze & Odyssey - The Pagoda
There's no denying that the Pagoda is perhaps the star of Secret Garden Party. What started out as a tiny little spot for people to dance outside, has turned into a haven for the best dance music at the festival. It's a stage, floating on a lake and if you've been lucky enough to catch a sunset there, you'll know that there aren't many things more beautiful to witness. The water shimmers, the heat beams down and the music belts out. Run by Firas from Waze & Odyssey, the stage has played host to the likes of Disclosure, Skream, TEED and Artwork and this year was the blow-out to end all blow-outs. The main men themselves stepped up a few times over the weekend, closing proceedings with a lot of love and passion but when they dropped 'Surrender' by Gerd Janson & Shan, that's when we were filled with both jubilation and a bit of sadness. A beautiful moment.
DJ Khaled 'Wild Thoughts' ft Rihanna
Decoy (Kurupt FM) - The Lido
The Lido isn't just a massive lake with giant taps at the side filling it up and it's not just a place where people get naked, run around and swim in the sun. Even though this sounds like the best place ever, it also has a proper restaurant (that you need to book to get into), hot tubs and music pumping out to accompany your session by the water. Despite the treks through the mud to get there, the Lido is, and always was, one of our favourite spots and the hills that surround it make for some interesting 7am missions. Decoy from Kurupt FM rolled out a Bashment set right by the lake and as he churned through raggo remixes of Justin Bieber and Jamie xx, he had everyone grinding up and winding down to his sound. MC Grindah was of course sat by the side, blazing up and an MC was chatting breeze, sorry bars, over the top. By the time Decoy ended on 'Wild Thoughts' and as the MC pulled it up, we were positively beaming.
Objekt 'Theme From Q'
Peggy Gou - The Drop
'Ah, The Drop' and 'Ahhhh, The Drop' have two very different meanings. The first refers to a fond recollection of one of Secret Garden Party's naughtiest electronic spots. It's a way of looking back and thinking, 'those were days, what a stage!'. The second way refers directly to that fucking hill to get down there. The stage is situated at the bottom of a steep, often incredibly tricky decline and when rain falls on the festival, so do at least 100 people over the weekend trying to enter. Those in know don't even bother trying to scale the slope, they enter from the sides and get fully involved without the worry of getting covered in mud and everything else that's been discarded there. This year, the decks were at ground level, a much lower position than before, but as ever, the sound was meticulous and the vibe, inimitable. Peggy Gou's set may not have been the busiest but the people there who saw it, knew what they were witnessing. A masterclass in rowdy, party bangers and a delightfully devilish feel that matched the ominous clouds overhead. 'Theme From Q' is an obvious stand-out and when those first set of drums trickle in, they give you all the feels. Also dropped by Craig Richards and Nicolas Lutz the day before on the same stage, this track has to be a contender for song of the year.
Auntie Flo 'Waiting For A (Woman)' (The Revenge Rework)
Brydie Tong - The Labyrinth
Another one of SGP's beautiful, tucked away gems is the Labyrinth. Located in the middle of two winding, secluded paths, you'll need to lurk and dodge trees and branches before the magic of the music is eventually reached. What started out as just some mates finding a spot to play tunes in the woods during the first few editions of the festival, has now become a staple of the event. From speakers to stage, it truly is one of the most magical festival stages in the country. Whether that's in the blazing sun dancing to disco or in the depths of the evening, where everything becomes immediately trippy and menacing, perfect for some late night house and techno. There were no stage times for this one, only a list of DJs and a declaration that this year would absolutely be one to remember. During one of the sunny spells, we made our way inside and The Revenge's rework of 'Waiting For A (Woman)' had us smiling ear-to-ear. It's a Dixon-favourite and was one of the most enchanting moments this year. Big ups Brydie for playing it.
Scrubfish And Nate Laurence 'People Like We'
Eats Everything - The Pagoda
Now here's a man that's no stranger to a Secret Garden Party tear-up. Eats Everything has been a regular addition on the SGP line-up for years so it was only fitting that he appeared numerous times over the weekend. He hosted an Edible day and night session at The Drop that featured artists like Skream, Melé and DeWalta but it was the big guy's performance on The Pagoda that had really had us working. As the sun was setting, Eats rolled through a mixture of bouncy, fun-facing house music coupled with some of his trademark tougher stuff reserved for the darkness. The vibe was just right and it was everything we'd expect from Eats but it was heaped in emotion and sentiment. The man nailed it and he nailed us simultaneously
Lil Louis 'French Kiss'
Hutch - The Last Resort (The 24 Hour Bar)
As we hit the last morning of the last day, we're running on fumes and we need that final bout of energy. Where have we headed all weekend for this? The Last Resort of course, the only place that doesn't close, that doesn't sleep and that doesn't fucking stop. Over the weekend, numerous selectors have kept crowds of all ages occupied with a music policy that ranges from hip hop to R&B, from d'n'b to house and from classics to pop. You name it, it's probably been played there so come Monday morning, we gave it a bloody good send off. Essentially this is where the last music of the festival was heard so when we arrived, it was party mode.
House classics and bangers were in full flow and the combination of the Tuckshop crew, XOA, James Rail (hats off for a last minute 'Everybody Dance' drop), a cheeky Mixmagger and anyone else who wanted to try their hand, was enough to send the place off in style. London DJ, Hutch, gifted revellers with one of the moments of the weekend though when he rolled out 'French Kiss' by Lil Louis. Just before the classic reached the epic, slowed down section, everyone looked at each other with a set of "is he going to play the whole thing?" eyes. Before we knew it, he was signalling at the top of his voice "WE'RE DOING THE WHOLE THING." Some people were confused, some people weren't sure, some people thought it was best thing in the entire world. We however, fucking loved it.
We'll miss you SGP but thank you for everything and for giving us a place to be consistently weird and wonderful, year after year.
