Friday 3rd July, we took
the train from Sheffield to Lowestoft for our first ever trip to Dreamsville!
We were so excited we had heard so
many good things about this weekend.
After a long journey we arrived in Lowestoft
late afternoon, we dropped our bags at the digs and set off to Claremont Pier
where we met up with everyone else who had just arrived, in the downstairs bar.
The first thing that hits you as soon as you walk into the venue is the
buzz.
The Claremont Pier is situated
directly on the beach front, Lowestoft is a typical seaside town, and the sunny
weather all made it perfect for standing outside with a pint in your hand. Anticipation could be felt in the air and we
knew it was going to be a great weekend right from the start.
It appears that Dreamsville is an
opportunity for mods from all over the country to have a rare get together.
There is a feel of reunion as each group of people arrive at the venue and this
is backed up by the array of different accents that can be heard.
We headed back to get ready for the
Friday evening which started at 9.30pm, feeling very merry and caught up in the
atmosphere of the weekend.
Arriving on the first night, again at
the Claremont Pier, we were greeted with a free CD!
As we walked in we were struck by the
retro ambiance of the venue, the seating was around the left hand side
separated from the dance-floor, and a great place to meet up and chat with
friends old and new. The dance-floor was
situated on the other side at the back of the bar, and was always packed right
from the off.
The DJs on the Friday night were
residents Andrea Mattioni, Lee Miller and Dave Edwards, joined by Bill Kealy
‘For Dancers Only’ Ireland and Michel Wink ‘The Two Men from Linz’ Germany. All played excellent tunes, personal
favourites ‘Baby You’ve Got What it Takes’ Dinah Washington and ‘Don’t Mess
With My Man’ Irma Thomas. The room was
very hot (not just the temperature) and buzzing with attendees from South of
England, Scotland, Wales, Germany, Austria as well as Sheffield.
So much for taking it easy on the
first night, it’s hard not to get carried away with the fantastic atmosphere,
and we left as the night finished at 2am with glowing faces and sore feet.
On Saturday afternoon most of the activity
took place upstairs in the area that was used for the Friday night venue
although it had been transformed into a buying heaven. There were many stalls
such as Handbags n Gladrags, Crimson Vintage & Tank Top supplying top
quality clothes, shoes and bags for the ladies, along with stalls supplying
items for the gents (although we cannot be more specific about these) as well a
selection of, amongst other things, vinyl, mod prints (courtesy of Jamie JDogg
McGrane) and John Smedleys, basically anything a mod could desire all set to a
backdrop of excellent music.
We would also like to make a special
mention regarding the talents of the lovely Maggie Mattioni aka Peggy Jane who
had prepared an extra special birthday present for Karen.
The Saturday night started again at
9.30pm and was a bigger venue, again at Claremont Pier on the next floor up
from the Friday night. This venue was
much bigger with a really large dance-floor with seating around, and a separate
bar area. So whether you were dancing,
drinking or catching up with old friends you still felt the buzz, and it was
packed with smart/sussed people all here to enjoy the music.
DJs on the Saturday night included Lee
Miller, Andrea Mattioni, Dave Edwards, Michel Wink, Bill Kealy and Paul
Anderson.
Again excellent tunes keeping people
on the dance-floor right until 4am! In
our opinion the weekend couldn’t have been any better.
Hotels are already getting booked up
for next year, and you need to buy tickets in advance as the venue has limited
capacity and was a sell out this year.
We would recommend booking something quite nearby so you can take a dip
in the sea at 4am and then stagger back to your digs!!
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