We thought we would pay a visit to the Kent County Show ground to see what The Winter Social Festival 2016 had to offer!

Back in 2013, Nic Fanciulli and his own label Saved Record’s launched their own festival. Fanciulli has been leading the underground scene to Kent over the last three years with his ‘Saved‘ Parties. His next step after this was to set up his own festival with the aim to provide a unique atmosphere, whilst also fulfilling one of his own personal dreams…. Big!!

On arrival to the venue at 14:00, we were greeted by the stewards, who directed us the VIP queue. Within minutes we were inside the venue and enjoying the hospitality that The Social had to offer.

At 14:30 we were welcomed by Âme who took to the Meadow Stage. Âme consisting of the German duo Kristian Beyer & Frank Wiedemann are a DJ/production pair. Due to the pairs busy schedule, Kristian Beyer played the set at The Winter Social Festival leaving Frank to other music commitments. Âme played for 90 minutes mixing from deep vocal vibes through to the heavy uplifting tracks.

Maya Jane Coles then took over from Âme’s set to a full capacity at the ‘Meadow‘. We started of from viewing her set from deep in the crowd. The crowds responses to the tracks she was mixing was amazing. We made sure we ventured onto the stage to get her perspective of the crowd and atmosphere.

Another highlight from the day/evening was heading over to ‘The Barn‘ to catch the legend that is Steve Lawler for an amazing 2 hour set. Steve Lawler made his debut at The Winter Social Festival on the 6th and The Viva boss sure added an extra techy feel to the stage. Steve Lawler is a DJ that is strongly recognised for his track selection and mixing ability. The crowd were fully focussed!

As the evening progressed we witnessed Eats Everything going B2B with Yousef… This set was so dynamic with both of their unique styles coming together to create an explosive atmosphere. This 3 hour set was full of surprises which included Eats Everything playing his new track ‘Big Discs‘. The crowds response to this was… as to be expected… incredible!!

19:00 soon came round quick and it felt like majority of the crowd were at ‘The Meadow‘ to witness the Russian female techno DJ that is Nina Kraviz… Having never seen her live before, she was at the top of the list of DJs who we wanted to see.

She stepped onto the decks after Guy Gerber and she wasn’t a prisoner to play some of the heaviest hitting techno tracks to the crowd. The vibe from the front to the back was incredible and also very sweaty!

We headed onto the stage to catch a closer eye on what she was doing with the decks as well as gaze over the crowd to the responses she was receiving from her track selections. The energy she put into her set was amazing, as well as the energy she had on the stage. Throughout her performance it seemed as if she didn’t stay still, dancing herself away for the whole 90 minutes she was playing.

At 20:30 Nic Fancuilli & Joris Voorn stepped up after Nina’s heavy hitting set. They brought the tempo back down a notch with starting with some lovely vocal techy vibes. The boys also played a well known classic which grabbed the full attention of the crowd. ‘Mylo – Drop The Pressure‘… It seemed as if everyone that was in the venue were singing along!

A personal favourite from the set was when Joris Voorn played his remix of ‘Sebastian Mullaert’s – You’re An Orchestra In The Cosmos‘… Being on the stage when the main part of the track dropped was incredible.

On a whole, The Winter Social Festival was an amazing experience having never been before. The two arenas, ‘The Meadow‘ and ‘The Barn‘ were perfect size for the amount of people who arrived on the day.

Both the sound as well as the lighting production made the event that much better… It wasn’t just a party it was more of an experience.

The lighting show’s that covered both rooms made each set that much more enjoyable. The smoke cannons that frequently went off made sure that the crowd were fully focussed on the big hitting drops from the tracks the DJs were playing.

We also caught up with Rob Cockerton backstage after his set to speak about how his performance went. Plus some other questions around the day/evening. Rob’s track ‘Girls & Boys‘ was released on Fanciulli’s Saved Record’s which gained support from DJs such as, Marco Corola and Carl Cox, Pete Tong to name a few…

https://soundcloud.com/rob-cockerton/rob-cockerton-girls-and-boys-radio-1

What was your experience like to play at The Winter Social Festival? 

To play and to be a part of the team is a dream come true, what with the afterparty it was almost a 24 hour marathon.

What track did you play that you felt got the most of the crowds reaction?

I’d have to say my new track ‘moozik’,  shameless plug I know…

What event are you most looking forward to after this event?

Has to be our next big one ‘Landed’. Its held in what can only be described as a victorian london film set, its nuts really! We have Kolsch & catz ‘n dogz down for this, so again a special one for Kent.

How did you prepare yourself before your set?

I never plan or prepare. It was the opening set so just a case of making sure it sound ok and warming up the bins.

Sum up The Winter Social in two words…

In – credible!!!