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| http://rumpusparty.co.uk/wp-uploads/2011/10/5.stef-5.jpg |
A Dorset country bumpkin like me barely knows how to process
partying the night away at somewhere like Metal Works: it hosts weddings by day and raves by night. The warehouse party I ever went to (NYE 2010) was great, but costume-gala rave Rumpus hosted every two months is a
spectacular array of campness and delight.
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| My attempt to photograph revelers. |
The fancy dress theme is always a new one, and this time it was myths and legends. There were a many heads turned at
Angel Station, just round the corner from the venue, and especially when the man dressed a giant zebra - replete with stilts - trotted past. Not sure what legend that creature was from. The male costumes were
particularly awe-inspiring – there was anything from a gaggle of Mr Tumnuses, Mad Hatters and vaguely defined Classical warriors, as well as fairies, angels and
dandies.
The effect was both childishly whimsical and devilishly intriguing. You find yourself staring open-mouthed at people as they frolic
happily, dancing and drinking the night away. I took many terrible-quality pictures inside the venue to
prove the wonders that I beheld, in order to convince my friends that attending
the next Rumpus in two months time is
a good idea.
It is indeed like a wonderland, a carnival of very chilled-out pockets of people
interspersed with glitter, ball-pits and alcohol.
One feature of the night I
particularly like was the live-and-let-live attitudes – the bouncers were
almost invisible and clearly there for safety rather than control. The downstairs bartenders were serving drinks from a
converted train carriage and artists were illustrating the walls in black
marker-pen.
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| Train carriage bar! Serving helpings of mead. |
The live music playing constantly may be loosely defined as gypsy swing and electro swing – re-purposed violins and accordions adding to the jovial atmosphere. The latter genre enjoys popularity en mode, apparently due to an expiration of copyright on twenties
music which makes the genre very cheap to produce – or so says one of the band
managers attempting to chat me up.
The club was very spacious too, which is good for someone small like me.
At £10.00 for an early bird ticket, and opening hours from 10pm to 7am, you
can hardly get more for your money in any other club in London. It was also
shockingly easy to get back to Elephant and Castle from Islington due to my
friend’s excellent planning skills – two ten minute bus rides and I was all
tucked up in bed by 5am (earlier than most, I'm sure).
As you can tell from previous posts I don’t club much in
London, but if every time was like Rumpus
I’d definitely reconsider.
