Bang Face Weekender's Saint Acid

United Kingdom | | 22 April 2008

After putting on some 50-odd raves, Saint Acid felt that a full weekend festival was the next logical step. 3,000 ravers are set to descend on Camber Sands to see what happens when you cross a Pontin's holiday camp with three days of Neo-Rave Armageddon!

A hardcore mix of acid, jungle, rave, electro, bass and techno the festival's three arenas will have performances from the likes of Squarepusher, Altern-8, Model 500 and Saint Acid himself.

The theme for the event is 'commemorating the Chernobyl nuclear disaster', so expect plenty of boiler suits and glow sticks as Bang Face crossover from raves to festivals with thier first ever weekender…

Virtual Festivals: So how is everything coming together for the first Bang Face?
Saint Acid: "Although it's the first weekender, it is technically our 54th event, so the concept was to capture the atmosphere and vibe of the previous club nights that we've held in London and make it into an experience that you can live for three days."

VF: As it’s the logical next step, would you be hoping to do this for a while?
SA: "I used to go to the Deadbeat Weekender all the time and they are helping out a lot with the Bang Face Weekender. I'm a big fan of weekenders and I've been to a lot of them. It's been a dream in the back of my mind to hold our own and this year was the right time to do it, having done a couple events at The Glade festival and we've seen it work on a big scale. A lot of people thought that Glade was great because of the intimate size and personal feel of it. It really gave us the inspiration to look forward."

VF: What influenced your decision to hold it at Camber Sands, an indoor venue, rather than outdoor site like at Glade?
SA: "I personally prefer an indoor venue. In terms of organisation it's a lot easier. I think it's great that people have their own private chalet that they can go back to. Doing Bang Face with Pontins works really well and having two different sides of the spectrum coming together is great fun."

VF: I'm intrigued by the Human Rave Bomb...
SA: "After months of health and safety, unfortunately it doesn't look like it is going to happen. It was a nightmare with insurance but we're hoping to try and resurrect it at some point, so I don't want to let everybody know exactly what it is."

VF: What aspects of the festival are you really looking forward to?
SA: "All of it! It"s going to be tough because I want to see everything but it's not going to be possible. The opening ceremony should be funny. It's a surprise but a few of the favourite acts are going to play!"

VF: Are there any acts that you particularly want to see?
SA: "I'll be in the top room most of the time but will pop into the other venues whenever I can. I'm really looking forward to Altern-8 in the main rave room and there will be some special electro and bass in the second room. Model 500 and Dopplereffekt will be doing their first ever UK live show so I'm looking forward to being there - it's going to be a good one."

VF: Is there anyone you were hoping to book but didn't quite manage to get this year or did the line up just come together perfectly?
SA: "A lot of it is reflecting the retrospective of what we have done in the past and there are acts in there which represent what you can achieve at a big event. It's brilliant that Squarepusher is playing. He's never played before but he came down a few times in the early days to hang out."

VF: Tell us about the Rave Pool Party.
SA: "A lot of people have been asking if it's an empty swimming pool but it's not, it’s full of water and we're setting up a sound system in there and playing rave music. We're chuck in a load of inflatables as well."

VF: That sounds a bit like Glade last year…
SA: "[Laughs] Yeah. Bang Face has always been a serious music event where people can have a lot of fun as well."

The first ever Bang Face Weekender takes place from 25 - 27 April at Camber Sands Holiday Centre, East Sussex.