Fantazia Return of a Legend - Review 2

First off we were quite impressed to say we got tickets for one of the best established named dance events, with some of the worlds best DJ’s on board. The night started well, a short journey by train to the G-mex centre, met quite a few other people on the train on there way to the same event. All of us speculating what the night was going to bring if it was going to be like the old days or if this really was the year that dance music eventually died.

Needless to say when we arrived, standing in that enormous queue waiting to get in, the music that was bouncing round the walls inside the G-mex just smashed its self back out into the over flowing streets of Manchester. We just ended up grooving in the street not caring whether we got in or not. Ok maybe a slight exaggeration it was freezing that night couldn’t wait to get in and get up close and personal with the other thousands of people already in there.

We managed to get in just before midnight, the atmosphere was electric, the DJ’s pumping the only thing that concerned me was that strange devil thing on the stage. The guys I was with actually missed the topless ladies to busy doing what ever they were doing on a night like that. It was only when Digger came back from the toilets going, there’s been tits on the stage, yeh real ones, and how did we miss them, that I think they finally started to actually have a look around at where we were.

I remember dancing away to my hero Carl Cox on a slightly raised platform near a bar which had at least four guys dressed up as old admirals, but for some reason there seemed no sign of it on the DVD maybe I was dreaming.

I defiantly didn’t dream the fact that I got given perfume on the way out of the ladies toilets and that towards the morning dawn the toilets got flooded, wet feet all around. Well what do you expect with a dance event, nearly called it a rave then, so not the cool thing to say now a days!

The music was great from what I can remember, two of our crew actually had to go to work the next morning, don’t know how they managed it we left at 6am, collected our goodie bag, not bad apart from why was there the most disgusting thing in there that is the most inappropriate thing ever after a night of sweating and screaming at the DJ yeah. A cheesy pepperoni thing yuck!

Bit cheesy, but never mind.      Catherine :)

Fantazia Return of a Legend - Dream Magazine

Fantazia @ The Manchester G-Mex - probably the largest indoor house/garage/big beat music event ever in the UK, 13,000 party people were there to witness the return of the legend.

Throughout the early nineties, Fantazia dominated the rave scene with successful and superior quality all night dance parties.  A change of direction into compilation albums made Fantazia a household name within the dance music community.  Three and a half years and 11 albums later, they stunned the scene by announcing a 13,000 capacity all night party at Manchester's G-Mex.

Synonymous with staging rave events on the largest possible scale;  25,000 were at Castle Donnington in July 1992.   Now, in 1997,  the house scene has grown to such massive proportions that the crew felt confident the same could be achieved with a club crowd.   SEEING IS BELIEVING.   You only have to look at the photographs to realise that Fantazia more than succeeded in their mission.

Friday night at the G-Mex, Manchester.  The converted Victorian railway station was transformed into a palace of glamour and extravagance by a typically high quality Fantazia production.  With support from Gatecrasher, Garage Nation and Ultimate,  they could hardly go wrong.  The 13,000 party people in attendance at this sell-out event were all in agreement - the unification of house, garage and big beats was an obvious success.

Highlight of the night included Carl Cox and Jeremy Healy who smashed it with their own particular styles of bangin' house and full-on party vibes.  K-Klass and CJ Bolland also tore the roof off with live sets to marvel at.... or was it the dancers I became transfixed by?  Without question the sexiest and most professional dancers I have ever seen at this type of event.    Apparently they were hand picked by the head honcho himself from a cast of 100 hopefuls.... and a fine job he did too.

No doubt following the success of this event it will not be too long before we see Fantazia again,  possibly in February for Valentines?