Madness: House of Fun Weekender
Startling the sleepy streets of a Somerset seaside-town, thousand upon thousand paraded through the gaudy gates of Butlins; a weekend of frivolous behaviour, getting giddy to the sounds of the 80’s and the opportunity to divulge into the whacky cult world of ‘Madness’…not forgetting to mention the extra addition of hundreds of shimmering arcade machines, the merging sounds of ska, punk and reggae stumbling from every bar and the glorious landscape of rocketing blue spiralling twists and turns of some edgy-looking waterslides.
With doors pursed shut to the general public, this event was firmly noted to be an occasion for big kids, kids that revel in the thought of donning a couple of straps of braces and a souvenir plastic-red fez in tribute to their most cherished artist. With an adventure playground overflowing into every nook and cranny, an over-sized fibreglass statue of Bob-the-Builder, alternating pitches of the fruit machines and the glint of 10p coins sparkling in every angle, there was something quite cosy about the weekends’ kitsch location.
House of Fun Weekender showcased an innovative and beefy line-up, allowing artists the opportunity to play at the very venue that only childhood dreams could have imagined possible. Uncharacteristic to the type of event, the bands and artists that were smack bang and walloped into this diverse line up were pleasingly very refreshing. Thus including the likes of popular festival band The Whip, the impetuous and animated vocal talents of Beardyman and the hip-spangling electro-swingers The Correspondents. However, the centrepiece was of course lead by;
”The rockinist, rock-steady beat of Madness!”
With every bar on campus sufficiently bloating with customers, the enormous stage within the Skyline Pavilion patiently lured in the masses of rosy-cheeked devotees towards its platform, encouraging one to tighten their laces and straighten their Fez and rid any slack from their braces…
Looking fresh and dapper the entire Madness ensemble dressed from heel to chin in trim-black suits. Not only this, Suggs and his posse crowned their look with a pair of glistening jet-black sunglasses worthy of making even Will Smith crack open the Brasso. From the moment Chas launched into “Hey you! Don’t watch that watch this…” there was an almighty rumble discharged from the dotted sea of red. The well-oiled lairy-funsters reverberated with anticipation for the legendary opening bars of ‘One Step Beyond’. With the congregation losing the power of their limbs via the empowering authority of the sax and bass lines, the madness had officially begun. ‘Embarrassment’ followed and the solid mob sang every syllable back to Suggs desperate to obtain a wink or wave of approval.
As the adrenaline began to steady during several lesser known tracks, the Camden born and bred septet displayed their musical versatility, endlessly switching from instrument to instrument; which in turn enabled the crowd to recharge their lager fuelled batteries just in time for the likes of ‘House of fun’, ‘Our House’ and ‘Cardiac Arrest’ to be unleashed.
When it seemed like this rapturous set could not progress to a more dizzying height, ‘Baggy Trousers’ was confidently hauled from their pockets. After a momentous set, consisting of the most important songs of a generation, Madness briefly left the stage before the almighty encore.
With only the sound of a babbling crowd, from the jazz-fuelled pit of Lee Thomson’s diapragm suddenly escaped the signature note of “MMMMMMMMMRRRRRRR…..” (With the sax mimicking the sound of a petrified ship-horn). The vibrations of the lowest note triggered a skank-ridden riot. The three and a half minutes of ‘Night Boat to Cairo’ could have powered Tokyo for a decade on adrenaline alone.
After a polite send off from Suggs: “Thank-you for coming ladies and gents… now fuck off… in the nicest possible way of course” the sweat-dampened Butlins crowd dispersed upon the caravan complex and alternative venues to continue the jive and jeer. A weekend of comedy, inspiring artists in a fittingly ‘mad’ environment, TVS says long live ‘The Madness House of Fun Weekenders’!
Madness: ‘House of Fun Weekender’
Butlins, Minehead 25th, 26th, 27th November 2011
Words by Thea Wise
