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Creamfields 2005 - Liverpool

Wow…what a night!

The weather was warm and dry thankfully which only added to the happy festival vibe! The crowds were awesome and arrived with one intention…to have a great time…and a great time they had!

With gates scheduled to open at 3pm it would appear all of the additional planning that was put in place following last years delays paid off…as the gates were opened ahead of schedule at 1pm much to the delight of all those who arrived early!

Highlights included the incredible Faithless who performed at sundown with one of the most incredible live acts ever to be seen at Creamfields. The impressionable Maxi owned the stage performing some legendary classics including ‘God Is A DJ’ and ‘Insomnia’! Faithless were followed by fellow headliners Basement Jaxx who closed out the main stage at midnight! The Jaxx last performed at Creamfields back in 2000 and are one of the main acts still talked about and requested today…so it was only right that they were booked again this year…by popular demand…and boy did they deliver. These guys have turned dance music and the art of performing live on its head and fully deserve to be at the top of their game! The award for most energetic performance should go to Felix Buxton who bounced his way across the stage and climbed the scaffolding much to the delight of the crowd! The bootylicious singers also rocked and could easily have competed with Mariah Carey on the number of costume changes!

Newcomers to the show were Galaxy FM however you wouldn’t have believed it as they seamlessly broadcast live from the site throughout the night and attracted one of the biggest crowds when Paul Van Dyk performed an impromptu set from their Outdoor Stage, and lets not forget the Galaxy boys Paul Kershaw, Andi Durrant and Slammin Boys who both entertained and whipped the crowd to fever pitch throughout the day.

As expected the Cream & GoodGreef Arena sparkled from the moment Gareth Wyn took to the decks at 3pm and remained the biggest and busiest arena of the lot, with a crowd of 10,000 snuggled into the arena for highlights Armin Van Burren, Paul Oakenfold and of course Eddie Halliwell to name but a few.

Master of ceremonies Erick Morillo rocked the disco in the Subliminal Tent and seemed to be having a whale of time with fellow jocks Pete Tong, Seb Fontaine and Darren Emerson! Like a fine wine this arena gets better with age!

Another new arena added to this years show was Fatboy Slim’ Southern Fried Records Arena and what an arena it was! With an outstanding line up from start to finish including the likes of Shakedown, Jon Carter, David Guetta, Timo Maas, Hernan Cattaneo, Justin Robertson and of course the man himself Mr Fatboy Slim who slam dunked it with his trademark party house music!

The Tidy boys catered for all those who like things a bit hard and judging by the smiling faces on the 4000 odd people in their arena they delivered. Highlights included Anne Savage, Tidy Boys, Rob Tissera and Lisa Pin up! The chibuku arena returned for a 2nd year much to the delight of their faithful following without doubt the stars of the night had to be 2 Many DJ's who delivered one of the most eclectic sets of the night dropping in tracks from the likes of Dolly Parton to Bodyrockers! These are stars of the future no question! Other highlights included techno kings Richie Hawtin and Dave Clarke (minus the leather pants), Plump DJ's and Layo & Bushwacka who were in full party spirit!

Another new addition this year and back by popular demand was the Full Cycle Arena! And it would seem that the 3 year hiatus was long enough! The arena was full to the brim from start to finish! Sets from the likes of Scratch Perverts, Gilles Peterson, Jazzy Jeff & Mad Skillz complimented the full on D&B sounds! Roni Size was the man everyone had been waiting to see and he had people eating out of his hands by his 2nd track!

There was still more to come in the early hours and the Strongbow Rooms was where it was at as they managed to snare Felix Da Housecat for a highly anticipated set, he rocked the masses with some of his own classic tracks and had people busting moves that im sure even they didn’t know they could pull off!

The fun and frivolities continued throughout the day and night at the Aftershock arena with some highly charged water fights and some sexy pole dancing from the professionals and punters alike and of course Uris Garden where people could join in for a snowball fight courtesy of Smirnoff! And lets not forget the lovely Gurn Boys! Whose Classic Camper Van played classic tunes of days gone by! Alfresco madness sums it up!

And let’s not forget those lucky enough to get tickets for the Hospitality Arena which this year was hosted by Hed Kandi. With no expense spared the monstrous and incredibly luxurious Arena was the place to be with Hed Kandi and Babycream Soundsystem DJ’s rocking the crowd until 4am!

So that’s it then, just a few of the highlights from the UK’s Best Dance Festival, I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did! So whilst we regain feeling in our legs we would like to raise a glass to everyone we met and everyone involved in putting the event together and we’ll see you the same time next year!" - Emlyn Hagan

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