SHADE 2012: When The UK's Number 1 Went AWOL

This year’s SHADE (Southampton Hottest All Day Event), ran along with minimal incident until the rather drunk UK Number 1 Rudimental were a man down by the end of the […]


This year’s SHADE (Southampton Hottest All Day Event), ran along with minimal incident until the rather drunk UK Number 1 Rudimental were a man down by the end of the night.

David Gunns, one of the organisers, relaxes after a 'stressful' day

Once again SHADE was organised this year by various JCR’s (Glen Eyre, Chamberlain, Bencraft and Erasmus Park – although we’re quite not sure how many people made the trek from Winchester) as a big end of year blow out.  With a range of things to do and watch during the day and with the UK Number 1 headlining it look set to be a huge day. Sadly with most student’s exams finishing a while before the event many had gone home and the turn out wasn’t as large as previous years.

There was the usual range of inflatable’s (volleyball, human table football and a surf machine), music acts and outside bar available but the inclusion of a fully stocked burger van was vast improvement from previous years. The event started at 12 and the one inflatable went down by quarter past – luckily no one had actually turned up by then. When the first punters arrived they swiftly ran off back to halls with their t-shirt, obviously everyone still feeling the effects of the previous night.

The first act came on when about 15 onlookers had arrived and they didn’t exactly help bring more of a crowd out. But after that the rest of the acts were far more suited and helped set the mood of the day well with acts generally getting more upbeat and as the crowds appeared as the day went on. With especially good performances from Charissa and Triassic even the occasional spitting of rain could not disrupt the afternoon. Surge radio continued playing music until the early evening but by now most people had shuffled off to go and grab some grub.

Southampton's Hottest All Day Event at its peak

Even though the evening was scheduled from 9pm-2am it ended up being rather shorter than that, with freshers’ preferring cheap pre-drinks in their halls instead of boozing in Glen Bar despite having put on special drinks deals just for the day. The night didn’t really pick up until 11 with the dance floor only getting busy just before Rudimental’s slot. The set was nothing special and they seemed more concerned with getting drunk and playing their one hit at least 3 times in an hour, much to the enjoyment of Glen’s crowd. Soon after their set unfortunately an amp blew to a spillage, which shyed away some students and by the end there was only about 50 people left mingling in the old hall.

With behaviour more accustomed to Jesters on a Monday night, the two lead members succeeded their average performance, whereby one member allegedly drunk a whole bottle of vodka and another setting their sights on the freshers. One guy was ‘lucky’, the other attempted to ‘organise’ a search for him at the end of the night until security asked him and the stragglers of Glen hall to leave. Apparently the missing member returned at 3.30am with a rather large grin on his face leaving Glen freshers wondering who got to ‘Feel the Love‘ from Rudimental.

All in all it was a good event and very well organised in the day, but a little more thought and promotion into the evening do would’ve helped so as it not to basically become a two and a half hour event. I wonder if the Wideboys at WADE had as much fun as Rudimental….