Obsession 3rd Dimension - Exeter - Review

Venue : Westpoint Exhibition Centre, Exeter
Date : 30th October 1992

I'd recently left school following a massive argument with my parents following their attempts to stop me from going to an event in reading (Swing : Red October part 2). thankfully such a brash move, rave or educate, didn't totally fuck up my life...I got lucky. anyhoo, this isn't about that...so, just left school. atmosphere at home wasn't too great and I needed a real boost.

that boost came in the shape of obsession. the 3rd dimension!

whilst I was job hunting i had increased my Saturday job hours into the week to gather some extra cash, and it was directly from work that I went with the bosses son, who was responsible for taking me to weekend world back in '89...the night that started it all!, and his mates. all raring to go and stocked so full of chems it was like boots going on tour!

the drive down to Exeter was pretty exciting. all the others had been to second sight and I had the tapes and seen vids of the Fantazia at Westpoint so it was almost like a pilgrimage. the only pain was in the cramped conditions of the guy driving's sierra the 3 hour journey seemed to go on for ever and then some. but eventually we arrived.  A little kinked, rather stoned and so full of anticipation it was hard to stay still in the queue

by the time we got thru searches and in things were getting up steam in the venue. my first impression was of how coo-el the light show looked. the lasers, always a favourite, being a particular point of note. pure class.

we found the cloakroom, picked up a bottle of water each from the bar, dropped a bean (a New Yorker if memory serves) and headed for the centre of the crowd.

I had several people I wanted to hear that night - Ratty, Sy, Top Buzz, Easygroove and Derrick May.

the night was awesome. the music and sound system were spot on and everyone seemed to play a blinder of a set.

I forget the actual order of the DJs but have snatches of memory from various sets :

Derrick May - Ribbz opening to the sound of whale noise with "have you got the knowledge? obsession. do you have the knowledge?"...followed by explaining to a couple of people I was next to who Derrick May indeed was. lots of stunned faces through his set as he mixed stuff up in a the most mental way. lots of false drops, turn-offs and reverses from a dj point of view it sounded amazing.

ratty - possibly the best set of the night (and one I've grown to know inside out due to the tape and cd!) and had ratty and Robbie Dee in full, and devastating effect. I still marvel at just how cheeky some of the mixing was. highlight of the set though has to be me standing on one of the dance platforms, peaking on a 2nd or 3rd New Yorker. I was going for it like a good'un and stupidly took one step to the right too many! right off the edge of the platform!!

I don't remember the actual trip...just opening my eyes and wondering why everything was upside down and why my arm hurt. these 2 questions were quickly answered :

Why was I upside down? answer : I had caught my jeans in the platform during the fall and was now suspended by them. my head about 3inches from the floor!

Why did my arm hurt? answer : on the way down I had evidently flailed my arms about - either out of some attempt to break my fall...or as one of my mates told me at the time "you fell off and you was still going for it all the way till you landed! you nutter!".  Anyhoo the resulting of my flailing arms was a rather nasty cut on the inside of my right arm,  one that was pissing blood like I'd done something serious.

most people don't get to see the first aid area of a rave, thankfully. it was quite nice, as far as a couple of plastic chairs, a St John's ambulance volunteer and a table goes. they gave me some tea. took my details (which I lied about!) and had a look at my arm. thankfully it wasn't very deep so they simply applied a light bandage and set me free to carry on raving...though now I had this ultra coo-el glowing right fore arm to wave about!! class.

Dj Sy : what can I say about this set? i just remember being totally spell bound throughout. not only was the music and mixing amazing but the vibe during Sy's set was as if every single person there was celebrating a significant birthday, Christmas and pay day all in one! it was just electric. i clearly recall the cheer that went up whenever Sy pulled off a particularly good scratch. when he stopped and scratched dub war at the breakdown i actually cried! the man became a god on the spot.

Sadly I can't recall what Easygroove or top buzz were like as I was lost in the moment.

I just remember the end of the event suddenly being upon us and everybody still wanting to carry on. possibly the fastest 10 hours of my life!

without a doubt the best indoor event i have ever attended. and what's more, the sets from the night still hold their own today.

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