The parties at Amecon are as much as a staple as the anime screenings, talks and cosplay. With over a thousand people attending, that is a lot of people wanting to let their hair down at night!  Three nights equalled three parties at Amecon and those three parties catered for everyone.

The three parties consisted of an AMV disco, JPop/JRock disco and a Cosplay Ball (each party is reviewed later in this feature).  Each party was held in two halls, each of the same size.  Both halls contained a well-stocked bar with a wide range of drinks, with beer reasonably priced at £2.50 but spirit mixers priced between £3.50 to £4 each which was excessive.  That did not deter people however, with many in a merry state throughout every party.  There was not any trouble to speak of at any party (at least none that Animetion saw) and the atmosphere was very friendly.  Everyone was there to party, and party we did!
 

There were some, albeit small, bad points though.  Unfortunately there were a very small amount of seats in the halls, just a small chill-out area outside and a quieter bar upstairs (The Redfern Bar).  The chill-out area was too loud to chill in though and The Redfern Bar was too far away to be close to the action.  Another bad point was that security gates located outside made for a very small smoker's area.  This meant a lot of smoke drifted inside, which was discomforting to those in the first hall, and difficult for non-smokers to go outside for fresh air.  Despite a couple of bad points though, Animetion hugely enjoyed the parties at Amecon.

The Friday night is an excellent introduction to the Amecon parties, as the disco hall plays classic western party themes to AMVs shown on two big screens.  It is a great idea as it allows everyone to enjoy the night, either by dancing to the tunes or watching the AMVs.  It also makes this party accessible to everyone, since not all anime fans listen to J-Pop/J-Rock.  By having a selection of well-known English party tunes, everyone can truly enjoy themselves.  Highlights of the night included Y.M.C.A, Ghostbusters, The Final Countdown and Crazy Crazy Nights, the AMV which was shown during the opening ceremony.  The traditional playing of Stan Bush's Dare, from Transformers: The Movie, was the undoubted highlight for us though!  An overlooked classic that should be played at more parties! 

Overall the night felt very successful.  Animetion danced with friends from eMagi and Tokyotoys from 10.30pm until 2am, the dancing only stopping for frequent trips to the bar.  It

was very hot on the dancefloor since everyone was in the second hall, but a bit of sweatiness and exhaustion is to be expected! 

After nursing hangovers and tiredness for most of Saturday, we still managed to attend the J-Pop/J-Rock party that night.  We were impressed that the two halls were split - one playing J-Pop and the other playing J-Rock - so you could just choose which hall suited your taste.  It was also good that the party had a different feel to the previous night, with glowsticks abound and manic trance-like dancing everywhere.  There was a decent selection of anime-themes thrown into the mix

as well, so there was plenty of tunes we recognised.  Sadly though we were so tired from the previous party, we had to leave early.  Yes I know we fail but wanted to ensure we kept some energy for the final party the next day. 

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