By Sarah Curran
A TOUCH of nostalgia will come alive at The Court House next Saturday when Bangor- born DJ, Pete Snodden, spins the decks.
With Open House Festival drawing to a close next weekend, following an event-packed August, radio presenter and broadcaster Pete Snodden will help wrap-up the festivities with his ‘Most Loved’ club.
Taking to the stage at The Court House next Saturday, Pete will transport music lovers back to a thriving rave scene, with his set of tunes that made him and clubbers fall in love with the rave.
Having already lit up the stage as part of the Open House Festival in previous years, Pete said he was excited to once again play the venue.
“I am Bangor born and bred and obviously I love our city and I am very proud to be from this part of the world,” he said.
“For me the Open House Festival has been a real shining beacon of hope for Bangor. It has really cemented itself into the city since it began.
“The passion for Bangor that the Open House has for giving us something to look forward to in the month of August has been brilliant year on year.”
Pete praised the festival organisers for their vast offerings over August, adding that it was ‘well-supported’.
He continued that he first opened conversations about taking his club night, ‘Most Loved’, to the Court House a few years, and was shocked to be on the festival bill.
Pete said: “It’s absolutely brilliant. I love the room and the venue. The sound is really good and it has a cracking atmosphere.”
Most Loved is a concept designed by Pete a few years ago, which celebrates dance music from the last 30 years, and is shared online weekly. Explaining the concept, Pete said: “I started it because dance music has always been my thing, ever since I was a kid. I started learning to DJ when I was 14. Back then I was going to Underground Music in Bangor every week and Cosmos Records.” He recalled getting off the train in Bangor, having attended school in Belfast, to look at the posters advertising the DJs coming to play that week.
Pete’s DJ career took off when he was just 18 years-old, with his first Bangor venue the famous and award- winning nightclub, the Boom Boom Room.
Now a recognised household name with his own breakfast show on Cool FM, Pete Snodden in the Morning, Pete said his DJ-ing had taken a backseat and so Much Loved allowed him an outlet to enjoy the passion which launched his career.
“I don’t get DJ-ing as much anymore so the reason for doing this Much Loved thing was to give me a vehicle whereby I could share my love of the music which has shaped my musical taste over the past 30 years,” he said, adding that he played a few gigs a year.
“It is a real highlight for me to get the opportunity to share my love and passion for dance music with a likeminded crowd.”
Pete continued that he was delighted to play the gig in Bangor at the Court House as part of the Open House Festival.
“I’ve done it the last two years and for me it is a real highlight of the summer,” he said.
“We are doing it on the bank holiday weekend and last year it was just absolutely phenomenal.”
Pete recalled an old sign outside the old Windsor Bar which said ‘Bangor is an energy’ and agreed that was exactly what it was.
He praised the local bars in the city for ‘working their socks off’ to give local people a reason to stay and enjoy Bangor rather than travelling into Belfast for entertainment.
While the in-demand DJ and broadcaster could play his Much Loved set elsewhere, Pete said he ‘just loved the Court House’ venue.
“It’s a brilliant venue,” he said. “It has been created for all the right reasons – it is a cultural hub for the music and the arts in Bangor and I think that it is fantastic.
“The art of DJ-ing is something I don’t get to express as much anymore so it gives me the opportunity to lean into that and do it at home.”
For more information and booking tickets, visit www.openhousefestival.com.
