Are you of the opinion that an acceptable social life of a mum should consist of family meals out, Facebook and the odd hen do, or baby shower?
If so, you might want to look away now. Contrary to popular belief, there are plenty of mums, like me, whose life goal wasn’t to be admin of the school mums' WhatsApp group. Strictly Come Dancing isn’t my idea of a good Saturday night, and I don’t buy into the illusion that sitting in with a bottle of gin and nice wax melt is bonafide leisure time.
So where do I turn? I don’t like cocktails, restrictive clothes, or high heels. Although I have recently begun a love affair with the curly blow.
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I don’t want to spend three hours getting ready and take my chances on some new bar where the men wear flat caps and the drinks come in a wheelie bin. And I certainly don’t want to be the oldest there, rabbiting on about my air fryer in the loos. No thank you. I need to be in a loo where people understand my love for the air fryer!
There must be a place. There must be a scene where hot mums like me can dance to incredible music, drink delicious drinks in sturdy glasses and hang out with our friends?
Meet the mums that have gone from enjoying the scene, to running the scene. Eves’ Drop Collective are a group of UK-wide female artists, with decades of experience in the club scene. Hand-picked, sisters who spin, founded on the recognition that there’s poor representation of female acts at festivals and within the music Industry. Eves’ Drop Collective have catapulted to iconic venues like Warehouse Project and took over their very own stage at We Out Here 2022.
Andrea, 50 from Stretford, said: “Eves' Drop came about when my friends (Sarah Sweeney and Francine Hayfron) and I were at We Out Here 2019, discussing the fact that there aren't many female DJs in slots at festivals. The next year, COVID hit, but we used that time to select and put together a group of ladies from all over the UK with a view to change the narrative.”
If there's one thing Andrea knows, it’s the entertainment industry. “I have been DJing or should I say selecting records, for over 24 years now. I am married to a professional DJ (the legendary Mr Scruff). Years back I was challenged at one of his more relaxed gigs, to DJ at a bar in Belfast. I only had his records to play with, but I managed to do it! That’s when I got the feel for putting good tunes together and take people on a journey.”
Laura, 38, from Garston was honoured to be asked to join the group of incredible sisters. She entered the industry as a music lover who was persuaded and encouraged by a friend. Laura says: “I’ve been collecting vinyl for a long time and a friend of mine encouraged me and boosted my confidence to play at her venue. My first gig was at Constellations for their Roast & Records one Sunday. It was also a joint birthday celebration for my sister and I, so we just did it for fun. Needless to say, having lots of smiling faces dancing to my selections gave me an appetite for more.
“I guess my big break was getting booked for Liverpool Disco Festival. I was really nervous about playing at such an iconic event in the city. But it went really well and lots of opportunities seemed to come after that.”
Eves Drop Collective made their Liverpool debut this month with Andrea, Laura and other members playing alongside Giles Peterson at 24 Kitchen St. When I asked them at what age the plan to hang up their dancing shoes was, there was a very loud and collective “NEVER!”.
So let’s ask the obvious question men never get asked… Did becoming a parent affect your social life? Andrea told me: “Not really. The only thing that affects our social life is getting childcare, especially as my husband is a DJ too and away most weekends. I enjoy taking my daughter to festivals. She's at that age when she is absorbing music from different genres and is meeting like-minded kids.”
Laura says: “It helps that I have a really supportive partner. Being able to go out and play music helps me keep social outside of being a parent. Mums need that! Together we take our son to festivals. He loves to dance; he’s got some serious moves! It’s great for him to be able to socialise with us as parents, along with lots of other children and families. It’s harder than just taking myself to a festival but totally worth it to see him experiencing music with me.”
If you want to listen to great music with good people, check out one of Eves Drops upcoming gigs in Manchester on December 15 at the Refuge and December 18 at Band on the Wall. These girls are doing great work. Laura adds: “It’s beautiful to see so many women being represented but there is still work to be done.” Laura is playing Liverpool's new Albert's Schloss on December 6 and 21.
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