After part one of our season preview series, which came out a few days ago and covered all things Ushuaïa, it's time to get away from the beach of Playa d'en Bossa and inland to San Rafael.
In the last few years, Amnesia's programming saw very little change and especially in 2017, a season that wasn't the best for Ibiza overall, Amnesia seemed to have a really good summer. So right after the season, most people didn't expect a lot of changes.
What followed during the winter months were a few shockwave announcements that not only rattled and shook up Ibiza's clubbing industry, but also caused many looks of surprise from Ibiza fans around the world.
Let's now have a look at Amnesia's new weekly line-up and then also explain some of the reasons for the changes. We won't be able to tell you all the details, but we feel we are able to help people understand the reasons behind the moves. Get ready for a longer read this time around.
The first shock came at the start of February, when seemingly out of the blue Cocoon suddenly announced their move to Pacha. As Ibiza's original techno party and a night with one of the most loyal crowds I have ever witnessed globally, it was no surprise there was a big outcry. For many people, early Tuesday mornings on the terrace without the Cocoon dots and Papa Sven passing the kitchen roll across the dance floor was something simply unthinkable.
But as Cocoon did point out in their own announcement, the move to Pacha was a long time coming. Even the most hardcore fans couldn't deny that, despite Cocoon having some of the very best line-ups in the whole industry, for one reason or another, there were dates when the club wasn't as busy as you would expect.
Amnesia is a massive club, not just the two dancefloors but also the table sections upstairs, and it is understandable that both need to be busy. So after the season Cocoon and Amnesia discussed for a long time to find a solution to the issue, but in the end simply couldn't find an agreement that worked for both.
Being close friends with both people from team Amnesia as well as the Cocoon crew, I know it was a very emotional period for both parties involved. And in the end, as we know, Cocoon decided it was time for a move - but more on that when we get to Pacha's part of the 2018 season preview.
As a replacement for Cocoon, Amnesia presents Pyramid this summer. The first few news bites have already been announced. The opening party sees Ricardo Villalobos on the Terrace and Ben Klock in the Club room, so some dates will be very similar musically to how Cocoon used to sound.
Then there is a Diynamic take-over on 23 July with Solomun and his gang. Plus, just yesterday, Carl Cox announced his One Night Stand concept for this summer which brings him to Amnesia for one night as well, on Monday 2nd July. The rest of the line-up is still under wraps, but you can expect more surprises - that much I can say.
Resuming, Monday nights will still be a techy affair and will continue to include stellar artists. It needs saying that it keeps going up against Circoloco at DC10, which actually was one of the main reasons Cocoon was less busy lately.
Years ago people went to DC10 late afternoon and then switched over to Amnesia at around 1:00, but these times are over and it seems that the Circoloco headliners now pretty much play the same time slots as the ones at Amnesia, late in the night. It will be interesting to see how this all pans out this summer.
No changes for Tuesday nights! Together has been going from strength to strength over the past few years and their mix of more mainstream house stuff on the Terrace and covering a musical niche with bass sound in the Club room simply works a treat. Most of their line-ups for 2018 are out and looking very strong once again.
It's interesting because when Together started many years ago, there were a lot of raised eyebrows at the attempt to fuse house music with drum and bass and big beats and other alternative electronic styles - now it is one of the most popular nights on the island - so kudos to Amnesia and Together for seeing in advance in which direction the clubbing scene was going.
Wednesdays - VIBRA! + Espuma Foam Party
Change number two in Amnesia's programme - and part of that change was no surprise to be completely honest. The last three years saw HYTE in Amnesia. HYTE has been doing great on a global level, selling out big festivals in advance. In Ibiza, and I am sorry to be so frank, HYTE just never really took off the way it should have.
The main reasons were a) big in-house competition with Cocoon, Music On and last year also elrow and b) and probably more importantly, compared to the HYTE parties in other places, here in Ibiza it just couldn't get the same calibre of artists because they were contractually bound elsewhere already.
All these factors simply lowered HYTE's pull in terms of numbers. In this case, lots of the island and industry folk weren't surprised when it became apparent HYTE was gone. The surprise came in the form of the replacement!
Gianluca Vacchi, a name very popular in southern Europe (mainly, but not only in Italy) but less so north of the wall...erm, Alps, will be hosting the Terrace this summer with VIBRA!. Up until last summer, Amnesia had Paris Hilton doing Sundays. Now it has another celebrity instead except on a different night. I think the sound will change quite a bit, too.
We'll have to wait and see the full line-ups until we can fully grasp what this night is about musically, but I believe there might be a few surprises people aren't expecting just yet.
In the Club room on Wednesdays, Amnesia has programmed its evergreen party - La Espuma, which is the famous foam party.
In summary, Amnesia Wednesdays are turning into a night for people who aren't looking for banging underground techno but something different instead. And actually, why not? Ibiza has always been about variety.
Thursdays - ABODE | Do Not Sleep
The third change (and second big shock) came at the beginning of March with the announcement of Cream moving to Hï. The outcry was huge again - quite understandable, considering that in a period of just over one month, two of Ibiza's oldest and most popular parties announced that they would be leaving Amnesia.
As with Cocoon, it needs saying that, even though Cream was by now the club's longest-standing night and still very popular, it just wasn't the same blockbuster it once used to be. Nowadays, Amnesia's biggest pillars are Music On and elrow and it seems the club simply felt that it needed to change things up.
The new Thursday night at Amnesia is now actually run by not one but two promoters: ABODE, undeniably UK's hottest party label right now, is running the terrace. The Club room becomes Do Not Sleep's realm, a night that has proven to be very versatile and adaptable to any venue on the island really.
Marco Carola. Music On. Friday nights. Need I say more? Well, maybe just the notion that fans shouldn't expect very late closings on Saturday mornings this year. I am sorry to be a party pooper, but it seems this ship has generally sailed for the foreseeable future - closing times will be rigorously enforced this year to the best of our knowledge.
But hey, maybe I am mistaken. This is Ibiza so you never know really. And even if Music On has to close a little earlier (just like everyone else), it's still going to be Amnesia's number one night overall this summer with both the dance floors as well as the table sections full all summer, period.
Currently the world's single biggest clubbing phenomenon, elrow just keeps on giving. After a record-breaking ultimate season at Space in 2016, the party moved to Amnesia and did pretty much the same in that venue. Sold out pretty much every week, elrow Ibiza turned into one of the must-do events (if you could get a ticket that is).
With its mixture of banging tech house and an unmatched carnival atmosphere, as well as unbelievable production, decor and performances, elrow is simply a lot more than just another party. It is an event you need to go and see with your own eyes to believe it.
On a musical note, let me also mention the all-night-long concept they do over in the Club room - with one artist playing from start to finish. Something for music nerds and perfect if you're fed up with 90-minute sets. So elrow not only has the 'party circus' appeal but also caters for people that are only about the music. Get ready for some big Saturday nights this summer.
Conclusion
To sum up, Amnesia has certainly surprised a lot of people with many changes this year. However, if you could see behind the scenes, many valid reasons are behind the decisions taken. And while other venues replace nights more often, Amnesia has had hardly any changes in the past four or five years. Now it simply all came together at once.
Nonetheless, the club still runs the island's biggest parties on Friday and Saturday nights, and some of the new additions are rather promising. Amnesia existed and was successful way before Cream and Cocoon. Even though I personally started clubbing on the island with Cream and then turned into one of the most outspoken Cocoon fans, I am certain Amnesia will continue to be one of the island's leading clubs. See you on the dance floor.
You know the drill, part 3 of the season preview series to follow once the next club has completed its weekly line-up!
