Amnesia's Closing Party is an unmissable, essential date. It's not the kind of event you pass up. 2021's edition would break the mould, with the rulebook going right out of the window.
Just 11 hours earlier, we had walked out of a life-affirming Amnesia Opening Party.
Even for seasoned clubbers like ourselves, this felt like an unusual situation. Attending the same venue on consecutive nights is a bit of a faux pas somewhere like Ibiza, where there is so much variety on offer. Under these strange circumstances, however, it felt absolutely right.
Having not given ourselves much rest and recuperation during the interim, we again found ourselves lining-up outside the famous institution just before 20:00. Recollections of Alex Kennon, Giorgia Angiuli, Skream and Answer Code Request still fresh in the memory.
Late summer, early doors
Despite our early entrance, the club had already started to fill up, with Richy Ahmed laying things down on The Terraza. It was clear that people had come from far and wide to meet together again on Amnesia's dancefloor.
Regular attendees will soon have noticed upgrades to The Terraza's already impressive technical spec and aesthetic. More lasers and lush greenary have both been introduced.
After Richy Ahmed had whipped the crowd up, controls were passed over to Mar-T and Caal. Amnesia has always held its resident DJs in high regard and, truthfully, who knows this venue better?
For the first time tonight, music, lighting and a mind-bending matrix of lasers came together to create an explosive dancefloor moment. The Terraza's updated production packs a punch!
A blessed reunion
Usually we like to give our readers a thorough overview, covering a wide area across the venue, and with a technofest in the Club Room and the well-programmed 3rd Dimension stage outside, that was the intention. The confession is, though, that we didn't move from The Terraza.
We found our spot and stuck to it. We certainly weren't alone in that respect. Faces that were strangers at the beginning of the night, were familiar by the end as the Terraza reunion continued into the morning.
Marea Stamper AKA The Blessed Madonna was the next act to step into the booth and by this point the foundations had been masterfully laid. One memorable highlight from the next hour and half was a joyous edit of The Jacksons' Can You Feel It.
As well as being a bonafide classic, it is definitely representative of the broad range of music - new and old - that The Blessed Madonna features on her stellar 6 Music radio show. Needless to say, we felt it. Everybody was feeling it.
Before handing over to our headliner, Marea would end on one of her own remixes - a favourite rework from earlier this year. With that last act, the scene was set for the thrilling finale ahead.
Echoes of Ibiza Future
We also got a glimpse into Amnesia's future, with Jamie Jones' phenomenal three-hour closing set. It's no exaggeration to say, it was up there with one of the best sets we've ever seen him play - and we've witnessed some crackers in our time.
Big drops were teased and then delivered to a riotous reception. With three hours to play with, JJ picked out plenty of upfront material, as well as some older gems from his collection. Roman Flügel's More & More & More was one such blast of nostalgia that gave our feet overtime.
On top of this, there was lots to indulge over from the Hot Creations camp, obscure tracks sampling well-known hits and underground monsters. Basically, some of the best Tech House, Minimal and Techno we had heard in a long time.
Naturally, we also had some classic Jamie Jones to give the fans want they wanted.
Paradise's multiple-delayed debut at Amnesia is going to be something to savour in 2022. On this evidence, it will become a permanent fixture in our weekly diary.
The curtain was raised and dropped on Amnesia in the space of 34-hours with staggering results.
It's also settled the age-old debate of "what's better - opening parties or closing parties?" By a whisker, but also in a different sense, a country mile, the answer is "Closing parties", of course.
Although pro-clubbers will tell you, that the definitive answer is: they are not mutually exclusive!
Although the antics of the last two dates were amongst the best clubbing experiences we've ever had, the honest truth, is that nobody hopes for another season like 2021. That said, both smiles and faith were restored. It has been a whirlwind, but what a ride.
Ibiza had a point to prove, and beyond all doubt, it was made.
Amnesia now goes into hibernation until... well, who knows? All we really know, is that we are raring to go as soon as anything gets announced.
Dancing is not a crime. It's a freedom of expression. A vocation. A gift. One we sorely missed, and are over-the-moon has returned.
When the times comes, we will love telling you about what Amnesia has in store next year. In the cool season, you can discuss speculation and gossip on our forum. As ever, anything official will be published to our magazine newsfeed. If not before, then see you in Ibiza 2022!
