If you've been in Ibiza for the past week, the chances are you've heard plenty of people talking about the much-anticipated opening of Carl Cox's Revolution at Space. There's been a lot of exciting opening parties lately, but it seems like not many could get partygoers as excited as they were at the prospect of Carl Cox playing the main room at Space all night long. Even as we got to the club at 10 in the evening (an early start out here), the atmosphere inside was palpable.
Heading straight to the Sunset Terrace for Uner's first set of the evening, Uner put on a show unlike many warm-up sets I've seen in the past. With a more than substantial amount of people already in the building, Uner unleashed straight into a high octane, pumping tech house set that got everybody in the room moving. Considering the early set time, Uner put on an impressive display and testified to the idea that you don't get people dancing that early into a party unless you go all out. Needless to say, everybody in the Sunset Terrace loved every second and by the time Carl Cox opened the Discoteca, the dance-floor was warmed up and ready to go.
Contrasting the adrenaline-fuelled ending to Uner's epic set, Cox eased the crowd into his marathon set by playing deep, slow tech that gave way to more up-tempo beats. Being one of the first in for Cox's first set of the season, I headed straight to the dance-floor and within 20 minutes, was amazed to find a sea of clubbers behind me. Usually when this happens in a club, I instinctively scramble for any decent amount of space I can find – yet I found myself moving closer and closer to the front of the dance-floor, getting progressively more drawn in to Carl Cox's seamless mixing. Paired with the intensity of the kick-heavy techno being played, the lighting and visuals around the DJ booth were perfectly in sync with the music, adding another dimension to an experience you just don't get anywhere else but in Ibiza. Cox momentarily took to the mic simply to say, “It's gonna be a long journey tonight, are you ready?” judging by the thunderous roar erupting all around me, I think he got his answer.
This is a guy who proudly boasts a vinyl collection of over 150,000 records (not tracks, records!) and his expertise in all sub-genres of electronic music quite clearly transpose into his live DJ sets. Cox is not a DJ who settles on a particular sound for too long; instead he plays an extremely varied and versatile show with some tracks that you wouldn't expect would work together – yet when Cox does it, it just makes sense.
At 3am we moved on to the terrace to check out the sounds of Danny Tenaglia. Speaking to people about the New York-based DJ, many told me that he is the best DJ they've seen live – and it was easy to see why right from the off. No time for slow builds this night, Tenaglia started with an upbeat techno track that progressed into tech house unlike anything I've previously heard. The set alternated mainly between tech house and pure techno, with epic build-ups that I'm sure are unparalleled by any DJ that I've previously seen. When the CO2 cannons pumped at the drop of certain tracks on both sides of the floor, the rush of adrenaline combined with the chill down my spine attested to the incredible night we all had.
Several workers I've spoken to in my time on the island have told me that Revolution is their favourite party in Ibiza, and it's not hard to see why – it's one of those events that prioritises the atmosphere and clubbers' experience as much as it does the music. The dancers and the lighting are as much a spectacle to behold as the DJs that are enjoying partying in the booth as much as clubbers on the dance-floor. With so many good line-ups spanning the season in 2014, I will definitely be heading back to Space as a regular Tuesday night outing and advise all clubbers, workers and holidaymakers to check it out too – you certainly wont be disappointed!
WORDS | Janson Goldberg PHOTOGRAPHY | James Chapman
