Ok, so considering David Morales, Kenny Dope, Quentin Harris, Spen, Sandy Rivera and for those that like him, Bob Sinclar, are also the main headliners for Defected's busy Saturday glam-up at Pacha, we might be going a little bit over the top by singling out Dennis Ferrer, but what would Ibiza be without totally over-the-top hype. Hey?
Moreover, if anyone deserves it, it's surely Dennis Ferrer (right). He's one of only a few artists that can operate for a label like Defected, yet court press from Resident Advisor and appease underground purists. His Objektivity label oozes class, productions such as 'A Black Man in Space' under his Son of Raw moniker are so house it hurts, Sinfonia Della Notte was everywhere in Ibiza last year and his 'Hey Hey' release from the back end of 2009 was huge before it was even out and was still caned everywhere at Miami recently. I'll happily admit that, whilst I completely understand why it's become so popular, 'Hey Hey' never really struck me as his very best work. More than anything, I guess it just shows his unique ability to blur the lines of what' s cool/underground/popular/selling!!
Dennis Ferrer - Hey Hey
Anyway, back onto Defected, who continue to find their values aligning perfectly with Pacha's Saturday night tradition for proper house music, by welcoming stalwarts (I think it's fair to say that!) like Bob Sinclar, Junior Jack & Kid Creme, ATFC and The Shapeshifters. Taking a more prominent role this year, and in Ibiza in general thanks to gigs at Wonderland and Space's new Thursday night, is Riva Starr, he of Ibiza Spotlight Podcast No. 7 fame (joke!) and mixer of Defected's Miami WMC compilation.
The most interesting names of the summer, after Ferrer are two dates from Quentin Harris, the Detroit born, New York resident responsible for one of the best house tracks of the 00's no less, 'Let's Be Young'. This is a serious don. One of those appearances sees him play alongside Masters at Work legend, Kenny Dope, who we'd definitely love to see more of, in the right environment, in Ibiza. More American representation comes from the evergreen Sandy Rivera and Defmix is still just about in the house, with David Morales performing two shows.
Quentin Harris
Quentin Harris - Let's Be Young
Defected is too big to be considered really cool and it's success means it's often a target on various charges, being too commercial (god forbid!) usually the main one. Musical short-sightedness doesn't help, I mean everyone conveniently ignored the fact Sneak spun at Cocoon in 2009, playing records that would equally have worked at Defected on a Saturday night. Hypocrites! But anyway, true house has always found a home at or near Defected, so if you're a proper house head - and we're not talking fluffy, 100% vocals, cheesy house music here - then you could do a lot worse than check out the wholesome house that Defected, and especially the American guests, can offer.
Tickets On sale soon.
