Wow! What a close to an amazing season of super parties on the Island Of Ibiza. Another enjoyable summer of dancing, under clear blue skies, filled with the heat of a Mediterranean sun that rises temperatures in a way no other destination can. The Closing parties in Ibiza this year were, for the first time, extended by a week. Also the emergence of Sankeys has meant that the parties continued into Thursday, rather than the traditional end after the DC10 close on Tuesday. This ensured that the crowds weren't as packed in as previous years, leaving enough room in the clubs for dancers to get their groove on over a seven day period.
The Closing Parties kicked off with the Privilege closing party on the Friday. Unfortunately Lady Gaga could not make the event but Supermarketz ensured that the main room was a flamboyant and colourful show of entertainment and fun. In the excellent Vista Club Room, with the best views of sunrise in Ibiza, Solomun, a rising star on its horizon, rocked the party with his bass driven underground house. In demand Solomun, was also the guest star at Ushuaia, for their closing on the Saturday. Highlight of this party was Lucianos intro, where he had a live choir in front of the stage to herald his arrival. One of those special Ibiza moments. At the Amnesia Closing party later on Saturday night, Danny Tenaglia, made his first Ibiza appearance of the season a short and sweet one, with a 90 minute set, where he dropped Gloria Gaynors Gay, Disco anthem, I Will Survive. It was a nice bridge from the Matinee party into the more heavier, minimal tech sound of Maetrix, Steve Lawler and Marco Carola, who ended the party at 6pm on Sunday with, Need You Tonight by INXS.
The dropping of old classic tunes at the closings, seemed to be in vogue this year, as Space continued the trend with their huge Closing event on Sunday afternoon. Rising Spanish rookie DJ, Danny Avila, dropped a good few classics, including Beachball on the sunset terrace. Carl Cox, Joris Voorn, Nic Fanciulli and Paul Reynolds did similar classic infused sets. Thankfully, Richie Hawtin brought it back to a more modern and futuristic sound with Danny Tenaglia making an impromptu appearance with him on stage. The party continued well on into Monday afternoon with Oscar Cano and Remo doing a great job on the terraces. It was then off to DC10 for an excellent line up of underground house. As usual, the club was packed to capacity, with the overhead roar of incoming jet engines, fueling the electric and energy filled atmosphere beneath. Dubfire had a thumping set as did Dan Ghenacia and Dyed Soundorom. Jamie Jones and Richie Hawtin, as well as party regulars, Circo Loco, ensured that the chunky bass sound of underground house keep it real at the DC10 Closing well into Tuesday afternoon. It was a huge party and one of the highlights of the seven day marathon.
As the finishing line loomed up in sight, with the Sankeys two day closing party on the Tuesday and Wednesday, complete with its 24 DJ’s over 24 Hours hurdle, Playa Den Bossa was littered with tired bodies. Nevertheless, the weary troops of assembled clubbing mercenaries, mustered one last drive and headed to the final battle at Sankeys. The aptly named Viva Warriors party had a strong influence on the nights proceedings with Lawler working off four decks. There was also a surprise appearance by the man of the moment, Danny Tenaglia, who seemed focussed on keeping everybody happy in Ibiza this year. He played a six and a half hour set and is strongly tipped to be associated with Sankeys next year. On the Wednesday Solomun returned to the venue that introduced him to the Island with his Diynamic Neon party. Also in attendance was the excellent DJ Sneak, who provided a real burst of fresh Chicago House to the assembled crowd of house worshipers. Also a highlight was Todd Terry’s acid house set. Surprise guests turned out to be the excellent Martinez Brothers, who were followed by Solomun and HOSH in the Basement room, where the deep and bassy sound of underground house boomed out until 6am on Thursday morning, bringing down the final curtain on another Closing Party season in Ibiza. As Clubbers left the battlefield of another Closing marathon, ears throbbing and legs weary, all the talk was about 2013 and who would be there. Roll on 2013 and thank you Ibiza, for a truly memorable 2012 season.
