This one was actually unplanned.
It was a family holiday so we didn`t really think we would go to any clubs , but the prospect of the sunset at Cafe Mambo with Frankie Knuckles and then the Hed Kandi pre party at Bar M still made for a potentially great night.
We caught the bus to San Antonio which was a treat for the girls !
The sunset was beautiful , the boat that sailed past at 9.00 made some stunning photos - the girls seemed a little underwhelmed "nice but is that it" was their view (I suppose they expected fireworks or computer graphics).
The music was perfect ; sweet soulful house music (although again the girls were a little unimpressed "it sounds like the stuff you play" , which I took as a compliment - I`m not sure it was meant as such).
So onto Bar M for a bit of Kandi.
Lovely bar and a good vibe the moment you enter always a good sign.
We spied Matt Collins who was about to start his set.
It took approximately 10 minutes before Saffy and I said in unison to each other "I quite fancy tonight" , happily the girls agreed that once dropped off at the apartment , we could go out as long as we didn`t wake them when we came back in !
Anyway back to bar M , Matt laying down a funky vibe Kandi girls with wings were floating round the club and there was a Kandi girl in white hotpants dancing on the glass roof - nice one !
You know when a TV is on in a room with no sound and you are not watching it or interested in what is on (which is why the sound is down) , but why then is it that you keep looking at it ?
That is exactly what I was like , I don`t know what it is about hot pants !
Saffy was becoming a little irritated at my far away gazes , and so to disguise my staring I started making conversation like "hmm I wonder if it is toughened glass" or "do you suppose they have carried out a full risk assessment for her job role" and other such drivel , it didn`t fool Saffy she just gave me that world weary look that said "get over it , yes it`s a bottom and yes it`s hot pants but for goodness sake you are over 40!
Mercifully every so often the tunes caught my ear and normal service with my family was resumed , in addition to playing good tunes Matt was his usual entertaining self with banter and interaction with the crowd (don`t you just hate it when in a bar the DJ looks at the decks , his phone and even the sky but never makes any connection with the crowd).
Matt you are a star !
So onto El Divino (via Jet Apartments)
We got there at about 1.30.
Now after all that pre-amble a bit of honesty :
Despite having had some cracking times at Bed and Gatecrasher One in Sheffield and being a big Kandi fan , before we came out I really wasn`t that bothered about a Kandi night in Ibiza I suppose mainly because I thought it wouldn`t be any different (and holidays are about trying something new ) and possibly also because there were tales last year of some of the nights being a little too full of the typical "Brits Abroad".
Now despite being up for it earlier in the night , tiredness had kicked in a bit and in the journey home and then to the club all the above doubts resurfaced.
(Saffy on the other hand was her usual self , now we were going to a club , there is this bizarre transformation from middle aged mother and wife to up for it bundle of energy ready to devour whatever the night has to offer ).
So one of us entered the club with some reservations.
They were soon dispelled.
The club itself is incredible , much more intimate than I imagined , the decor suited Hed Kandi (and their decor it) the layout is fantastic , the terrace is great for a cool chill out , the dance floor just the right size and it looked inviting (well what little I could see as it was rammed !).
And then of course there was the music ; Disco Heaven was the theme , well I`ve seen and heard plenty of them , but this was different , there were still anthems and the party spirit , but perhaps not quite as wall to wall as the Sheffield nights , it was a bit tougher and deeper in places (I would love to have been at a Twisted Disco night in El Divino) and the crowd were loving it.
Both Saffy and I commented on how it was different , but neither of us could properly say why , the following day I said to her "Grown Up Kandi" and we both agreed that was it but also realised we couldn`t articulate what we meant by that but it did sum up the night.
All I can say is that it was different to the nights in England and dare I say it was more sophisticated as were the crowd , far from "Brits abroad" there was a good cross section of cool people from all over Europe all up for a good night.
All three DJ`s (Matt , Andy and Paul) delivered cracking sets and certainly delivered what the crowd wanted , what surprised me was how many tunes I didn`t know - that really was unexpected and I hope it`s a taste of the upcoming releases.
It`s a this point that I would like to list loads of tunes played to back up what I have said but the long day and night and the heat and tiredness leave my memory recall non existent.The only one I remember that totally floored me and is surely another Kandi anthem in the making is the one that samples Stevie Wonder`s "As" .
Of the anthems well it was great to hear Lola`s theme in Ibiza (especially as I guess it will be No.1 later today), which obviously affects it`s credibility !
Put `em High was as good as ever and is surely destined to follow the Shapeshifters as Dance Music`s second No.1 of the summer.
I`m a Good man is just my favourite tune of the moment and when it was dropped was another special moment.
So back to Blighty , cynical head on again – was it really that good ?
Well I had a low expectation - they exceeded.
But now thinking about it they have had such a year it would be really easy to go through the motions , they have been phenomenally successful and as a brand they have everything you could possibly want as an advertiser – young wealthy and hip.
They could have sat back and done a “Field of Dreams” – “if you build it they will come”
That is what I expected – a slightly cheesier version of the nights at Gatecrasher One.
What they delivered was an understated (when it could have been arrogant) affermation of what they are.
They could have milked their success and played on auto pilot.
The DJ`s worked hard all night to deliver quality Kandi.
It was better than the Gatecrasher because the crowd was more knowing.
The downside of a brand is that it fills a place with people who think this is the place to be (but don`t know why they are there) and again I guess that was my expectation .
I`m sure they could fill a club with people like this but on the night I went I was surprised at the crowd , they wouldn`t have partied if the Dj`s hadn`t delivered , they wouldn`t have tolerated poor turntable skills and lacklustre tune selection – they knew it and the Dj`s knew it and that made for a good night.
Give `em a whirl you won`t be disappointed.
It was a family holiday so we didn`t really think we would go to any clubs , but the prospect of the sunset at Cafe Mambo with Frankie Knuckles and then the Hed Kandi pre party at Bar M still made for a potentially great night.
We caught the bus to San Antonio which was a treat for the girls !
The sunset was beautiful , the boat that sailed past at 9.00 made some stunning photos - the girls seemed a little underwhelmed "nice but is that it" was their view (I suppose they expected fireworks or computer graphics).
The music was perfect ; sweet soulful house music (although again the girls were a little unimpressed "it sounds like the stuff you play" , which I took as a compliment - I`m not sure it was meant as such).
So onto Bar M for a bit of Kandi.
Lovely bar and a good vibe the moment you enter always a good sign.
We spied Matt Collins who was about to start his set.
It took approximately 10 minutes before Saffy and I said in unison to each other "I quite fancy tonight" , happily the girls agreed that once dropped off at the apartment , we could go out as long as we didn`t wake them when we came back in !
Anyway back to bar M , Matt laying down a funky vibe Kandi girls with wings were floating round the club and there was a Kandi girl in white hotpants dancing on the glass roof - nice one !
You know when a TV is on in a room with no sound and you are not watching it or interested in what is on (which is why the sound is down) , but why then is it that you keep looking at it ?
That is exactly what I was like , I don`t know what it is about hot pants !
Saffy was becoming a little irritated at my far away gazes , and so to disguise my staring I started making conversation like "hmm I wonder if it is toughened glass" or "do you suppose they have carried out a full risk assessment for her job role" and other such drivel , it didn`t fool Saffy she just gave me that world weary look that said "get over it , yes it`s a bottom and yes it`s hot pants but for goodness sake you are over 40!
Mercifully every so often the tunes caught my ear and normal service with my family was resumed , in addition to playing good tunes Matt was his usual entertaining self with banter and interaction with the crowd (don`t you just hate it when in a bar the DJ looks at the decks , his phone and even the sky but never makes any connection with the crowd).
Matt you are a star !
So onto El Divino (via Jet Apartments)
We got there at about 1.30.
Now after all that pre-amble a bit of honesty :
Despite having had some cracking times at Bed and Gatecrasher One in Sheffield and being a big Kandi fan , before we came out I really wasn`t that bothered about a Kandi night in Ibiza I suppose mainly because I thought it wouldn`t be any different (and holidays are about trying something new ) and possibly also because there were tales last year of some of the nights being a little too full of the typical "Brits Abroad".
Now despite being up for it earlier in the night , tiredness had kicked in a bit and in the journey home and then to the club all the above doubts resurfaced.
(Saffy on the other hand was her usual self , now we were going to a club , there is this bizarre transformation from middle aged mother and wife to up for it bundle of energy ready to devour whatever the night has to offer ).
So one of us entered the club with some reservations.
They were soon dispelled.
The club itself is incredible , much more intimate than I imagined , the decor suited Hed Kandi (and their decor it) the layout is fantastic , the terrace is great for a cool chill out , the dance floor just the right size and it looked inviting (well what little I could see as it was rammed !).
And then of course there was the music ; Disco Heaven was the theme , well I`ve seen and heard plenty of them , but this was different , there were still anthems and the party spirit , but perhaps not quite as wall to wall as the Sheffield nights , it was a bit tougher and deeper in places (I would love to have been at a Twisted Disco night in El Divino) and the crowd were loving it.
Both Saffy and I commented on how it was different , but neither of us could properly say why , the following day I said to her "Grown Up Kandi" and we both agreed that was it but also realised we couldn`t articulate what we meant by that but it did sum up the night.
All I can say is that it was different to the nights in England and dare I say it was more sophisticated as were the crowd , far from "Brits abroad" there was a good cross section of cool people from all over Europe all up for a good night.
All three DJ`s (Matt , Andy and Paul) delivered cracking sets and certainly delivered what the crowd wanted , what surprised me was how many tunes I didn`t know - that really was unexpected and I hope it`s a taste of the upcoming releases.
It`s a this point that I would like to list loads of tunes played to back up what I have said but the long day and night and the heat and tiredness leave my memory recall non existent.The only one I remember that totally floored me and is surely another Kandi anthem in the making is the one that samples Stevie Wonder`s "As" .
Of the anthems well it was great to hear Lola`s theme in Ibiza (especially as I guess it will be No.1 later today), which obviously affects it`s credibility !
Put `em High was as good as ever and is surely destined to follow the Shapeshifters as Dance Music`s second No.1 of the summer.
I`m a Good man is just my favourite tune of the moment and when it was dropped was another special moment.
So back to Blighty , cynical head on again – was it really that good ?
Well I had a low expectation - they exceeded.
But now thinking about it they have had such a year it would be really easy to go through the motions , they have been phenomenally successful and as a brand they have everything you could possibly want as an advertiser – young wealthy and hip.
They could have sat back and done a “Field of Dreams” – “if you build it they will come”
That is what I expected – a slightly cheesier version of the nights at Gatecrasher One.
What they delivered was an understated (when it could have been arrogant) affermation of what they are.
They could have milked their success and played on auto pilot.
The DJ`s worked hard all night to deliver quality Kandi.
It was better than the Gatecrasher because the crowd was more knowing.
The downside of a brand is that it fills a place with people who think this is the place to be (but don`t know why they are there) and again I guess that was my expectation .
I`m sure they could fill a club with people like this but on the night I went I was surprised at the crowd , they wouldn`t have partied if the Dj`s hadn`t delivered , they wouldn`t have tolerated poor turntable skills and lacklustre tune selection – they knew it and the Dj`s knew it and that made for a good night.
Give `em a whirl you won`t be disappointed.
