Monday - Monday Calling
Hardest night of the week for Space, for lots of reasons, so it's freebies all the way, commercial names and throw in a bit of cosmopolitan glitz with the production. Don't actually know anybody who went to this, which is significant I reckon, but reports are generally of the "ok but uneventful" variety. Time for a gimmick?
Tuesday - Carl Cox
What a stark contrast to Monday! Cox brought in Yousef and Nic Fanciulli and Umek to freshen things up, which worked a treat by the way, and carried on with crowd-pullers like Fatboy Slim and Loco Dice, as well as some more varied acts like Green Velvet, Danny Tenaglia, Mark Knight and Pendulum. This night went off!! No other way to describe it and is easily one of the top 3 or 4 parties of the summer.
Wednesday - Kehakuma
Started with a bang and then the reality of having an almost brand new party with underground names headlining hit home. There were times when the Discoteca was deadly quiet, yet the Terrace was great all summer and many DJs made a definite mark on the party. People like Nick Curly and Glimpse and Radio Slave made big impressions and rocked the party more than some of the more established names like Booka Shade or Tiefschwarz. Good, solid summer for the Japanese themed event.
Thursday - Come Together
Forget how many (few) people saw Leftfield, forget how much money some of the acts cost (Faithless, Friendly Fires, Calvin Harris) and forget what the final balance sheet says (no idea if good or bad!!)..……..Come Together had a great season. Combining solid Ibiza brands like Monza and Meganite with more commercial performers like Calvin Harris or Mark Ronson and then throwing in the live thing for good measure, no one could have expected this night to pull as many punters as it did. Sure to be back in 2011, when it will have gone through a fine-tune to improve the good and lose the bad.
Friday - Be
Be at Space in its third carnation didn't go forwards or back, but drifting a little under the weight of its super-underground techno policy that will never, in Ibiza, attract the numbers on its own. Other parties, like Cocoon, could book Surgeon or Ben Klock, but you'd still only get a few hundred actually going just for that DJ. Nevertheless, for a party that was towards the cheaper end of the spectrum, it was great value and there was usually a fairly upbeat atmosphere. Plenty of room for improvement though, it just needs to decide in which direction. Wally Lopez, ably supported by Elio Riso & Remo, was the chief party starter.
Saturday - Cafe Ole
Space decided to pit their flamboyant gay fiesta directly up against their nemesis, and former friends, Matinée, for which, if nothing less, you have to admire their audacity. Regardless, the party actually went well, albeit very much likely to split tastes, which shows the true size of that particular Spanish/gay-friendly/electro scene. Some interesting things in the Red Box too, with a sub-party called FACT, which had A Guy Called Gerald and Luna City Express as guests.
Sunday - We Love
Came out in fighting mood, up against Luciano et al, and will be more than happy with another sensational season. The Sunset Terrace was back on form with Funkagenda the main protagonist from 10 till midnight, techno reigned supreme in the Discoteca with the Detroit guys, Joris Voorn, Zabiela and Paul Woolford hardly put a foot wrong all summer and there was some breathtaking live shows from Aphex Twin and Groove Armada. Not to be forgotten about of course are the side/smaller rooms at the club, particularly the Red Box for the coolest stuff, but increasingly El Salon as well. Still undisputed number one party for Sundays and without doubt one of those destination parties that every clubber wants to experience in Ibiza.
Overall
Despite having a (really) very underground weekly schedule, Space was back in 2010, with its best parties having thrill-a-minute summers and the support acts still appealing in different ways. Making parties work in the unique labyrinth of rooms here isn't always easy but more and more this aspect is being used to set it apart from its competitors. Negatives? More a comment than anything else; the club is crying out for a truly commercial/ mainstream party, of the Guetta, Tiesto, Swedes ilk. Anyway, definite good vibrations emanating out of Space, PDB this year.
