The alfresco party is nothing new. Back when acid house was just a glint in the smiley face’s eye, there was outdoor clubbing – a new and exciting expression of our primal urge to dance to a drum under the heavens. For centuries and even millennia, of course, tribal cultures around the world had been spinning wildly around fire, idol and one another without roof or shelter; but here now was the ‘rave’ and soundsystem, and in Ibiza’s case, the beach party.
“I remember when San Antonio was just a strip of beach and one bar, a certain Café del Mar. I’ve been going to Ibiza for over 30 years now and there has always been outdoor parties” Alex Lowes, founder of the Southport Weekender and, more recently, Croatia’s similarly-vibed, open-air festival SUNceBEAT. “Why not? The setting is superb and the weather pretty top-notch.”
So what exactly has changed? The hype around roof-less clubbing seems to be rocketing this year; particularly in Ibiza. But if the phenomena has always been there what gives?
“I think a large part of it is marketing” Mat Playford, respected We Love… Space resident, suggests. “The authorities in Ibiza want to move away from the island’s reputation for Club 18:30 and rowdy, boozed-up Brits by marketing to a well-heeled, more discerning crowd. In Ibiza, the whole outdoor party thing is attracting a more salubrious crowd, not the ravers. A lot of it is being encouraged; over the past three or four years these parties have been spreading and Ibiza has been able to reinvent itself. I mean there’s serious cash and style going on now; an air of the South of France in places…”
One of those places, surely, is the Ushuaia Beach Hotel resort in Playa D’en Bossa. Transformed from a beach bar by 22 million Euros of serious, serious investment in May 2009, Ushuaia offers five-star state-of-the-art hotel – with swim-up rooms, high-brow eateries and fashion boutiques – alongside beautifully designed outdoor party ‘complex’, with a huge swimming pool at its heart and space for some 5,000 to dance. It’s on the tip of Balearic tongues everywhere.
“There’s nothing like this in Ibiza” Ushuaia ‘partner’ Yan Pissenem explains. “It’s a destination for luxury, for perfect relaxation and great music. The island is evolving and we feel we’re embracing that change. Ushuaia is unique but in keeping with Ibiza’s finest traditions. People feel free under the sun and moon; there’s no smoke, no unwanted distractions, just freedom.”
Defected have an ‘early evening’ (5pm to midnight) Saturday residency this summer whilst Luciano’s Cadenza crew occupy Thursdays and big-name guests such as Sasha and Danny Tenaglia will be flying in for special one-offs. Where there’s style and wealth there is also, thankfully, top quality audio.
“Have you seen that place?” Playford exclaims. “It’s fucking huge… amazing. People are trying new things and that’s to be commended. I’m not sure it can ever match those classic outdoor DC-10 parties, and the days when Space didn’t have a roof; there’s a little too much style going on, but it’s another major outlet for dance music and that’s great.”
The authorities are certainly happy to let Pissenem’s baby grow and grow. Strict anti-drug and noise legislation eventually forced Space and DC-10 ‘indoors’ - the mounting concerns of police, councillors and local homeowners finally taking their toll. But, today, there seems to be greater legal tolerance of ventures like Ushuaia. Pissenem echoes Playford’s earlier sentiments.
“The authorities are still tough but I maintained dialogue with them when we started planning the club” Pissenem says. “I explained clearly what we were doing… that I had run outdoor parties sensibly with the beach bar and wanted to create something high quality with Ushuaia; something respectful to the environment and appealing to visitors. We open after 4.30pm when the law says we can, and so the authorities are happy.”
It is a climate in which other outdoor White Isle parties have been allowed to blossom – legal beach bashes in Portinatx and Cala Gracio, and ‘approved’ daytime gatherings outside venues including Le Plage, Nassau and Bora Bora (all Playa D’en Bossa), and the Es Vive Hotel (Ibiza Town).
“There are other factors to consider” Lowes suggests. “In the UK and many places around the world, venues have become more conducive to adding an outdoor element to their bar or club nights, because the smoking laws have pushed a bunch of people outside to light up and with that you have a new social gathering. Promoters have also seen the attraction to clubbers of parties free from the sometimes overly confined, uncomfortably sticky and sweaty atmosphere of the typical low-ceiling backroom.”
Of course, many of those clubbers have lived through house music’s original revolutions and are now respectable family keepers and business professionals – they have far higher expectations of their holidays than when they were late hedonistic teenager or early wild-eyed twentysomething. They want something a little smarter.
It is a distinct change of pace that several slick, outdoors-orientated beach bar and club spaces across Europe have adapted themselves to in fine style. Ibiza aside, the discerning club-goer can visit anywhere from Formentera’s Gecko Beach Club (lawned gardens, upmarket BBQ, great DJs) to swanky Nammos in Mykonos (formal dining meets beach party) to Santos on Croatian party island Rab (seafood risotto, rattan designer sofas, cool all-night open-air dancing). All are currently booming.
Sticking with Croatia, Lowes’ plans for next month’s SUNceBEAT are progressing well. “Put it this way, our ticket sales are beyond what they were at this stage last year” he stresses. “We’re attracting a lot of Brits, but a lot of Europeans this time as well. Our location [The Garden Petrcane, near Zadar] is beautiful, the weather is usually fantastic and we have a great line-up, what with people like Lil’ Louis, Osunlade and Tony Humphries.”
Lowes continues: “I think festival culture is also driving this thirst for the outdoor. Some festivals have been hit by recession but many more have pushed on with really well thought out plans, facilities and, of course, music. They’ve upped their game because they’ve needed to. Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide event in France is a great example; he’s doing wonderful things.”
But to touch back on the weather, does it really always go to plan? “Well, not always” Lowes laughs. “We got caught with heavy rain in Croatia last year, and we had a mad rush to get people inside but it all came together in the end. We’re better prepared for the weather this year but I think the main thing for outdoor promoters to consider is their soundsystem – you’ll get less grief from the authorities if you’re using something like a digital Funktion-One system with directional sound, than if you opt for one of those crude carnival style rigs where the sound just bludgeons everyone and everything…promoters don’t always consider that.”
Mat Playford agrees: “I’m sure a lot of punters don’t realise the difference with a soundsystem, as long as they’re enjoying themselves outside and the bass is knocking them off their feet. But the acts notice the difference and so do the neighbours… if the sound isn’t directed. These outdoor set-ups are improving and so is the music, but there’s still work to do.”
Outdoor entertainment was a hot topic of conversation at the International Promoters Meeting (IPM) in Rome earlier this month, according to Lowes. So can we expect further alfresco developments across clubland in the coming months and years?
Clubland has truly embraced the great outdoors...
Defected In The House is at Ushuaia Beach Club Ibiza every Saturday – click for line-up and tickets
Mat Playford’s new mix album, We Love… Artist Portraits 01: Mat Playford, is out now on We Love Recordings (Sp).
SUNceBEAT 2 runs July 29-31 in Croatia – check www.SUNceBEAT.com further details.
