After a weekend of parties in Ibiza, Defected’s Greg Sawyer reports on Defected In The House at Savannah, DFTD at The Ushuaia Tower and the start of what could well be some of the biggest changes the White Isle has seen in a decade.
One of the things you consistently hear people say about Ibiza is that each time you visit you’ll do something new, go somewhere you’ve never been before, speak to people you would otherwise never have met. This has arguably never been truer than in 2013, when the buzzword on the island is undoubtedly ‘change’. Defected is a major part of that island upheaval, hosting parties at not one but two brand new Ibiza venues this summer.
The delayed opening of Bomba has been well documented over the last few weeks, but with Danny Whittle recently telling Resident Advisor of the reasons behind the delay, suffice to say that when it finally does throw open its doors, anticipation will be at near fever pitch. For now though – and wearing our finest ‘the show must go on’ hats – we needed somewhere for the DJs to play and for those in the know to come and party. For the last few weeks the back room of Savannah has proved to be a more than fitting venue for both these purposes.
First on the agenda was Defected In The House, so after sticking our heads in to the Ushuaia Beach Hotel for a quick look at their new in-house night ANTS, we headed down to the strip and Savannah Back Room. ‘Small but perfectly formed’ is probably a fitting description of this unassuming space, and following sets from the likes of Dennis Ferrer, Nick Curly and a near-hysterically received performance from MK last weekend, Saturday saw Noir, Simon Dunmore and Sonny Fodera entertain workers, clued-up clubbers and those of us lucky enough to be over from the office to ‘work’.
Photo credit: Tony 'TK' Smith. Click here to see the full gallery from Defected at Savannah Back Room
In Ibiza, it’s a rare thing to find such an intimate space to throw a party, save of course private villas and the occasional club backroom. DJs with any kind of reputation behind them are usually found playing vast main room spaces, and while of course that kind of party has contributed to making Ibiza the musical destination it now is, to watch world class DJs play to a room of no more than a few hundred people was a particularly special experience. If you were lucky enough to have been at one of these parties this season you’re part of a very select few as we have something a little different up our sleeves for the next few weeks; Saturday 15th and 22nd of June will now see Defected In The House host one of the rooms at Sankeys Ibiza, full details of which can be found here.
The main event for Defected this week was the opening of Defected presents DFTD at The Ushuaia Tower; sister-venue to the infamous Ushuaia Beach Hotel and one that by all accounts – on the luxury front at least – puts its older sibling in the shade. But before that, another unique Ibiza experience. Osunlade – as well as being DJ, photographer and painter – is in the process of writing his very own cookbook based on his experiences of cooking for others on his various and frequent travels, and took it upon himself to whip up a BBQ feast for the dozen or so staying at the Defected villa to fuel us for the night’s partying ahead. Three hours to prepare, 20 minutes to destroy… Osunlade; we thank you.
Striding into the sparklingly new Ushuaia Tower venue it’s hard not to be impressed with both the speed at which the venue has been built and the scale of their vision. With the imposing eponymous tower dominating the vista on one side and the DJ booth silhouetted against the beach behind and overlooking a shallow pool in front, it looks every inch as if a piece of Miami has been brought brick by brick over from South Beach.
Crucially though, the party was all about the music. Launching our new Defected presents DFTD party at a brand new venue has certainly created a bit of a stir, and on the evidence of this first party it’s going to continue to be one of the island’s most talked-about early parties. Mo Funk, Sam Divine and Osunlade wasted no time laying down the perfect vibe for the early crowd, and as the sun dipped behind the palms, beach and eventually horizon, KiNK – with a live PA from the stunning and flawlessly-voiced Rachel Row – and finally Noir left the 1,500 or so happy, dancing souls crying out for more, and the Ushuaia models falling over themselves to get their hands on our I Am Defected t-shirts before we gave them all away. 
Photo credits: La Skimal. Click here to view the full gallery from Defected presents DFTD at The Ushuaia Tower
This season, Mixmag Editor-at-Large Ralph Moore writes in Pacha Magazine that 2013 is ‘The Year of Change’, an article that he was in fact commissioned to write for the same magazine exactly 12 months earlier. But while with hindsight that initial proclamation was a little premature, they’ve certainly got it right this time around; the last 6 months have seen seismic shifts in the musical – and arguably cultural – landscape of the White Isle, and the last few days have been living proof that those changes have been readily welcomed by the thousands who have already flocked to its sun-kissed shores.
Looks like we’re in for quite a season…
Defected presents The Opening Party Ibiza 2013 is out now – buy from iTunes
Defected In The House Ibiza 2013 is out now – buy from iTunes
