- In what was one of the more eye-catching Cocoon lineups of the season, Dixon and Âme joined Loco Dice in the Terrace of Amnesia for what would be the Innervisions duo's only set at the club this year—a combination that lured in a slightly odd blend of curious deep house heads and hardcore Dice disciples. In the opening slot, Dixon spun three hours of delicate house to a typically thin early crowd. As interesting as it was to see him build a set from scratch, one couldn't help but feel his talent was a little wasted. Instead of relying on the usual heavyweights to close the room, Cocoon could afford to branch out once or twice a season and give the likes of Dixon a shot at prime time.
Frank Wiedemann from Âme followed, performing live from the booth. As with Dixon, musicality lies at the heart of Âme's output: robust house grooves are adorned with hearty guitar licks, chimes and pianos. Unfortunately, the volume dipped near the end of the set, leaving Wiedemann to finish in muffled tones. As hushed murmurs from the dance floor became a disgruntled buzz, he continued seemingly unawares, dropping "Rej" and Âme's own beautiful remix of Mario & Vidis' Bon Iver-inspired "Re:Stacks" to stunted approval from the crowd. It's not the first time this has happened at Amnesia, in what might be a bid to increase the impact of the headlining set. Indeed, as Dice exercised a smooth transition into tougher, trackier selections, the sound amplified with him.
As usual, the Used + Abused man took a little while to get going, causing a rare (and minor) defection to the underrated Main Room—a space that is seldom heaving, despite boasting arguably the best sound and lights on the island. Inside, Sven Väth was laying down chunky techno to a perfectly filled dance floor, as revellers made the most of the chance to hear the expert veteran with so much space to dance. For four hours he moved seamlessly between thick, intensely melodic cuts, much to the apparent ecstasy of the crowd. A timely rinse of Ten Walls' "Gotham" (a firm favourite with the Cocoon boss this season) went down just as well.
Between its two rooms, and five or so world-class DJs, Cocoon at Amnesia never disappoints. However, with a rejig of the status quo every now and then, it could more confidently state its claim as the best underground house and techno party in Ibiza.