- IMS Ibiza has always been good for funny anecdotes and the odd controversial moment, but rarely has it touched upon so many serious issues. On Wednesday afternoon, Marea Stamper, AKA The Black Madonna, urged all the men in the room (and outside of it) to "co-sign the cheque" on gender equality. On a similar tip, Miss Kittin and shesaid.so's Andreea Magdalina agreed that positive discrimination is the only way forward. Seth Troxler, sitting on a panel to discuss the upcoming Ibiza season, voiced his concerns for the island's growing homeless population amid a shortage of affordable housing. Overall, this year’s conference felt reflective of an industry facing some grave challenges.
Come Friday evening, though, it was time to put all that to one side and party. Dalt Vila, a former fort that's now a UNESCO World Heritage site, has been hosting the IMS finales since 2009. It's one of the most spectacular venues around, overlooking Ibiza Town on one side and the glistening Mediterranean on the other. For the summit's tenth edition, the founders curated a lineup of seven back-to-backs, the jewel of which was the first-time pairing of Dixon and Kenlou, AKA Masters At Work. But as good as the bill looked on paper, the reality rarely matched expectations. It didn't help that sets were only an hour long—barely enough time for one DJ to find their groove, let alone two.
As is often the case in Ibiza, the party was most enjoyable earlier on, before night fell and the crowds poured in. The Martinez Brothers and Kenlou were all smiles as they flew through various strains of chunky, percussive house. Dixon replaced The Bronx siblings, deepening the mood in line with the dipping sun. In crept longer and longer breakdowns. Louie Vega, sandwiched between Kenny Dope and the towering German, was barely visible over the decks, though in the end he was responsible for the set's brightest moment: a pumping cover of Sylvester's "Dance."
A rave in a fort to mark the start of another Ibiza season should be a celebration, and the atmosphere lifted every time the big tunes came out. The Age Of Love's "The Age Of Love" was the highlight of Pete Tong and Nicole Moudaber's hour. Seth Troxler and Miss Kittin, easily the night's best partnership, had a great thing going, dropping bombs like Maurice's "This Is Acid" and Gat Decor's "Passion." Tale Of Us and Maceo Plex, on the other hand, went for mood over raw energy, and the second half of their headline set sagged as a result.
The handful of hits were flashes of colour on a night that was otherwise marred by the usual overcrowding and scrum for drinks—at one point, a friend of mine went to the bar only to find they'd run out everything, including ice. Punters in Ibiza have come to accept dance floors packed to the point of discomfort, which is sad and frankly unacceptable. This year's IMS did an excellent job of confronting some of the uglier issues affecting our scene. I'd like to see overcrowding become one of them.
Photo credit /
Julián Farina