Playa Den Bossa's Ushuaia club is celebrated as one of Ibiza's most acclaimed day- and nightspots, thanks in part to its mixture of South Beach chic (beachside location, canopied day beds, a sushi bar) and White Isle hedonism. Now it joins the ranks of iconic clubs like Studio 54 and Berghain, earning its own recorded homage courtesy of Frankfurt duo Motorcitysoul.
By my count, theirs is actually at least the fourth ode to Ushuaia this year, but they win points for comprehensiveness, dividing their portrait into day and night versions. "Ushuaia Day" is the more satisfying of the pair, albeit for reasons hard to pinpoint; the central chord change translates a kind of blissful ambivalence, rising and falling against a simple, contrapuntal bassline in a way that mirrors your own mood, coming off either upbeat or downcast depending upon the circumstances. The rhythm, lightly stomping and shaker heavy, is simple but effective, lying back and staying out of the way of restrained synthesizer modulations. It's a clean, focused track that knows exactly where it's going and never overreaches.
"Ushuaia Night" follows a similar pattern, but it somehow fails to make the same impact, even though it's (marginally) the tougher of the two tracks, with sharper, metallic percussion and glassy 16th-note pings. Maybe it's the monotone structure, with a single, dogged bassline and a single, unchanging augmented chord. The texture of that chord, at least, is delicious, with a fluctuating tremolo that brings it to life.
Deetron's remix—it's unclear whether it's of one of the versions, or a composite of parts of both—stays true to Motorcitysoul's aesthetic, with surging chords and no-frills drum programming, but it pushes the adrenaline level twice as far. The groove is tougher, full of rattling snares and white-hot cymbals, and the bassline is almost anthemic in its proportions, closer in spirit to London than the Continent. Tightly looped chord samples and suggestive hints of human voice only serve to push things over the top. The most urgent of the three tracks here, it makes a fitting complement to Motorcitysoul's laid-back originals, counterbalancing their chilled composure with an end-of-night, all-out spirit. Whether Deetron's interpretation reflects Ushuaia's evolving spirit, we won't know until next summer, when a luxury hotel opens on the site.
By my count, theirs is actually at least the fourth ode to Ushuaia this year, but they win points for comprehensiveness, dividing their portrait into day and night versions. "Ushuaia Day" is the more satisfying of the pair, albeit for reasons hard to pinpoint; the central chord change translates a kind of blissful ambivalence, rising and falling against a simple, contrapuntal bassline in a way that mirrors your own mood, coming off either upbeat or downcast depending upon the circumstances. The rhythm, lightly stomping and shaker heavy, is simple but effective, lying back and staying out of the way of restrained synthesizer modulations. It's a clean, focused track that knows exactly where it's going and never overreaches.
"Ushuaia Night" follows a similar pattern, but it somehow fails to make the same impact, even though it's (marginally) the tougher of the two tracks, with sharper, metallic percussion and glassy 16th-note pings. Maybe it's the monotone structure, with a single, dogged bassline and a single, unchanging augmented chord. The texture of that chord, at least, is delicious, with a fluctuating tremolo that brings it to life.
Deetron's remix—it's unclear whether it's of one of the versions, or a composite of parts of both—stays true to Motorcitysoul's aesthetic, with surging chords and no-frills drum programming, but it pushes the adrenaline level twice as far. The groove is tougher, full of rattling snares and white-hot cymbals, and the bassline is almost anthemic in its proportions, closer in spirit to London than the Continent. Tightly looped chord samples and suggestive hints of human voice only serve to push things over the top. The most urgent of the three tracks here, it makes a fitting complement to Motorcitysoul's laid-back originals, counterbalancing their chilled composure with an end-of-night, all-out spirit. Whether Deetron's interpretation reflects Ushuaia's evolving spirit, we won't know until next summer, when a luxury hotel opens on the site.
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Published /
Fri / 26 Nov 2010 -
Words /
Philip Sherburne -
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Tracklist /
A1 Ushuaia Day
A2 Ushuaia Night
B1 Ushuaia (Deetron Remix)
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