Cocoon Ibiza 26th August Review

This date saw the return of a magical force to the Amnesia Terrace. Almost five years ago, two of the most leading names in the underground world of techno, Ricardo Villalobos and Luciano, had taken the Terrace by storm to close the 2008 Cocoon season with a very special back to back that has since gone down in the history of recorded live sets as a favourite for many. The long awaited return of the two Chileans as a duo to the club, along with a burning love from many a fan, meant for a huge buzz of excitement in anticipation of what was sure to be an amazing night.

The main room was much the same in terms of talent for those inclined to the harder side of techno, dominated by titans in the game Chris Liebing and Ben Klock. Our tastes however, were matched perfectly to the Cocoon/Cadenza cross-over in the Terrace, and that is where we would find ourselves rooted to the spot for the duration of the night.

We arrived to find Felipe Venezuela deep into an energetic warm-up of Latin infused tech house that had bodies grooving within an instant. Positioning ourselves beneath the naturalistic drapes of large colourful leaves that looked like they had been plucked straight out of an enchanted forest, we set about taking in the pleasant, melodic tunes. Our eyes were focused on the iconic DJ booth at the front of the Terrace and we patiently began to await the arrival of the two stars of the show.

It wasn't long before Villalobos and Luciano appeared and embraced as they prepared for their mammoth six hour set that was to follow. Venezuela then graciously finished a greatly appreciated performance with thanks from the two headliners for a great warm up. And then it began.

Vinyl at the ready, Villalobos wasted no time following on with just as much energy as Venezuela setting the pace for that of the back to back. Luciano was just as enthusiastic as his partner to get the party going in full swing from the off, and as the pair set about constructing their masterpiece the chemistry between them immediately had the hairs on the back of everybody's necks standing sharply with excitement.

It was a pleasure to see Luciano back on vinyl, as he and Villalobos dug deep into their collections weaving a carefully crafted mix of beautiful and powerful Chilean flavours. The organic sounds of a range of instruments tickled our senses, a stand out track coming from Luciano that was laced with a melodic flute solo that had hands dancing around high in the air. Their signature sound of clever mixing was apparent as they both teased in each other’s tracks way before they planned to actually mix them through, this ear for working the tunes together in such a way made the crowd love it all even more.

What followed were more powerful synths and bass and classic house and techno favourites such as Cevin Fisher's 'Freaks Come Out'.  There was a constant procession of tracks made up of huge, euphoric build-ups that almost caused the room itself to expand, complete with trippy, chopped up acapellas from the likes of Bryan Cox's 'Her Face'. This combination of amazing music with the usual impressive production of Cocoon's new raw image of nature and a range of sharp lighting, made up of ambient colours meant for an all-out sense-heightening experience that you would struggle to find anywhere else; Luciano and Villalobos were finally back together in the place that they do it best and this was clear from the feelings that they created across the sensational six hours.

Wrapping up at around 9:30am with a slow, mystical track that really was music to everyone's ears in the still heavily populated terrace, the crowd clapped and cheered Villalobos and Luciano out of the DJ booth as the set came to a close, and stood slightly paralysed in amazement as to what we had all just witnessed. Slowly we pulled ourselves together, vacating the club in unison as a group of the happiest people on Earth.