September in Ibiza means a lot of things, the temperature drops slightly and with it everyone seems to breath out, the madness of August is over and billboards start popping up around the island advertising the closing parties. Ibiza is slowing down and in the not too distant future another season will have passed. It’s not all doom and gloom however, September also means that Carl Cox returns to Playa d’en Bossa beach with a crate full of soul, funk and old school house, definitely something to be smiling about. Which is exactly what we are doing as we drive through Playa d’en Bossa, Sonica radio on, listening to Grandmaster Flash getting close to the edge and Igor, setting the scene for us with some cool interviews and chat in between classic cuts galore.
Sands overlooking Bossa is the location for this annual shindig and the cool beach bar/ restaurant is packed by the time we get there. Carl Cox has not long taken control of the DJ booth and is dropping nostalgic bombs right left and centre. Aly Us ‘Follow Me’ inspires a wave of approval from within the bar as the restaurant evolves into a space for dancing. Lunch has been served, bellies are full and it’s now time for the serious business of turning back the clock and getting our groove on. There’s a lot to be said for the daytime party, Ibiza stalwarts who wouldn’t have seen the light of day during their raving days now swap late night clubs for the beach, where the kids can enjoy the fun and the parents get to feel like teenagers again.
Meanwhile on the beach in front of Sands the crowd has grown considerably, news has traveled along Bossa beach and the dancing has almost reached the edge of the sea. The long percussive intro of the Buckethead’s ‘The Bomb’ is blasting across the sand and when it eventually kicks in the cheer can probably be heard in Formentera! Carl Cox has his house head on now and drops classics such as Adeva ‘Respect’, Sagat’s ‘Funk That’, the slightly toned down version of the original, it is a family affair after all, A Guy Called Gerald ‘Voodoo Ray’ brings back memories of the Hacienda, M People ‘Movin On Up’ and the FPI Project’s ‘All Over The World’ are only some of the personal highlights. And, judging by the volume both in and out of the bar, at the start of every new tune, the huge crowd loves the homage to house music.
Carl Cox’s Funk & Soul party is much more than a party on the beach, it’s an annual gathering that brings people together, maybe for the first time, since the season gathered pace and everyone became too busy. It’s a point in time that denotes months of hard work are almost behind us and now it’s our turn to party. The island comes out in force and lets it hair down. We heard on Sonica on our way down, Sonique even deliberately missed her flight so that she could make it to the beach to check out Carl’s journey back in time. It’s not often you get to check out one of the world’s finest DJ talents in such an intimate setting and everyone is making the most of it.
After a few hours of digging through the archives, Carl decides it’s time for him to enjoy himself for a bit and hands the control of the booth over to Antz. One of the most respected on-island DJs, I think it’s fair to say that Antz will have a bit of a back catalogue, having been playing house music for thirty years. Who better to take up the reigns and continue a look back into some of the most seminal tunes of the last couple of decades? Sands got an extended license at the start of the season so the party is not stopping anytime soon!
