It was the party that fellow electrohead Steve Aoki attended before his Pacha slot so if it was worth taking him away from his cake-throwing antics then it was obviously a big one.
EDM's Batman and Robin took to Playa d'en Bossa's lavish al fresco stage for one final time this season to deliver an electric and acidic spectacle with all the trimmings that was a treat for not only for the ears, but the eyes and dancing feet too (oh and of course the pumping fists!). As the Balearic sun sunk from the sky, Axwell and Ingrosso's signature shooting laser lights, fireworks, flames and Ushuaïa's big bad ice cannon were all there to see them off and make sure the grand finale was as extravagant and unmissable as the opening which graced the island only a cluster of Wednesdays ago. With only eleven chances to catch them this season, the twosome had more time to deliver quality over quantity and I can vouch that their consistency over the summer has been very strong indeed.
The two-thirds of Swedish House Mafia proved once again that they are professionals at taking the clubbers on a journey through their sets with more pops and drops and dips and trips than Blackpool's Pepsi Max. The fresh and funky Axwell remix of Tokoyo By Night (original by Hook N Sling feat. Karin Park) accelerated the energy in the atmosphere as the beats built to a climax. The dynamic duo then effortlessly slipped in to Unbreakable by Dirty South feat. Sam Martin, giving the revellers a chance to catch their breath before the hard hitting bassline of Sandro Silva and Arston's Symphony sliced through the open air, enlivening the crowd once more.
With the power-driven, energy-fuelled sounds growing thicker as we crept closer to the final hour of the show, the pair was full of praises for the party-goers as they showed gratitude to the crowd for their support throughout the season. “We got so many beautiful people here tonight,” the Swedes gushed, “Thank you for being our friends.” Oh stop, you're making us blush.
Departures is no stranger to nymph-like gymnasts that writhe on tightropes and contour their bodies in to weird and wonderful positions, but for the summer's ultimate show the stops were pulled out. Rising from the right side of the venue, a mammoth hot air balloon carried a leotarded acrobat that rolled, rotated and revolved above the heads of the awe-struck ravers to the tune of Swedish House Mafia's Greyhound.
As the phrase goes, ‘If it Ain't broke, don't Fix it' and the couple played many chart-toppers that I heard at their Opening Party a few months back (how time does fly!) including Armin Van Buuren's This Is What It Feels Like and their own smash hits In My Mind, Reload and Save The World Tonight which they remixed in to Daft Punk's One More Time. This was another tune they had treated us to back in June but it had a lot more significance this time around as they took to the mic to say “We hope to see you next summer!”
Even so, the goose bumps I felt several weeks ago when they finished their opening show with the EDM classic Don't You Worry Child reappeared but I was impressed to hear they'd chosen a different closing track for the big send off. Too many DJs (not mentioning any names) I've been unimpressed with after hearing them dish out the same sets over and over again; I was glad that the two Swedes had managed to balance out playing enough of the holiday-makers favourites with new tunes to keep their mixes fresh. And if you are curious to know which hit they picked for the final song of their final show it was the double's smash Sun Is Shinning.
And so Ushuaïa waves adios amigos to the dynamic duo, but something tells me it's not a goodbye…more of a see you next year.
WORDS | Francesca Evans PHOTOGRAPHY | Ushuaïa
