Solomun wanted to contribute further to the Ibiza music scene by bringing live sets to the luxurious Destino Resort for six dates through the summer, with his party Solomun + Live. The first one, which kicked off yesterday, came with a very special guest, Paul Kalkbrenner, echoing Solomun's choices and musical approach. The artist joined the Diynamic capo on the clam shell stage, filling the open air venue with melodic and sentimental deep house beats that went harder when the sky turned black. Live performance, Solomun's characteristic sounds and an amazing production added the final touch to this opening party which hosted a massive crowd dancing every track on the dancefloor as though there were no tomorrow. Quality music and good feelings everywhere.
Every time I see a live act where the artist extemporizes and creates music in real time, I have an enormous feeling inside myself halfway between admiration and excitement. Maybe because unfortunately we don't see live sets as much as I would like over here, or maybe because the idea and the philosophy hidden under a live performance is something we should give some credit. In any case, Solomun's proposal was acclaimed by the public at the very first moment he appeared on the stage to blow up the speakers. Energetic house and minimal beats mixed with melodic tracks and vocals composed the main ingredients of his happy first set of the night reading the crowd just right and keeping them guessing as usual. Tunes like Woods by &ME, A Long Story Short by Betoko or Black Night by Jonathann Cast were shaking the dancefloor which couldn't have look more enthusiastic while the sun was going down, surrounded by the amazing Destino stage production of colourful flashing lights, different shadows cast on a fake white roof and amazing dancers by the pool. The venue spoke for itself, proving why it's considered one of the most gorgeous Ibiza resorts (and the perfect place for an open-air party).
Hands clapping announced that the German producer, Paul Kalkbrenner, had taken over the decks. Cloud Rider, the debut single from his forthcoming album 7, was coming through the speakers and the packed dancefloor sang the lyrics pulling out all the stops. The one-and-a-half hour live set was incredible and the equipment he used was the envy of every producer: a Livid Block controller and a massive half-digital half-analogue turntable. After a few sound problems that were solved quickly, Kalkbrenner started his performance with homemade productions like Revolte from Berlin Calling, going for melodic tunes and progressive house beats. But the set got heavier after the first hour, roughing up the melodic sound with a dark and dirty electro push. So, by the time it was dark, the music had changed completely into a tech session, encouraging the people to dance, hands-up.
The Diynamic boss knew how to follow the musical line of his predecessor when the clock struck 10:30 and it was his turn to come back to the stage. Since the official opening party of Destino, I had never seen the venue as packed as last night. By the time Solomun started to play again, the place was completely full of people. His second appearance of the night was completely different to the first one, and on the whole nodded strongly to German electronic driving rhythms and catchy melodies that showcased Solomun's sound this season and turned the night into a tech-house party much enjoyed by the attendees. Familiar faces were in the crowd like the top EDM star Hardwell, who was among other artists who didn't want to miss the first Solomun Live event of the season. Long live this new project, which filled Destino Resort with good vibes, live music and a massive amount of guests.
WORDS | Natalia Gutiérrez PHOTOGRAPHY | TATIANA CHAUSOVSKY + JULIAN FARINA
