Midday. Is it too early for a gin & tonic? No? Must be time for a carnival! We arrived last night in Birmingham and settled in, for today we tackle the house and techno marathon. Would we last the epic 16 hours promised to us by the Cream Birmingham team?
Previous Cream Birmingham events have blown us away, so expectations were set high for this party.
3pm… We head on down, best foot forward and shorts adorned (we are choosing to fucking ignore the prevailing rainclouds and pray to little baby Jesus for some sun) to The Rainbow Warehouse for the 2014 Ibiza Carnival!
The Rainbow Venues are quite possibly one of the most amazing spaces in the UK. Born from a single pub, the venue spreads far and wide, encompassing a Courtyard, a Cellar, a Garden, a Mezzanine, a Warehouse; along with sister spaces, Next Door, Textile Factory and Spotlight and lets not forget The Arena. Quite simply, the conglomerate of spaces is a house music heaven, a prodigious maze of concrete, steel and glass that submits itself to the very nature of each event. The Pub offers the intimacy to hold open mike or alternative events, the Cellar is a techno dream with its brickwork décor and low ceilings, The Arena is a sight to behold, host to industry giants such as Mixmag, Circoloco and Annie Mac. The Warehouse is an assault on the senses, from its breath-taking effects, to the Funktion-1 stacked speaker system, it is a clubbing space guaranteed to please. When WeLoveDJs heard of the move back to this venue, we squeaked with joy! So, let’s begin.
Steve Young was opening for the Mambo room and the early faithful. The crystal clear F-1 stacks and the dramatic affect of the garden ensured that the early birds were treated to a glimpse of the madness that was to come. The soundtrack included Second City’s – What Can I do. Listening to the music playing out on the open-aired Mezzanine, eyes closed, you were sat on the weather beaten bleachers of the Mambo terrace. Bliss. Ricochet Musica followed and kept the Balearic vibe flowing as the room filled and the Mezzanine reverberated to the music below.
18:00 – Jason Bye. The Mambo resident took the decks to remind us why the likes of Manumission, Space and Amnesia command the attention of this UK born DJ and why Mambo have him in permanence residence at the Ibiza bunker. With tracks including: New Day by DL Feta. Elleah and I got U by Duke Dumot, Jason treated us to a blinder of a set that set the tone for the night. WeLovedIt.
20:00 – Cream Birmingham resident Mike Catherall opened the Warehouse to an anticipating crowd; his energetic mixing and performance, soon had the concrete silo rocking to the thundering classics we know and love. Soon, joined by Cream Birmingham head honcho, ‘The Greek’, George Kafetzis, the pair was up to their normal back2back tricks and the crowd grew and grew!!! Fierce, thumping, vocal and unexpected tracks, commanded this impressive warehouse and drew many-a-smile, on many-a-face!
21:00 – A quick dash over to the Mambo room, just in time to catch the original Ibiza naughty boys, Alex P & Brandon Block! Whether it’s their legacy of being the founders of the Space Terrace, or simply the undiluted dynamism between the pair, there is something about seeing these pair that commands attention. Sheer ecstasy, exhilaration and joy could be felt. As each track ricocheted into the next, the dynamic duos were fist pumping and whipping the crowd up for more. Easily one of the best sets of the night, simply amazing, the boys are a staple at Cream Birmingham, and it is ‘brick-to-the-face’ obvious why. Well Done Lads.
22:30 – George Kafetzis. The man behind the madness, the puppeteer and circus master of this night is in session, WeJoin as he is cutting his way through classic tracks with his trademark I have a dream. The crowd take the bait and as the Co2 cannons inject the crowd with an icy blast direct from Amnesia, they drop and bounce to Sasha’s Xpander. It’s hard to stand and observe a party when the music and atmosphere is this electric; We forgot to pay attention for a while and simply danced…. THEN THIS HAPPENED…
ANGI BROWN – the Diva herself graced the stage to perform alongside Kafetzis, her infectious performance style delivering her back catalogue as only she knows how. Playing With Knives obviously being her crescendo, her performance took the room to the next level and fired up an already excited crowd.
23:00 –Rue Jay. Taking hold of the decks after Kafetzis was Birmingham’s own DJ Rue Jay. The last few Cream Birmingham events have included this ‘Brum’ favourite on the line-up, and he is yet to disappoint. Rue’s track selection and mixing ability is impeccable. The atmosphere was electric, the stairs, mezzanine, the dance floor, the dancers, and the cannons; the entertainers, all transfixed on this set. Ibiza had arrived. It was here.
23:30 – We managed to catch the end of local boys’ Smak Pony set, thank God we did. The room was literally jumping and we witnessed the start of the harder side of Ibiza. Tech was creeping in and WeLoved it! The deep rolling beats and stuttering drops left the fist pumping faithful begging for more.
00:00 – Full Intention. The duo treated us to some Ibiza classics as well some of their remixes including Soul Power & Demark’s America. The set was amazing, each track held the crowd and kept court and built on and on. We would have loved to hear more of their earlier remixes, however we were not disappointed. They were hotly followed by:
01:30 –Shape Shifters vs 01:30 – Pirupa . NOW. Please forgive us! When 2 sets are this God-damn-good, it’s hard to know where to drop a foot!! As the Ibiza Carnival met fever pitch, both rooms were assaulted by phenomenal sets. In Cream, the ‘shifters’ were belting out hit after hit and cumulated with a rapturous applause their timeless “Lola’s theme”. Pirupa however, was dropping the likes of “Cheget” by Ross Evans & “Sjalfur” by Frankie Watch. The result: mesmerising. WeLoveDJs have been a fan of both for a long time and neither disappointed and judging by the crowd, they could not have asked for more. WeWould love to see Pirupa again when he has no other competition in a second room! Tantamount to the night, when the quality of DJ’s makes you eeek with excitement and pain for 2 rooms at once. The Cream Birmingham residents continued to play between sets, Phillip Tomaz (Silhouette) was key in ensuring the night ran smoothly, the crowd were treated to the amazing “jaZno” which is due to be released this week, which had the Sunset Terraza rocking and left the techno heads in the crowd begging for more!!!
04:30 – Alfredo. The man, the legend, Ibiza Guru, Mentor to many, arrived. The older members of the crowd knew what to expect and stood patient and expectantly, for the man who mentored Rampling, played at Ku and has been at Space since the beginning. A level of respect could be felt, as this man cued up his first track and dipped his peak-capped head. It was amusing to see the ‘shuffling-youth’ stand still and wonder what the fuck to do, as he dropped a remix of “River deep mountain high”, but when the beat kicked in and Alfredo chopped it down, it was damn fucking clear what to do. Dance. We have seen this guy flit from Dice’s Carthago , to Walk like an Egyptian by The Bangles. To see him play is an experience and truly amazing! He personifies Ibiza and was a perfect finish to an amazing night.
The Ibiza Carnival is more than a night out, it is a display of the music that has, does and will shape the clubs we dance in. What the team at Cream Birmingham did was to exhibit DJ’s past, present and future that respect and represent this concept. As the lyrics go: “no man owns house, because house music is a universal language, spoken and understood by all.” From the terrace, the Mambo room and the almighty Warehouse, the beach balls, the cannons, the CO2, the happy faces, the clapping, the roars, the encores, the PA, the DJ’s, the residents, this was and will be remembered as a Carnival; a Carnival of Colour, of Music, of Dance, of Happiness, of unity. A true Ibiza Carnival.