Richie Hawtin’s Ibiza residency is still in its infancy but three weeks in I think it’s fair to say it has captured the imagination of the island. Enter is the hottest ticket on the block, with up to an hour waiting time to get in, depending on how fashionable you want to be, the impact has been huge and it has been instantaneous. With kick ass line up’s, innovative installations and the now infamous Sake bar, Ibiza just can’t get enough. Unfortunately for us, out diary dictated the time we arrived at the venue, resulting in a 45 minute wait to get through the doors.
Richie Hawtin has always embraced new technology, ways of adding to his performance and giving his loyal followers something special every time, one of the reasons he is one of the world’s most popular DJs. The fact that there is a one hour wait to get into the club to see him is testament to that. Once inside, however, he surprises us once again. The Sunset Terrace has been turned into Enter.Interact, a giant interactive experience, with huge hanging fabric creating cubicles all around the room. Instructions to download the free ‘Smudge’ app to your smart phone enabling you to control the lighting and sound in the room from within these hanging cubicles by moving your hand across your phone screen! With a constant rumbling bassline and noises added by whoever happened to be online at any given time, it doesn’t make for a great room to get your dance on but it is fascinating nonetheless! Speaking on the use of new technology in his events Hawtin said, “As electronic music continues to develop around the world it becomes more important to invite people into its very core, where music, technology and ideas interplay to create unique and wonderful new worlds.”
ENTER represents Richie Hawtin’s first solo Ibiza residency and I think it’s fair to say that everything is going swimmingly so far. All the Space rooms have renamed for his Enter event, from Enter. In the main room to Enter.Kehakuma in the Terrace, it’s a whole new world. Enter.Sake not only provides an intimate space where many of the world’s biggest names will go back to their roots but it also offers Ibiza’s first Sake bar. It’s pretty obvious by now that Richie Hawtin takes entertaining his followers very seriously indeed and has thought of every last detail to make sure that they get the best out of their Enter experience. As well as being massive, the crowd is very cool, a real cosmopolitan mix from al over the world. This is a man with a true widespread appeal.
Tonight’s line up is typical of the 12 week run, with giants of the scene occupying every room; there are live appearances from Mathew Johnson and Guy Gerber, Francois K takes over Enter.Sake and the likes of Paco Osuna, Hobo, Nina Kraviz, Nick Curly, Edu Imberon, Hito and Alva Noto & Byetone all join Richiew Hawtin in delivering an electronic masterclass to the thousands who have turned up. It is a night to remember in more ways than one, Francois K is one of the few that can truly wear the legend mantle; DJ, remixer, producer, label owner, there’s not much that he hasn’t accomplished, inspiring numerous top class DJs and producers along the way. Nina Kraviz, Guy Gerber, Nick Curly and Mathew Johnson represent the exciting new wave of talent pushing the electronic scene forward and, of course, there’s the small matter of Richie Hawtin.
The main room is as busy as we can ever remember it, every now and then the question of Ibiza’s relevance pops up, I would direct anyone considering asking it to this moment in time, when a few thousand like minded people are crammed into one of the world’s finest rooms listening to a true artist deliver the latest in a long line of memorable performances. The atmosphere is beyond electric! There is no doubt that meticulous planning has gone into putting the Enter residency together, from the naming of the night and subsequent renaming of the rooms to the addition of the technological toys and, most importantly, the decision on the protagonists. As Richie Hawtin stands in the booth, hands in the air looking over a sea of smiling faces, accepting the adulation, it is all clearly worth it. Three of the twelve weeks have gone already, if you’re in Ibiza on a Thursday night, do yourself a favour, and ENTER.Space.