With our Warrior bands tightly wrapped and our fists clenched tight to pump the air relentlessly, we were more than ready to sweat and get down with the best of them to Steve Lawler and Hot Since 82 at Sankeys Ibiza.
Strongly recognised as the flagship event on the Sankeys Ibiza weekly schedule, Warriors has been a popular mainstay on Sundays for David Vincent’s underground treasure since 2012. For the past half-a-decade, Ibiza virgins and veterans alike have ascended to the dark and gloomy depths of this Bossa favourite to satisfy their weekly appetite for the pulsating tech-house grooves supplied by VIVa MUSiC head-honcho, Steve Lawler, and company.
Sankeys Ibiza originally started life out in one of Britain’s most sacred clubbing havens in the city of Manchester. Following its impressive run of success on the British clubbing scene, Sankeys Ibiza expanded its horizon to the party capital back in 2011. Situating their clubbing fortunes near Hotel Garbi over in Playa D’En Bossa, David Vincent has managed to establish his creation into a local rave essential on the White Isle.
Facilitating a capacity of up to 1,500 revellers, Sankeys Ibiza comes complete with three rooms all offering different yet equally thrilling clubbing experiences. The lower-ceiling Basement Room is considered to be the core element and very heartbeat of this Manchester original ticking all boxes of intimacy and unity. Next door is the LAB which provides an opportunity for artists to play their peak-time bangers whilst the smaller rooms such as the Spektrum and the Boutique ensured a chance to scout new sounds in the forms of rising names on the circuit.
As expected, tech-house enthusiasts had showed up in strong numbers jam-packing the dance floors, the rafters and even the cinema upstairs to the brim. Preparing ourselves for the onslaught of the Warriors’ signature wave of intense punchy percussions and consistent rolling bass-lines, we decided to reminisce with the unique surroundings of the Rooftop Terrace. Alternative and unorthodox, the graffiti on the walls and mysterious ambient of the cinema reminded us of memories of old right back to when we first stepped foot into Sankeys Ibiza.
Determined to jump and jive to as much of the talent on the billing as possible, we first made camp at the front of the Basement getting up close and personal with Lost Records duo, Leftwing & Kody. Real names Jon Kong and Chris Adie, this delightful and diligent pairing went on to show the early arrivals exactly why they are two of the UK’s finest exports to date. Igniting a rally of ferocious fist-pumps from the front to the back, Leftwing & Kody exploded into action with their high-octane musical aesthetic displaying no symptoms of resting on their laurels whatsoever.
Underlining their authority and command over the entire Basement, Leftwing & Kody treated the crowd to a fuelling dance floor workout with the title track from their latest EP, “Sub Syndrome”, employing an array of vacillating sub hits, shuffled rhythms and spacious synth fillers. Further cementing themselves as a driving force in the contemporary house music movement, they later followed up with a fusing together of mind-bending arpeggios, explorative synth stabs and mesmerising vocals.
Not long after 2am, demand increased for the LAB – a last minute change to the advertised billing saw Basement ruler, Steve Lawler, and Knee Deep In Sound boss, Hot Since 82, moved from the Basement to the LAB. With manoeuvrability near impossible in the LAB and sweat levels at an all-time high, life inside Sankeys Ibiza was arguably the busiest it had been all season.
Having recently posted on social media that “knowledge is power”, Steve Lawler wasn’t far wrong as he utilised his years and years of wisdom behind the decks to educate those swamped inside the LAB with lessons of everything house, techno and electronica. This was complimented with Daley Padley’s eclectic tech-house selections refusing to stay limited to any boundaries at all. Mirroring his spectacular performance at the Ushuaia Ibiza opening party, Lawler and Padley worked in OC & Verde’s “Maasai” prompting a hypnotising encore leaving the crowd lost for words.
Continuing to propel through the climatic gears both technically and creatively, Steve Lawler and Hot Since 82 were dynamic, driven and obsessed with perfecting the ultimate atmosphere inside of this legendary Bossa institution. Excellent in their execution and unparalleled in their performance, their inclusions of Hot Since 82’s latest release, “Yourself”, and “That’s It” by Adrian Hour had the Sankeys faithful up in arms and driven by pure emotion. This back-to-back deliverance was everything as advertised – exhilarating, exemplary and exquisite all-round.
Closing our opening Warriors encounter of the season was former two-thirds of the popular back-to-back-to-back Sunday takeover team of Do Not Sleep from last summer, Sante and Sidney Charles. Sparking a fire inside the hearts of the die-hard Warriors determined to stock up the Basement until doors closed, Sante and Sidney Charles let rip with some floor fillers which oozed charisma, character, colour and humanity defining their sound from the less inspiring corners of the house agenda.
Accompanied with a remarkable chemistry, their positive vibes rubbed off on everyone stood before them and a tidal wave of energy bounced in all directions around the Basement. Not to be outshone by the headliners in the LAB, the German pairing ushered in Sante’s latest Avotre release “Italian Heat” featuring both Flashmob and Alex Neri as well as another Avotre special from Sidney called “On The Record”.
Steering clear of commercial loops and staying loyal to its underground roots, the dark underground basement of Sankeys Ibiza served up a dish of intimacy and ear-drum electricity of the finest degree ensuring our Warriors bands were now tied around our heads tighter than ever before – once a Warrior, always a Warrior.
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