Review: Carl Cox went b2b with The Martinez Brothers at an open air in Ibiza and it was brilliant

“For the Space in the Park events we’ll be recreating the different moods we all loved in Space,” Eóin continues. “The Main Stage here at Benimussa will be renamed the Discoteca. The Living Room will become the Premier Etage. The Seal Pit will become the Sunset Terrace, that kind of thing. We are trying to push the opening times to earlier in the day. When we held the Carl Cox party at Benimussa last year we started at noon, which created a real festival vibe. But there are obviously legislative limits in place that we have to comply with. But if we get the go-ahead, the plan is to open a little earlier than the 5pm start time today.”

Joshua Greene and Jamie Mannion are performing in the Living Room. As the name suggests, it’s an intimate dancefloor fit for a maximum of 100 ravers. Everyone here seems to know each other. This is a bona-fide meeting place for local ravers, island regulars and industry types letting their hair down. Musically, the BPMs are slower, the 4/4 tone more sub than stomp.

Then, at 9:30pm, The Martinez Brothers take over the Main Stage. They quickly build a romping deep, techy groove. Then Carl Cox appears for a little back-to-back action. The BPMs increase, the sound verges on techno, before the three headliners take their foot off the metal and revert to showcasing the funkier side of tech-house.

So there you have it, the first Game Over gig of 2017 was fun, friendly and totally unpretentious. Musically, the party built exactly as it should and the sonic journey was maintained no matter what stage you happened to pass through. As for Benimussa Park, it really is Ibiza's answer to a small festival venue. No wonder so many of the island's top promoters are trying to figure out how to make it work.