Review: Pukka Up brings infectious energy to Eden

When it comes to sunset boat parties, Pukka Up has long been considered part of Balearic folklore. Fuelled by epic hands-in-the-air anthems, their infamous pink party boats have been setting sail from the San An Marina since 2003. Over the years, the world’s biggest boat party brand has also made a series of triumphant raids onto dry land, hosting exclusive events at Es Paradis and Privilege, in addition to dedicated room takeovers at Space for none other than Carl Cox.

This summer, to help celebrate its 15^th anniversary, Pukka Up has launched a brand new club night at Eden. The event has been getting plenty of rave reviews recently, both from Ibiza newbies and town workers alike. Which is why, on Saturday August 19, we ventured out to experience the hedonistic action for ourselves.

Entering the venue, it takes us less than five quick seconds to figure out why Pukka Up’s new nighttime party has been creating so many waves. Quite simply, Eden has never looked this bright, this vibrant. The dark, cavernous, open-plan dancehall has literally been transformed into a tropical wonderland thanks to a mad excess of visual candy. The Main Room is thoroughly besieged from floor to ceiling with creeping vines, flamingos, huge Amazonian flowers, pineapples, coconuts and herds of illuminated elephants.

Musically, the deal here at Eden is vocal house all the way, with the occasional deep house interlude. Up in the booth, French DJ Joachim Garraud drops ‘Cola’ by Camelphat & Elderbrook, before Swedish producer Sten Hallström, better known to the world as Stonebridge, reverts back to a more accessible house sound – think the bubbly, carnival-sized beats of Leandro Da Silva’s ‘Caipirinha’.

Clearly, this is Pukka Up in post-midnight mode. The commercial hits that work so well out on the water prior to sunset replaced by more refined club sounds designed to suit an afterdark audience, the tenor not dissimilar to the uplifting sound we’ve heard broadcasting at My House at Pacha this season.

Later in the night we catch up with Pukka Up director Joshua Makinson. “Sometimes the island and even a lot of the music here can get a little serious,” Makinson explains. “I think the key thing with us is that we’ve tried very hard to keep the visuals uplifting and the music vocal. The bright colourful flowers, the elephants, it all fits into that theme. It’s just fun. I think that’s why the reaction has been so good. No one has ever see Eden like this before. Even some of the workers out here who are really into their tech come down week on week just to have a dance. At the end of the day, when people see the night for themselves, they’ll understand just how hard we’ve worked over the winter to make this concept a reality – and I think that energy is really infectious.”

For tickets to Pukka Up events, head to the official website here