Last night saw one of the first official pre-parties the renowned Cafe Del Mar is due to host, welcoming Marco Carola to the sunset strip.
We all already know that Carola is a machine. We’ve seen (or heard tales of) him playing all night long just a few weeks back, which you can read about here, but this time he was starting the party early, treating everyone on the west of the island to a Balearic infusion of delicious boppy tracks, with muffled hi-hats and subtle but just as sweet drops. It seemed the prerequisite for the event was a strawberry mojito as the crowd, which was pleasantly very local-heavy, were all slurping away on them. The air was buzzing with energy, anticipation of the night to come and the sweet smell of shisha.
The bar was designed by the Catalan architect Lluis Géell and modelled to look like a yacht, and the decking shook underneath everyone’s stamping feet. With its covered roof but open plan design, and breeze drifting through from the sea, there was an element of Amnesia Terrace at dawn, a united atmosphere throughout the crowd rather like when only the dedicated few are left at the end of the night.
Carola kept a poker face most of the way through, occasionally smiling to the crowd as they cheered and he took the bass to a heavier level. The beginning of his set contained more vocals and more chilled sounds, similar to the tracks on his Play It Loud album, but as the evening went on his sound shifted to a heavier, more melodic sound with a Maceo Plex-inspired vibe, a sound I love but have never really heard at Music On.
It looks like these pre-parties are a fantastic addition to the scene in San Antonio, and are a great way of getting everyone really geared up for the epic nights ahead.
