#w.a.r!

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Brand new Jaguar Skills x Virus Syndicate Mixtape has landed!

Fresh from a blinding set this summer at W.A.R! x Bestival at Ibiza Rocks the genre defying musical ninja Jaguar Skills is back with a brand new mixtape feat. up and coming MC trio Virus Syndicate. This is Karateman.

Check it out!

Check out the Virus Syndicate Live Tour vid here

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Bugged Out Vs W.A.R!

By Abby (@dressupshowup)

We go to W.A.R! every Friday night but this Friday we witnessed some serious battles. The Bugged Out takeover saw Doorly and Artwork go head to head, Toddla T and Route 94 square up and, with no one left to defeat, Redlight take a clear road to victory, forcing only the crowd to surrender to his body-grooving beats. 

It was a night destined for raving and misbehaving; when two DJs are competing for the phattest tune of the night, you know they’re going to bring out the big guns. Doorly and Artwork didn’t disappoint, throwing monster tune after tune at each other, resulting in some pretty special shapes being thrown on the dance floor and some pretty heavy bass-loaded tracks make early appearances. And while things were tense (in a friendly sort of way) in the DJ box, all was calm on the ground, with everyone well and truly lost in the moment and buzzing off the good vibes.

Round two saw Toddla T and Route 94 battle it out for top dog; with smatterings of future garage, their sets whipped the crowd into a frenzy of skanking, hip-shaking and bona fide elation. Garage-infused acid stabs punctuated their selection of vocal-tastic tunes, and while there was no clear winner, extra points undoubtedly went to Toddla T for calling on the crowd to ‘get shuffling’ – which we should all know by now as a staple of all great nights.

Having a guaranteed knockout didn’t lessen Redlight’s desire to impress. He went down a surprisingly mellow route to begin with, starting his set with the brilliant but melancholy ‘Summertime Sadness’, but it wasn’t long before things got predictably heavier and people were bouncing off the walls. The place went berserk for ‘Let’s Jack’, which must surely have been anointed the tune of the summer by now, and ‘Lost In Your Love’, a Redlight classic that’s guaranteed to get people’s hands in the air. By the end of the night everyone had re-joined Redlight on stage and it became less of a battle and more of an on stage party. Friday 13th fear? Not likely. It went off! 

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All Aboard HMS Bestival!

By Abby (@dressupshowup)

With the Rocks stage decked out with inflatables and bunting, it can only have meant one thing – the HMS Bestival was in town. On the agenda was fancy dress, props and an easy-going, be-ready-for-anything festival vibe (without the mud).

Rob Da Bank lets his music do the talking. The man at the helm of Bestival knows a thing or two about how to get a crowd going, and he used that to his advantage last night, spinning a set of eclectic tunes that defied musical boundaries – from rock’n’roll to garage to jungle – he covered all bases and had the crowd happily swaying along for the duration.

Shy FX came on stage and, expectedly, cranked things up a notch. He lulled everyone into a false sense of ease by initially coming out on a reggae tip, but it wasn’t long before he could resist a big, pumping tune. Ms Dynamite, Gyptian and a relentless ambush of d’n’b classics made up his set – by the time he left the stage the crowd had been whipped into a skanking, sweaty frenzy. Hair was stuck to faces and feet were moving of their own accord – they were ready for more.

Then it was time for the mixing maestro that is Jaguar Skills to take control. The genre-busting masked master took the crowd on a journey through music, from 90s house classics to garage to current classics-in-the-making, with one theme being concurrent throughout – these tunes were designed to make you dance. He mercilessly bombarded the crowd, allowing just enough time to get them jumping around like maniacs before switching it up for the next track. It was a night of frenzied, unstoppable fun that left you wishing there was more diversity like this on offer in Ibiza. All aboard the HMS Bestival! Let’s never get off.

[sonicshocks]

IBIZA ROCKS ON IN AUGUST

It's a Rocks' début for AlunaGeorge who have exploded onto the scene and featured on one of the biggest tracks of the year ‘White Noise’ with Disclosure. Nominated for the BRITs Critics Choice Award and BBC’s Sound of 2013 and with début album ‘Body Music’ out in July, this will be one seriously hot summer set.

As for Example, we can’t get enough of him at Ibiza Rocks this year, and he’s back on Aug 14th as part of his summer residency at the IR Hotel. Here’s what he has to say on the matter: ‘Whether it’s my live show or the We Are Rockstars crowds, the hotel is always packed and the atmosphere is incredible. Honestly, playing the Ibiza Rocks Hotel - it feels like home for the summer. With support from acclaimed DJ/Producer Redlight bringing his live show to the island for the first time this is going to be one serious scorcher of a show.

  Another début in the form of Ellie Goulding on 21 Aug. Undoubtedly one of the UK’s most singular and compelling songwriters, in the two-and-a-half years since releasing massive début album Lights, Ellie has secured huge global success including the USA where she’s sold over 3M albums.  Back with new album Halcyon and lead single, Anything Could Happen, Ellie shows a new immersion in Electronica and dance beats, producing a fascinating collision between the clubbing scene and Ellie’s love of folk-pop soundscapes. Undoubtedly one of the world’s most successful female solo stars right now, we can’t wait for her to take centre stage at Ibiza Rocks.

  It’s been almost 10 years since Dizzee released his début single and Rocks is proud to have been on an incredible journey with the East London MC turned worldwide legend who has just been chosen by Muse to appear as a special guest on their UK Stadium tour.  Having first headlined Ibiza Rocks in 2008, Dizzee’s love affair with Ibiza began and headline gigs followed in 2009, 2010 and 2011. Dizzee will once again bring his genre-fusing musical genius to the famous open-air Rocks stage with a full new live show. Ibiza Rocks is delighted to bring our boy back to his home from home.

WE ARE ROCKSTARS!

FRIDAYS @ IBIZA ROCKS HOTEL

  Apart from Ibiza Rocks’ signature Wednesday night, Fridays at the Hotel have also taken on a life of their own, with a line up of the best in new talent taking to the stage week in, week out…

This is W.A.R!

Throughout the month of August, it’s a veritable starfest round at W.A.R with the likes of our Doorly, Rudimental, Mele and even Luther star Idris Elba amongst the DJs behind the decks. And that’s before we even mention that the HMS Bestival is due to anchor on our stage on 16 Aug, bringing with them a hearty crew of Jaguar Skills and Rob Da Bank.

Finally, don’t miss this Friday at We Are Rockstars, when Rinse FM are taking over with a live show from Katy B, P Money, Zinc and Idris Elba. HUGE!

    The Dates:

Ibiza Rocks with AlunaGeorge / London Grammar, 7 August 2013

W.A.R! x Rinse FM with Katy B / P Money / Zinc, 9 August 2013

Ibiza Rocks with Example LIVE / Redlight, 14 August 2013

W.A.R! x HMS Bestival with Rob Da Bank / Jaguar Skills / Shy FX, 16 August 2013

Ibiza Rocks with Ellie Goulding / Clean Bandit, 21 August 2013

W.A.R! with Example & DJ Wire / Mele / Idris Elba / Doorly / Mediate, 23 August 2013

Ibiza Rocks with Dizzee Rascal / The Toddla T Sound, 28 August 2013

W.A.R! x Black Butter Records with Rudimental (DJ Set) / Gorgon City feat. Yasmin / Scrufizzer, 30 August 2013

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Interview: Ibiza Rocks with Mak and Pasteman

By Abby (@dressupshowup)

Bass-loving due Mak and Pasteman last night returned to Ibiza Rocks for the first time in 2013, supporting Example in the second week of his residency. With a longstanding run at W.A.R! last year, these guys know exactly what to expect from a pumped up, expectant crowd of Ibiza lovers. We caught up with them after their set…

You played a lot at W.A.R! last year, how does it feel to be back?

It feels good! It’s like being home. It’s great to see the team and to catch up with everyone.

You played at the boat party with Doorly this afternoon too, how was that?

We drank, got sunburnt, played a bit of reggae. It was good fun.

You can’t beat a bit of reggae in the sun! You finished your set tonight with Dawn Penn’s ‘No, No, No’, what made you choose that track?

Mak: We just thought we’d switch it up a bit and play something summery. I like a lot of Dawn Penn tracks actually, but everyone knows ‘No, No, No’.

It’s a definite crowd favourite. What do you think is the difference between an Ibiza and a UK crowd?

Mak: I think you play to the crowd more in Ibiza; you give them what they want. Our sound is quite new here really; it’s only in the last few years that bass has started to breakthrough. Ibiza’s opening up to new styles of music now, it’s exciting to be at the forefront of it. 

What act on this year’s Ibiza Rocks line up would you most like to see?

Mak: Chic. That’ll be a good night.

What’s been your most memorable gig?

Mak: Here last year after Skream and Benga played. It was Pasteman’s birthday and we ended up at Pikes.

Are you going to stay in Ibiza for a holiday?

Mak: Yeah I’m here for a week, I’m sticking around for Beady Eye on Wednesday.

Pasteman: I’m here for a couple of days but then I’m heading back to the studio.

And what other plans do you have for the summer?

Mak: Over the next few weeks we’re playing at Boomtown in Hampshire, Fabric in London, and we’re off to Germany.

What music have you got out at the moment?

Mak: We’ve released an EP called ‘Dither’ on Redlight’s label, and we’ve just done a Whitney Houston bootleg on vinyl called ‘It Ain’t Right’. We played that in our set tonight.

And finally, what’s your Ibiza survival tip?

Mak: Drink lots of water, eat well, and make sure you get at least four hours sleep each night.

Mak and Pasteman will be back at W.A.R! on 2 August.

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Ms Dynamite Returns to the Rocks Stage

This week Ms Dynamite returns to the Ibiza Rocks stage for an action-packed Rinse FM x W.A.R! takeover, so here at Rocks HQ we’ve dug around the photo archives at to celebrate her finest moments performing live under the Balearic stars.

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What to expect from Oneman at W.A.R!

For a DJ with a ‘One’ in his name, Oneman actually keeps some pretty good company. He can easily be caught going B2B with Jackmaster, balancing the latter’s love of disco and Whitney Houston with his own taste for house and hip hop flavours. Think a well-timed delivery of The Streets or a Destiny’s Child remix. It’s not just classic tracks; his finger is on the beat when it comes to producing and playing fresh sounds too. Oneman is often hailed as a DJ’s DJ, one that creates no fuss whilst blending seamlessly between genres to capture the mood of a dance floor – exactly what we like when we go to W.A.R! in Ibiza.

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Rocks Blog: Rinse FM x W.A.R! with TNGHT

By Abby (@dressupshowup)

Rinse FM TOOK OVER at W.A.R! last night. With a line up of super producers to rival the invite list for Nile Rodgers’ birthday party, it was inevitable we’d end up swaying our socks off.

Resident Rocks DJ Doorly got things going in his inimitable style, spoiling us with an array of 90s old school classics. Following him was Jacques Greene who, with his fusion of sounds, had the crowd guessing at every turn. From bass to house to breakbeat, there was a surprise around every corner. 

And taking on the headliner spot were TNGHT, who gave a masterclass in how to build suspense. From the second they came on stage the crowd were on the edge of their seat, unsure of what was coming next from the distinctive-sounding duo. The lights, the tunes and the atmosphere made you feel like you were living in a dark graphic novel. All that tension had to go somewhere, so when beach balls were launched from the stage the crowd erupted. Take note and learn, this is how you put on a show.