Preview: Cream 2011

It’s that time of year again, pencil the 16th June into your diary folks, because that is the day that Cream begins its 17th year of being at the forefront of dance music in Ibiza

Cream was one of the first British clubbing brands to hold regular parties on the island and has seen each season build on the successes of those gone by.

As is always important with clubbing events, the venue must suit the occasion. So, in this case there would be nowhere more suited than Amnesia. The club regularly wins awards for the good work they have done and continue to do so, and quite right too. Two rooms are on offer, with the main room typically catering for the Trance side of business, while the recently improved Terrace space looks after the electro and house music heads.

The Main Room, host to the famous giant ice cannon and Amnesia dancers is an entirely unique space, and perfect for those DJs who like their BPM slightly faster. The DJ sits high above the crowd, in great position to preach their musical message to the crowds below who often adorn the DJs with god-like status. This season you have the distinct pleasure of seeing Trance legend and all round nice guy, Paul Van Dyk, take up his residency playing a ridiculous 8 times. That’s 8 times you can expect to wet yourself with excitement mid-dance floor when the old Trance Classic ‘For An Angel’ get’s dropped. Well worth it.

However, and perhaps even more excitingly, Above & Beyond will dropping in to say hello and see how you are. And no less than 6 times. Oh Cream, you do spoil us..!

Joining these guys, will be a whole host of major headliners. From the man who likes to ‘Fire It Up’ at least once a week, Eddie Halliwell, you have a faithful, tried and tested resident with his finger on the pulse of all things Cream. Judging from past seasons he clearly feels at home at Cream Amnesia’s Main Room, but will also be mixing things up a little with a special EDIT show in the terrace.

You also have Dutch DJ giant and all round Trance fiend Sander Van Doorn playing 3 times over the course of the Summer, including the opening party on June 16th. You won’t want to miss that.

Cream has spent its more recent years championing the kings of dance music, people with names such as Calvin Harris, Laidback Luke, Chris Lake, Deadmau5 and Fake Blood all having the pleasure of controlling the ever impressive and recently improved Terrace. From what we have seen at the Amnesia opening party, the lighting and room layout has been tweaked to give an almost stadium like clubbing experience. Epic would probably be the word best used to describe it.

So, whether you like Trance or House music, the below set of parties, stretching a wonderful 15 Thursdays, should tick all of your boxes. It’s a cliché, we know, but you will be wanting to use those glow sticks, and to quote the excellent clubbing film Human Traffic, “what’s your name? Reach for the lasers. Safe as f*ck.” Indeed.