Ten years at the top

Ten years at the top in Ibiza's cut-throat market takes some doing but Space's Sunday session We Love... - brainchild of Darren Hughes - celebrates a decade of marathon partying this year and shows no sign of slowing down. We got the lowdown on their anniversary plans from Darren's right-hand man and We Love... music programmer Mark Broadbent.

How much has We Love's... musical direction changed over the decade?
"There haven't really been any main changes in our direction as we've always strived to show what we believe is the cream of the crop. When we started in 1998 the classic big names of the day - Sasha, Lawler, Digweed - played either straight house or the more proggy sounds of the late-'90s.
"Now, it's everything from the Ed Banger crew - who are doing four monthly shows - or Felix Da Housecat to James Zabiela and Steve Lawler, who'll be returning as terrace resident for six shows."

What exclusives have you got lined up for this season?
"We're in the process of getting Jeff Mills and Carl Craig together for a July back-to-back set, which will be the first time they have ever done it before - anywhere.
"We also have a live date from Miss Kitten, which I believe will be an Ibiza first, A Trak is making his Ibiza debut for the first Ed Banger show, as well as exclusive residencies from Ben Watt, Paul Woolford, Felix Da Housecat, Alfredo and Smokin' Jo."

Laurent Garnier is also back at We Love... after a hiatus. What inspired his return?
"I saw Laurent play a few months back in Berlin and was straight on the case trying to book him so this is one I'm most excited about. He'll be headlining the terrace on XXX so expect the usual extended terrace set covering all genres of dance and beyond."

With Space's labyrinth now housing six rooms, We Love...'s programming seems to have opened up more and more over recent years with each event almost a mini-festival in its own right...
"Yeah, it's allowed us to be even more daring with our programming. It's great that you can dangle the carrot with a safe bet, give the punters what they know and love and then show them something they may not have heard before but will end up absolutely loving."

For many the focus will inevitably be the vast Discoteca and the world renowned Terrace. But what other areas would you urge people to explore?
"The new room that only a few lost souls found last year - the upstairs terrace of El Salon - will be taking things down a straight-up disco and mad cosmic boogie with DJs like Greg Wilson, PBR Streetgang and Ian Blevin.
"We've also brought Chew The Fat! back in the Red Room as they worked this room better than anyone else. The secret of their success was their residents Paul 'Trouble' Arnold, Jem Haynes and Kid Blue, who all played enough times to know how this room needs to be programmed with headline talent like Tayo, Soul of Man and Hybrid.