The first Xbox Weekender will take place at Ibiza Rocks Hotel from July 18th-20th, and will see The Whip, taking centre stage on the Saturday night.

Supporting The Whip includes OK Tokyo, Esser, Filthy Dukes and the Discolexia Crew.

The September Xbox Weekender, taking place from 12th - 14th has rockers Mystery Jets headlining who supported The Wombats here on Tuesday.

Inside Ibiza Rocks Hotel, guests can enjoy the ‘Xbox Social’, the perfect place to experience the latest games, music and movies available on Xbox 360, complete with comfy couches and quirky extras. Throughout the hotel, Xbox 360 kiosks are on hand to play all the latest games, and for those who can’t make it out of their rooms after a particularly heavy night’s clubbing, there is also a concierge service available where the Xbox team will set up consoles and games in people’s rooms completely free.

July’s edition of Ibiza NOW magazine went to the printers yesterday so here’s a sneak preview of the cover:

This editionis now 116 pages with 12 pages on Ibiza beaches and beach restaurants, we got 8 pages of music reports including the International Music Summit, Space opening weekend, Pete Tong at Eden, Ibiza Rocks Hotel opening and the start of this summer’s Ibiza Rocks gigs as well as a follow-up to last month’s article about Lenny Ibizarre and a look at Lovehouse.fm.

There’s also a follow-up to the report we did about diving to the Don Pedro sunken freighter and we’ve also a report on the state of tourism here and interviews with many of the major players involved.

It’ll be out as usual on 1st July.

Some more pictures from last nights Rock Night opening party at the Ibiza Rocks Hotel.

We were really impressed with the Underground Heroes - a really tight, energetic band and we’re looking forward to see them play again at the opening of Ibiza Rocks on Tuesday. As
usual the Hungover Stuntmen played a blinding set including a great cover of the Stones - Sympathy For The Devil.

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Underground Heroes	Underground Heroes

	Daisy Heartbreaker

Daisy Heartbreaker	Hungover Stuntmen

After a great set by the Underground Heroes, Daisy Heartbreaker is now on the decks

photo posted from my iPhone

Ibiza Rocks have finally announced the venue for the first of the Ibiza Rocks gigs this summer. It will be at the San Rafael Hippodrome in the middle of the island - about 5 minutes from San Rafael village. The Pigeon Detectives will be joined by Ladyhawke and Underground Heroes and DJ’s Steve Aoki and Martin Doorly.

There will be free buses to and from Bar M from 6.30pm and after the gigs.

Tomorrow night we’ll definitly be down at the Ibiza Rocks Hotel for the opening of Rock Nights with the lovely Daisy Heartbreaker - when she rings you up and personally invites you we couldn’t say no obviously…

Also next week is the start of the Ibiza Rocks pool party before the main event in San Rafael, and then on the 19th its the start of the Club NME pool party. Finally Manumission kicks off their summer season at Amnesia on friday 20th June.

Google Map of San Rafael Hippodrome

The long weekend that roused the island from its winter slumber began with the first International Music Summit to be held here on Ibiza, at the appropriately imperious and intellectual Atzaro, Fenicia and Pike’s hotel venues, to conclude five days later at the debauchery and hedonism of Europe’s biggest annual party - the Space opening…

The transition from intellectual navel-gazing to the study of stilettos below the early season crop of minimalist beachwear was interspersed with the opening of the new Ibiza Rocks Hotel in San Antonio.

A building site only weeks before, the place looked not only stunning but buzzing. An excited crowd test drove the unusual but striking decor, which allied to the hotel’s diverse Ibiza Rocks summer events programme and flexible affordable accommodation (59 UKP for three nights and the Opening party gig!), looks like a fabulous formula at a time when the IMS conference seemed to conclude that ‘live music’ was the only way forward for the music industry.

Whilst we ruminated on the consequences of all of this, The Enemy replaced Radio 1 DJ Zane Lowe on stage and the crowd went ballistic as the heavens opened and we all danced in the rain.

This is Ibiza, and on a weekend like this it can neither be faulted nor bettered…

The final day featured further seminars on “Joining the dots”, “Believe the hype?” and the “IMS Think Tank”, which summed up the events of the conference, but it concluded with a touching interview with Pete Tong, the founder and flagship of this new event.

Pete took us on a personal tour of his own unique and charmed journey through the history of dance music, then plotted a future of eternal change which is, after all, the lifeblood of artistic creativity.
To that end he explained his own switch from the mighty Pacha to distant Eden. The Pacha that has risen from roots as a small club in a finca in a field outside Ibiza town to become a nightclub brand represented globally. Eden, on the ther hand, one of the less well known and respected clubs of San Antonio…

Pete’s up for a challenge: what he has in mind is changing the global perception of Ibiza from the 300euro minimum table charge in the dominant VIP area at Pacha to the more affordable delights of San Antonio - as epitomized by the new Ibiza Rocks Hotel with it’s focus on providing valid entertainment for the younger generation of potential tourists. After all they form the nucleus of the island’s tourist future.

Ibiza Rocks has done it by introducing a new genre of music previously unrelated to Ibiza. Pete’s challenge is to persuade the kids to listen to the electronic music that their parents still like…

An interesting challenge that you wouldn’t describe as the easy option. However, looking back over the last few days at the Closing party in the grounds at Pike’s Hotel where delegates were unanimously agreed that the infrastructure, planning, content and organization of the summit were to the highest international standard, you’d have to put your money on Pete and his team, in alliance with the other up and coming forces in San Antonio, returning this little seaside town to its heyday as the first tourist resort on Ibiza, and one of the few in the Mediterranean frequented by the superstars of the time.

Indeed San Antonio’s time may well have come again…

We spoke to the lovely Daisy Heartbreaker at the IMS and Ibiza Rocks Hotel opening party and we’re really impressed with what they’ll be doing at the hotel over the summer - Rock Nights will be on every saturday and will feature live music and DJ’s and opens on June 14th - so here’s the flyer:

The final line up for the resident bands at the hotel have also been announced:

18 May - 14 June : Hungover Stuntmen
31 May - 30 June : Underground Heroes
1 July - 31 July : OK Tokyo
2 August - 15 August : The Clik Clik
25 August - 31 August : The Holloways

Some more pictures from last nights Ibiza Rocks Hotel opening party with The Enemy
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Zane Lowe	The free X-Box’s in the lobby

The Hungover Stuntmen and Andy Taylor on the VIP terrace	The Stage

The two sofas in the lobby made from old-style bath tubs

	The main pool

Top night - about 5 weeks ago we took photos of how the hotel looked before - tonight we saw the difference. It looks and feels great. Aside from some of the big names (Pete Tong turned up as well as Paco Medina from the Consel) the world and his wife turned up and kudos to Andy and Dawn and everyone involved - theyve turned it around and should be very pleased with what they’ve achieved.
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Paco Medina (Ibiza Consel) 2nd from right	Jade Jagger & Tony Pike

Octavia from Pikes Hotel and Philipp from Ibizarre Records	Mike, Claire and Johnny

	Hungover Stuntmen