EAST IS EAST
While Ibiza is a perennial favourite, the Black Sea region in
Eastern Europe is throwing up some alternative summer
clubbing options...
Words: CLAIRE HUGHES
L
ess commercial than Ibiza and more exotic than Ayia Napa, the Black contrast, there are big clubs dotted around the coastal areas that are as plush
Sea Coast enjoys its own summer clubbing season, from May through ’til and exciting as anything you’ll find in Western Europe.
October, that’s remained pretty much under the radar. That’s probably “When we first went to Bulgaria in 2000 we could feel the energy of an
why you’re unlikely to hear Pete Tong going on about Black Sea clubbing explosion of youth culture in a country finding its feet,” says Sian Evans, from
on Radio 1 or see any ads on TV for ‘Black Sea Clubbing’ compilations. But all that’s d&b band Kosheen. “We’re a festival band and we write songs now for festival
about to change. crowds, and playing at festivals such as Spirit of Burgas has really inspired
This summer Mark Doyle’s Fierce Angels label is hosting parties in the coastal us.”
regions around the Black Sea, Steve Lawler is also putting on a Viva Records German techno DJ Chris Liebing has also played at Bulgarian festival Spirit of
party in the region, and big names such as John Digweed, James Zabeila, Burgas, where acts as diverse as Sisters of Mercy and Asian Dub Foundation
Sasha and Carl Cox and many more are all booked to play in various Black Sea shared the billing with Groove Armada, Michel de Hey and King Roc last year.
hotspots. “I played directly on the beach looking out to the Black Sea,” says Chris. “The
sound was so full-on that I could see people dancing on the tankers and Navy
An inland sea fed by the Mediterranean and the Atlantic and hemmed by ships miles away. I had the honour to perform the final set with the sun rising
Russia, Romania, Georgia, the Ukraine, Turkey and Bulgaria, the Black Sea’s up out of the water and I can’t wait to play there again.”
warm waters and long sandy beaches are a best-kept secret about to be
rumbled, offering a cheap alternative for those looking for new clubbing The growth of the clubbing scene in resorts in Bulgaria, Romania, the Ukraine
destinations. and Russia has been organic, with events and numbers building slowly, year
by year. Post-Communism and in the aftermath of the civil wars that tore
Ibiza’s still rocking it, of course, but in the Black Sea region — particularly through Eastern Europe in the 1990s, dance music is the sound that’s helping
the coastal areas in Russia, Bulgaria, the Ukraine and Romania — a certain to bring young people in all these small countries together again. And now
dance music mysticism exists. With English clubbers to the region still in they’re taking to the beaches.
the minority, the Black Sea’s coastal areas are a summer playground for a The 2009 summer season in the Black Sea coastal areas is already in full
mixture of Eastern European rich kids and local dance music fans. In Bulgaria, swing. So if you haven’t worked out what you’re doing this summer, why not
there’s an underground, free party scene where nomadic hippy-types living in consider heading East for a taste of a vibrant seaside clubbing scene that’s
makeshift yurts on the beach host campfire raves that last for days. While in just finding its feet?
www.djmag.com
065
DJ474.black sea.indd 65 18/5/09 20:03:47
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156 |
Page 157 |
Page 158 |
Page 159 |
Page 160 |
Page 161 |
Page 162 |
Page 163 |
Page 164 |
Page 165 |
Page 166 |
Page 167 |
Page 168 |
Page 169 |
Page 170 |
Page 171 |
Page 172 |
Page 173 |
Page 174 |
Page 175 |
Page 176 |
Page 177 |
Page 178 |
Page 179