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Groove Armada are one of those acts whose popularity I just don't....get. Catapulted in to the same stadium dance act bracket as The Prodigy and The Chemical Brothers by both the press and fans alike, it's high company I personally feel they're out of their depth in keeping. At last Sundays We Love shindig, I tried (promise) to put my musical reservations to one side, reasoning it'd be a good idea to at least give the group a chance. Unfortunately however, my initial pessimism proved correct.

Granted a boisterous reception by the predominantly British crowd, the band frantically blasted through a blend of old and new, and in all fairness, the Black Light spectacular - used to promote the bands most recent LP and featuring a new singer and manic light show- was well, somewhat spectacular.

For all of Space's production prowess however, it was still GA's old material which was best received, with tracks such as 'At the River' and 'Superstylin' working the crowd in to a frenzy. These tracks I like, I just felt the new material was somewhat mundane. And quite how a track such as 'I See you Baby' is viewed by many as timeless as opposed to comically cheesy is beyond me.

You see, I'm one of those people who basically feel guitars, singers, bands, groups, etc. have no place in nightclubs. Hell, I took the same attitude to Grace Jones playing Space last year. Though I'm not sure this was my main gripe - I mean I've witnessed 2020 Soundsystem and arguably Booka Shade revere in similar scenarios.

GA's blend of pop infused tracks did, for me at least, surprise little and entertain less. Yes, the band may have pleased the masses - but with all due respect to Space Sunday patrons - the crowd is often not the most musically up to date.

Mind you, the night did have it's plus points. Funkagenda for example, laid down a solid set prior to Groove Armada, with his ubiquitous remix of Garnier's 'Man with the Red Face' greeted with expected appreciation. Zombie Nation also proved to many that there's more to his set than 90's sounding singalong electro, while James Zabiela typically tore up the rule book in a manner few of his contemporaries can. Musically sounding somewhat jaded, it's at least refreshing to see artists such as Zabiela add some zest and innovation to the manner of their Dj'ing.

By the time Chicago native Felix da Housecat entered the discoteca around 5am however, it was time to leave as the electrohouse breakdown's were beginning to grind the ears - and with all due respect to Felix - I wasn't prepared to take a chance on his recent sound. All in all, an experimental, predominantly electro oriented line up failed to ignite for the most part.

Still, with Carl Craig, Matthew Dear and Derrick May all pencilled in for this Sunday, at least Space are practically certain to redeem themselves.

Photo by Space-Ibiza © 2010. All rights reserved.

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