DJ Alfredo - Paraíso. The True Spirit Of Ibiza (selected by DJ Alfredo) (2025)

There was a time when Ibiza was more than just a tourist destination or an initiatory mecca; it embodied an idea, a breath of freedom that drifted through the night, a promise of escape translated into music, colors, vibrations, and pulsations, blurring the lines between sunrises and sunsets, and vice versa.
Before becoming the tangle of clubs we know today, the island was the perpetually fibrillating heart of a movement that defied definition.
By the 1950s and 1960s, Ibiza had already become a refuge for artists, bohemians, hippies, and outsiders fleeing repressive regimes or breaking away from conventional society. It was a place of experimentation and artistic freedom, where music became the soundtrack of a new way of life, one that rewrote the coordinates of a unique and vital nocturnal ferment.

It was in this fertile ground that a significant cultural shift occurred when Alfredo Fiorito, an Argentinian born in 1953, moved to Ibiza in 1976 with his girlfriend, escaping the political repression raging in his homeland. A music journalist and concert promoter, Alfredo was instantly captivated: “The first impression I had of the island was one of total freedom. There was no industry, everyone was a painter, a writer, a designer. I liked that place so much that I decided to stay and started selling candles and clothes to make a living…”
Amnesia, where he would soon begin playing, became the perfect point of convergence. “It was a farmhouse turned into a club, a gathering place for musicians and Indian gurus,” Alfredo would later recall. “Background or social class didn’t matter there. The club opened at 3 AM and went on until noon. People came when other clubs closed. There were no rules, and it was cheaper, people made love, drank, danced, and took liters of Ecstasy."
Blending genres and atmospheres with an effortless, organic fluidity, his sets defied classification, moving seamlessly from reggae to flamenco, from alternative rock to jazz-funk and soul, from synth-pop to the emerging house sound of Chicago. Alfredo crafted a magnetic and unpredictable rhythmic wave, infused with eccentric and esoteric echoes.
His fearless eclecticism bewitched an entire generation, including figures like Paul Oakenfold, Danny Rampling, Johnny Walker, and Nicky Holloway. After experiencing that transformative energy at Amnesia, they carried its essence back to England, coining the term "Balearic Beat" to describe the sound Alfredo had pioneered.

But Balearic was never just a musical style, it was an attitude. It wasn’t about BPM but about the soul. As Leo Mas, another mythological guardian of that unrepeatable era, emphasizes: "Reducing Balearic to a mere 'music genre' would be limiting, if not misleading. It’s better described as a state of mind, a predisposition of the body, mind, and spirit, born from the spontaneous fusion of diverse influences and the ability to experience the present in an imaginative, free-flowing state often amplified by various psychedelic experiences.”
Chief among them was Ecstasy, which exploded like an empathetic bomb, aligning intentions and energy, dissolving barriers between rhythm and movement, between reality and dream.

Beyond Amnesia, other open-air clubs, KU (formerly Club San Rafael), Es Paradis, Pacha, Lola’s, and Glory’s became the pulsating heart of a movement that celebrated the fusion of music, freedom, and excess. The international jet set mixed seamlessly with the local crowd, breaking down distinctions and barriers. This creative explosion found expression not only in music but also in album covers, fashion, and an obsessive attention to detail. Ibiza’s nightlife aesthetic became a revolution in itself, with artists like Yves Uro giving the scene a distinctive visual identity through his iconic posters.

Ibiza became a cover-worthy dreamscape. And as the scene evolved, some names remained true to the island’s original heartbeat: César De Melero, DJ Pippi, Joan Ribas, Jon Sa Trinxa… pioneers and guardians of a sound that continued blending the early forms of House with the lysergic scratches of Acid, giving life to a new chapter in club culture. Then came the magic of chill-out, the suspended dimension of sunsets soundtracked by José Padilla at Café del Mar. A moment when music ceased to be just rhythm and became a source of breath, contemplation, and total immersion. In close, symbiotic contact with nature. Waves of warmth, transcendent sensations of unity, sudden, unstoppable gusts of love, the feeling that Paradise was within reach, just a fingertip away.

Then, slowly but inexorably, came the turning point of the new decade. And in the overflowing frenzy of 1992, the introduction of a law requiring clubs to have a roof, altered radically their atmosphere, marking the start of Ibiza’s metamorphosis. Ibiza began to shed its old skin, and along with it, its beloved children. Clubs evolved into empires, dancefloors became brands, and freedom turned into a luxury. Money rose as the ultimate status symbol, and disproportionate development took over irreversibly. One by one, many of the era’s protagonists left the island, unable to recognize themselves in its new face.

And yet, beneath the glossy surface of mainstream productions and hundred-euro entry fees to the megaclubs, the Balearic spirit has never truly faded. It still exists. It still resists. Wild and untamed, kicking beneath the surface. Tucked away, protected like a secret bubble. It lives on in the most authentic places, in the hands and records of those who still believe in that sound and energy. You can find it in DJ sets at places like Pikes or Hostal La Torre, at Casa Maca, El Silencio and at The Standard Hotel. It thrives in parties far from the spotlight. Scattered across sunsets reflecting over the sea, in the ocean spray and the lingering magic of another time. This spirit pulses through locations like Benirràs, Salinas, Las Dalias and the San Jordi market, creating moments that resonate with the island's original, untainted essence.

How to keep it alive?
This question resonated with Daniele "Shield" Contrini, the founder and owner of Rebirth, who approached Alfredo in 2022 with the idea of compiling "Paraíso", an album dedicated to the "True Spirit of Ibiza", a collection of tracks emblematic of his musical vision, capturing its authentic essence and keeping it alive today. A musical project that never claimed to provide answers but held the proud intention of sharing and celebrating the heritage of what once was, projecting it toward new horizons.
From the very start, the idea was met with great enthusiasm; however, challenges quickly arose in securing licensing rights. The passing of Alfredo on December 24th, 2024, left an irreplaceable void. His loss made the completion of the project even more urgent, and it became a mission supported by the invaluable contributions of many artists who had shared in his musical journey.
The album will finally be released in September, featuring an unreleased track by Alfredo, one he had been working on for quite some time. This collection serves as an authentic tribute to a man and a sound that defined an era and continues to inspire the present and future of electronic music.