The infamous "terrazza" or terrace at Space has long been the focal point of many a trip to Ibiza. As the unveiling of the new terrace looms ever closer, the club and Carl Cox are also gearing up for the start of his Carl Cox & Late Night Sessions residency for 2005, a new concept for Carl which will endeavour to direct traffic towards both the new terrace and the room inside with a split line-up each week.

The opening party on July 19th, which will juxtapose the diverse talents of Roni Size on the new terrace with Portugal's DJ Vibe inside and of course host Carl Cox and the Angels of Love DJs, will set the tone for the remainder of the Tuesday night residency and build on from Carl's long-running, established association with the Playa d'en Bossa venue.

Unlike some of Carl’s guests who have never played Space despite highly successful globe-trotting DJ careers, his involvement with the club extends way back even before the existence of the much-talked about terrace.

"I’ve always enjoyed the concept of the terrace and what it stands for. I was basically at the forefront of that whole movement on the terrace because there was no terrace when I started," explains Carl.

"I believe it’s actually going to be called the Sunset Terrace and the idea is that any DJ that plays there, plays what they want, not what the people expect."

"Basically we’d move the decks from behind the bar to where the DJ booth ended up but on a table, turn the speakers around, turn it up a little bit louder and a 1000 people would go mad. I would play for like 8 hours including a complete house set, which was amazing. Then I thought we needed a larger DJ booth and sound system and the terrace was born".

In contrast to We Love Sundays, which has built its legendary status largely around its use of the terrace, Carl’s Late Night Sessions concept will utilize the new terrace in more of a supplementary manner and will in fact shut it down for an hour and a half midway through the night to encourage people inside.

"One of the reasons why I initially went to Space many years ago was because of the inside of the club. However a lot of people have been ignoring the inside of Space and going there for the Terrace so that would always be rammed but inside there would only be ten people."

As in previous years Italy’s Angels of Love will kick things off on the terrace from 8 o’clock before Carl plays his "new terrace set with the old terrace vibe" from 11 to half past 12. The new terrace will then close and re-open at 2 o’clock to lure punters inside where Carl will then play from 3 to 7.

"The idea is a kind of pied-piper effect," says Carl. "Everyone goes to the terrace to see Carl Cox and for an hour and a half it goes off in there. Then I kind of cap it and say now I’ll be inside from 3 to 7. I don’t want people to get too excited about me playing on the terrace. I have to play up to a point but the rest of it will happen inside".

The Late Night Sessions concept appears to be largely driven by the construction of the new roofed terrace, which once ready - a need to excavate another 15 metres into the floor to comply with building regulations meant it was out of bounds for Space's Opening Party in June - will bring with it, an extra one thousand-person capacity meaning a little more innovation and thought on the behalf of promoters has been required, to ensure people come through the door.

"The new terrace won’t be like the old terrace, "admits Carl. There will be loungey chairs, a table service. It’ll just be a nice place to be; you won’t have to dance. I believe it’s actually going to be called the Sunset Terrace and the idea is that any DJ that plays there, plays what they want, not what the people expect. I think that’s what is going to be its crowning glory. Whether or not it’s packed or busy or rocking I don’t really care because musically that’s what I want in this room. To be honest, I’ll be there (on the new terrace) at Late Night Sessions myself."

"I really enjoy going to a club and listening to diverse music from DJs who each have a different sound; DJs that aren’t particularly on people’s lips at the moment but musically are still amazing. Every one of the DJs I’ve chosen has that essence."

When deciding which DJs to book for the Late Night Sessions room it wasn’t just a case of deploying obvious filler house and techno jocks. "Musically," says Carl "I think people are quite open to listening to a lot of different sounds as well. I really enjoy going to a club and listening to diverse music from DJs who each have a different sound; DJs that aren’t particularly on people’s lips at the moment but musically are still amazing. Every one of the DJs I’ve chosen has that essence. I love Ashley Beedle, Gilles Peterson. I love their sound and I want an older crowd, if they do come down, to appreciate it too".

The resulting line-up sees the likes of Roni Size, Victor Calderone, Ashley Beedle, Gilles Peterson, LTJ Bukem and MC Conrad, CJ Mackintosh all headlining the Late Night Sessions room on the new terrace.

And of course, if that doesn’t float your boat there’s always the "stuff packed room" inside where Carl will be joined by heavyweights including John Digweed, Norman Cook, Josh Wink, DJ Vibe, Michel de Hey, Christian Smith, Cristian Varela, Marco Bailey and Francesco Farfa over the course of the 9-week residency.

It’s clearly evident that a lot of thought has gone into ensuring there will be musical diversity on offer from Carl's esteemed guests. So what musical treats might we expect from the host of the party himself?

"Axwell’s "Feel The Vibe," name-checks Carl "It’s one of the most inspirational, uplifting records I’ve heard. Funnily enough it borders on progressive and electronic. It’s a really, really amazing track. When I play it, it doesn’t matter if you’re into tech, house, soul, funk whatever; everyone’s hands are in the air, eyes closed and feeling the vibe of the record. It brings the room together every time I play it".

"I also have to say that the track I have out now on Intec by Hiroki Esashika "Kazane" is really working well. It’s great to have a Japanese artist who is particularly a techno producer, on the label. When he gave it to me I was like "I’ve got to have this on Intec". I had the purists saying, "What’s this crap?" and others listening to it and saying it was the most amazing thing they’d heard. Hiroki is definitely someone I’m completely behind 110% because I want people to understand there is a new movement going on with sound and that, this is where we’re at".

Lastly, Carl sights the Alexander Koning remix of the new Inner City release "Say Something" as another one to keep an ear out for on Tuesday nights at Space. "I’ve done a mix of it, which is very Soul II Soul, like the original version. Kevin Saunderson has also done a tech-house version of it but Alexander Koning has done an amazing version and that’s the one I play. This is a really huge record. It’s awesome!"

"We have a lot of first time virgins playing for us at Space so I want them all to get shagged and have the best time possible!"

Given the diverse pool of talent and friends Carl has secured, who then is he most excited about playing with? "Josh Wink," says Carl immediately, "We haven’t had him play before. We had him play in Miami for my Global Arena at Ultra and he just ripped it. He stayed true to himself and did his own thing and the crowd went mad, which I loved. I think Josh has the mark of a great DJ. He’s someone who still impresses me by his musical attributes and his belief in what people should be listening to."

The gig will in fact be Wink’s debut at Space, a feat that will also be replicated by many of Carl’s other guests. "We have a lot of first time virgins playing for us at Space," admits Carl "So I want them all to get shagged and have the best time possible!"

For those still undecided about where to spend their Tuesday nights in Ibiza, Carl enthuses, "Just turn up! Late Night Sessions is going to be brilliant. We have Roni Size! Victor Calderone is coming as well, which we’re really looking forward to because he’s one my favourite producers and DJs. We have Gilles Peterson, who played for us last year and did an incredible set, all sorts of crazy stuff. Ashley Beedle is playing with us for the first time."

Austin Powers once quipped "Shall we shag now or later?" but in the case of Ibiza 2005, Tuesday nights from 8pm at Space Ibiza between July 19th and September 13th look like being the best option.

Yeah, yeah baby, yeah!

Carl Cox on a late night RA session