Tribal Sessions is known as one of Sankeys most legendary nights. Born in Manchester in 2000, its ‘Are You Tribal?’ catchphrase quickly caught on, and Tribal Sessions became England’s longest running Friday night party until 2008. Promoters roamed the club painting the faces of patrons until the glowing vibes in the club’s famous basement-like atmosphere united the entire party. It has housed artists like Danny Tenaglia, Jeff Mills, Sasha, Carl Cox, Richie Hawtin, Dan Ghenacia and Shonky. With the launch of Sankeys NYC and re-opening of Sankeys Manchester, Tribal Sessions has made quite the comeback with superstar artists like The Martinez Brothers, Joseph Capriati booked in the coming months, Danny Tenaglia for Sankeys IBIZA and Jeff Mills booked for the NYC show tonight ! We had a chance to catch up with David Vincent, founder and owner of the Sankeys brand, and chat about Tribal Sessions’ history, future and his favorite moments of all time.
How was the Tribal Sessions concept born in Manchester? It was born in 2000. It was born out of the legendary dance organisation "Tribal Gathering" who did the original multi-arena outdoor festival that everyone is mimicking around the world. When I took it over I started a weekly party, but Tribal Gathering was a one-off event. I wanted to do a weekly club party at Sankeys Soap and the word "Session" was more appropriate. Also the word "Tribal" was meant to signify that house music became scattered into the separate musical tribes and our goal was to bring it together under one unified beat where an artist could play whatever they wanted and together on the same line up whether it was house, techno, or progressive house, which at that time was very unique and we were the first people to do this globally.
The party launched in NYC last November and is launching in Ibiza this summer. Why the wait to bring it to the White Isle? Because the time was not right and we would only do a Tribal Sessions in a Sankeys-style club. We used to get many offers to do Ibiza over the years but it was never about the money and we did not feel we could do this in another venue. I stopped doing Tribal Sessions parties as Greg Vickers, the main resident and head of music, left the club, and I focused on setting up Ibiza in 2011. Now it feels right to do this as Sankeys Ibiza is settled and now I feel I can re-create the Tribal Sessions magic once again in the perfect environment I need to, and that is in a Sankeys.
Can we expect Tribal Sessions to be a weekly occurrence in the Big Apple? Yes, maybe in October after the Ibiza season as I need to be there to create the "magic" and facepaint everyone, but for now we will do a few one-offs. We are focusing on a monthly show in Manchester and our weekly residency in Ibiza.
Congratulations on the re-opening of Sankeys Manchester! What led to the decision to re-open the legendary UK branch? I always wanted to re-open it, but we had various issues we had to overcome and I had to find a new person to lead the club forward. I found this person in Paul Fletcher and since the club re-opened, it has come back with a vengeance and I would say once again it is one of the best nightclubs in the world right now.
Will Tribal Sessions become a Friday night fixture in Manchester once again? It is monthly at the moment. We have booked Joseph Capriati, The Martinez Brothers, Kink, Hector Couto as well as the prolific Darius Syrossian who is our exclusive monthly resident. From September, we are aiming to go weekly from September and again we have some killer line ups coming together.
What are some highlights in Tribal Sessions history? There's loads... but let's say me dressing up as Father Christmas and signing on stage while Carl Cox is playing "I'm Dreaming Of A White Christmas" and Danny Tenaglia is unleashing the most ridiculous 12 hour set, in the middle playing "Can You Feel It" by Michael Jackson whilst shining a torch on a Michael Jackson Glitter Glove.
