Daniel Mitchell’s Playlist for Enjoyment

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Because few days at Bali’s Potato Head are alike, describing the scene at the beach club is no small task. One morning one might find serenity in the form of a sea-facing cabana and frozen watermelon with lime as a soulful Harlem hit spouts from the live DJ’s turntables; and the next, a group of Ozzies on holiday chasing fireball shots might inspire other intentions as British dream pop vibrates around them. In fact, other than the seasonal eat and drink fares, the only thing that the premises promises is that there will be no pop music to be heard.

“It’s not really a top 40 kind of place,” Potato Head’s creative director Daniel Mitchell explains to CR. “We like good music, and that world of high volume manufacturing is not the kind of thing we do.” Indeed, everything on site has been methodically thought of and small-batch crafted to follow suit, from the multi-level, pool-to-ocean day club itself to Katamama, the hyper-luxe hotel steps away, where sustainability, modernity, and health take center stage.

But of course, music has always been the through line for Mitchell, who moved to Indonesia nearly a decade ago after founding Late Night Chameleon Cafe (LN-CC) in London in 2010. In the former space of an old Dolston boxing gym, the influential fashion store slash pop-up spot changed the concept of retail and nightlife, becoming such a hit that it ballooned from boutique to machine-level enterprise. Eventually, the fashion buyer turned image curator needed a break. “Moving to Bali I had no intentions of working at all,” says Mitchell, who longed to make music under his record label Island of the Gods and spend time with his family. Ultimately, he would come to the PTT Family hospitality group and somehow manage to do all three.

In his five years steering the ship since, Mitchell has revamped the Colosseum-inspired venue situated in the urban area of Seminyak and established Potato Head as a cultural requirement for anyone’s Bali travel itinerary. By day, throngs of posh, international coeds bob their heads by the swim-up pool bar to what Mitchell calls his interpretation of Balearic music in 1970s Ibiza, or rather, “a beautiful clash of different genres and styles of music coming together for the very first time.” And when the sun sets, the party really starts, as resident DJs, local artists, and even surprise performers—everyone from Honey Dijon to Grace Jones—take the stage.

In 2016, the creative director introduced Katamama, a local craft-inspired, 58-suite beachfront hotel to the property. Two-tone Balinese bricks were combined with teak wood and bespoke terrazzo for a structural design that celebrates the area’s artisan traditions, while, inside, tech gadgets, musical objects, and mid century modern favorites hint at the properties’ shared artistic obsessions.

In spite of all of this, Mitchell has one more big surprise up his sleeve. Later this year he plans to open a third structure on the estate, which he refers to as desa, meaning “village” in Indonesia. In addition to more even more hotel rooms, the building, which is being designed by Rem Koolhaas’ OMA, will feature on site recording studios via Island of the Gods and an exhibition of the world’s largest collection of music memorabilia—an assortment of treasures that range from Ian Schrager’s black book during Studio 54 to fliers handmade by Keith Haring.

“With everything, I like to look to the past for inspiration,” says Mitchell. “But then I consider how it can be moved into the future. How can the old legends live with today’s underground and local artists to create something entirely new?”

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