Dance Scene News

If you're going to Ministry of Sound this weekend for Laidback Luke we advise you to take a condom with you.

We're not implying Luke's got a STI, heavens no, but if you flash a condom at the door you don't have to queue to get in.

It's all part of a sexual health campaign that's taken place at 100 clubs over the last two years.

The Queue Jump with a Condom promotion comes as a new campaign – Contraception. Worth Talking About – is launched to increase young people’s awareness of the different types of contraception and remind them that they won’t be protected against STIs without a condom.

For straightforward information on sexual health visit: www.nhs.uk/worthtalkingabout

Downloadable mix packs are being released this month for DJ Hero.

These include a Jay-Z and Eminem Mix Pack, a avid Guetta Mix Pack and a DJ Hero Extended Mix Pack. Each contain three new mash-ups to play along to.

Dunno how to download new content? Visit djhero.com The packs are out from March 18 on Xbox, and March 25 on Wii and PS3.

Bestival have added The Prodigy, Magda, Audio Bullys, Gilles Peterson and Serge Santiago to their line-up. Keith and co. will play on the Sunday night. bestival.net

BLOC 2010 is now officially sold out. The weekender takes place this weekend.

Detroit's Movement Electronic Music Festival is set to take place from May 29 - 31. Weekend tickets are only $40. The 70 acts performing include A-Trak, Chris Liebing, Claude VonStroke, Derrick Carter, DJ Hype, DJ Koze, DJ Pierre, DJ Sneak, Hudson Mohawke, ItaloBoyz, Jamie Jones, Josh Wink, Magda, Mark Ernestus (Rhythm & Sound), Martin Buttrich – Live, Martinez Bros, Mr. Scruff, Onur Ozer, Radio Slave, Simian Mobile Disco, Theo Parish and many more. paxahau.com

Field Day on July 31 at Victoria Park, London has just confirmed Carte Blanche (DJ Mehdi & Riton), Chapel Club, Hudson Mohawke, Lightspeed Champion, No Age, Simian Mobile Disco, Tamikrest, The Fall, These New Puritans and Yuck. Tickets, at £33 can be found at fielddayfestivals.com

Summer Break has added a bunch of acts to its three four day festivals including Chipmunk, Tinie Tempah, Sub Focus, Example, Caspa, Zinc, Jack Beats, Jaymo and Andy George and Mistajam. summerbreak.co.uk

Hybrid has a new album out next month, and he's made some rather nice videos about the making of it. Full on orchestral action! The single, 'Disappear Here' is out this week

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Melt Festival in Germany is back for it's 13th year from July 16 -18. Headliners this year include Massive Attack, Booka Shade, The xx, A-Trak, Chromeo, DJ Shadow, Riton, Four Tet, Fred Falke, Sinden, Ellen Allien, Fake Blood, Lindstrom & Christablle, Two Door Cinema Club, Carl Craig feat. Mike Banks, Ricardo Villalobos, Crookers, and an entire stage curated by Modeselektor. 3 day tickets are €94. More info is at meltfestival.de

The 1-2-3-4 Festival will return to Shoreditch Park on July 24 with bands and DJs including A1 Bassline, Action Beat, A Grave With No Name, Autokratz, Blood Music, Bo Ningen, Breton, DDD, Dark Horses, Deep Sht, Dollop, Drum Eyes, Dum Dum Girls, Egyptian Hip Hop, Invasion, Is Tropical, Kool Kids Klub, Lele (Speaks), Le Shark, Maria & The Mirrors, Matthew Wowow, Mazes, Necro Deathmort, No Bra, Not Cool, Random Impulse, S.C.U.M, Sharks, Smash & Grab, Sunderbans, The Lovely Jonjo, The Knock Out Drops, The Ruling Class, These New Puritans, The Toes, Toddla T & MC Serocee, Trailer Trash Tracys, Tronik Youth, Veronica Falls, Victor Talking Machine, Vivian Girls, Von Haze, Wavves, We Have Band, Wild Palms, Zombie Zombie. There will be five stages, nine after party venues plus early bird tickets are only £15. See the1234shoreditch.com for more.

Calvin Harris and Audio Bullys are the latest top names announced for this summer’s Eden Sessions at The Eden Project in Cornwall. The show will take place at the home of the iconic Biomes on Saturday July 3. Tickets are £35 plus BF from edensessions.com

Check out this 10min doc on Leeds' night Back to Basics.

It features interviews with founder Dave Beer and DJ Pete Tong.

It's a great little watch and coincides with the promo of Back To Basics Recordings 001 from
Buckley & Woodall 'Kitch N Sync' which features mixes from Jamie Jones and Chris Duckenfield.

Check out this little beauty. Well, maybe less of the little.

This is Pioneer's DJM-2000 mixer which launches today.

It has an innovative touch screen and arsenal of remixing FX, with six individual effects processors. It has effectively built in the technology of the EFX-1000, removing the need for an external effects unit along with touch screen technology from the SVM-1000.

The mixer has been developed with the help of a number of DJs. James Zabiela, Roger Sanchez, Eddie Halliwell, Tom Middleton, The Swedish House Mafia, Paul Woolford, John '00' Fleming and Kutski have all tested out the DJM-2000 at various stages of development.

You can buy the mixer in June - its price: £1999. For more see pioneerprodj.eu

Don't Stay In has teamed up with Trance Energy and is giving you the chance to win an exclusive Trance Energy Travel Package for April 3rd!

The Trance Energy Travel Package contains return flights from Birmingham International Airport to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport.

Upon arrival in Utrecht, you will stay in 4-star hotel Mitland, only a ten-minute drive from the Trance Energy venue. But not to worry… You won't have to drive yourself since you and your friend will be brought to and picked up from Trance Energy!

The morning after you can chill out in the swimming pool or Turkish steambath before you make your way back to Schiphol Airport and go back to the UK!

Enter the competition here

Vandit’s 10th Anniversary World Tour rolls into the UK on Bank Holiday Sunday May 30 at The Brixton Academy.

As one of dance music’s seminal labels, Vandit has been responsible for furthering founding father Paul van Dyk’s legendary status, as well as bringing to the world’s attention artists such as Alex M.O.R.P.H., Giuseppe Ottaviani, Jon O’Bir and Filo and Peri.

PVD is already confirmed for the event. More names are to be added. The party kicks off at 10pm and advance tickets are £20.

Underage have confirmed their initial line-up with MIA, Annie Mac, Tinchy Stryder, Caspa, Chase and Status, Ellie Goulding, Egyptian Hip Hop, Daisy Dares You, Gold Panda, Hadouken! Lightspeed Champion, Sub Focus, Tinie Tempah and more. The festival takes place on Sunday August 1 at London's Victoria Park.

V Festival sold out in record time. It took just 1.5 hours for both sites to sell out last week.

Beach Break Live takes place from June 14 - 18 and Pembrey Country Park, South Wales with Calvin Harris, Chase And Status, Ellie Goulding, Plan B, Annie Mac, High Contrast, Subfocus, Fake Blood, Scratch Perverts, Zinc, Jack Beats, Jaymo & Andy George, Toddla T Feat. Mc Serocee, Nero, Dub Pistols Soundsystem, Burns, Zero T, Marc Roberts, Decibel, The Futureheads, Example, New Young Pony Club, Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip, I Blame Coco, Daisy Dares You, Beardy Man, Fenech Soler and more.

Parisian label Record Makers have made a free iPhone application along with a special digital compilation to commemorate a decade in existence.

The idea behind the application is to provide the user with a surrealistic visual game. The introduction theme comes courtesy of label figurehead, Sébastien Tellier, with Mr. Oizo on hand to provide the noises for this eccentric game of mix and match.

Prizes are on offer through the game. The entire discography is up for grabs, whilst every entry will be entered into a prize draw to win a trip for two to Paris in October including a week’s stay at Hotel L’Amour and an invite to Record Makers’ anniversary celebrations on 10/10/10.

It was a big weekend for lavish awards and we're not talking Oscars!

This weekend at Atomik Weekender 3 the gongs were dished out for this year's Hard Dance Awards.

Showtek scooped 4 awards. As a thank you they're giving away a free track 'Expansion' now at trackitdown.net

All the major artists who won now also appear on the Hard Dance Awards Euphoria album which is out today. The results in full are as follows:

Best track: Showtek 'World Is Mine'
Best Label: Scantraxx
Best Resident: Brian M & McBunn
Best New Face: Swankie & Kashi
Best one-off event: Def Qon One
Best artist album: Showtek 'Analogue Players in a Digital World'
Regional hero: DJ Tone
Outstanding contribution: Kutski
Best UK hard DJ: Kutski
Best European hard DJ: Showtek
Best UK hard producer: Technikal
Best European hard producer: Showtek
Best compilation album: Goodgreef Xtra Hard
Best club: Bionic

Tiësto is in the UK and we've asked him to blog his UK tour dates exclusively for Mixmag.

The first of his diaries are on Mixmag.net now including what happened in Sheffield and Scotland this weekend. He's also told us what the biggest three tracks were from the Friday and Saturday.

There will be four blogs in total from Tijs in the coming weeks so we'll let you know each time he updates us.

We can now happily reveal that Jimbo hotpants was hidden on page 37 in the five a side football team!

After discovering Steve Aoki about to jump off a bridge in London, Mixmag.net talked him down then asked him about his festival plans and who he's been working with.

Have a watch yourself.

Escape Into The Park returns to Swansea on Saturday June 12. Above & Beyond will join Steve Angello, Judge Jules, Andy C, Darren Styles, Scratch Perverts and Lisa Lashes. Over 20,000 will be attending.

The Eden Project will host Rumble in the Jungle on May 7 as part of Smirnoff's Be There granted parties. The indoor event will see Chase & Status and Sub Focus play. For more on Smirnoff's events check here.

Summer Break 2010 is back in Newquay in June. Three lots of four day events will take place for over 9,000 students. Example, Caspa, Sub Focus and Mistajam are confirmed. Find more info here.

ITN yesterday reported on this 69-year-old DJ who is apparently shown here rocking a club in France.

It all started when the granny went to a nightclub to celebrate her grandson's birthday.

DJ Ruth looks like a wind-up to us. Is it April fools day already? Ruth, if you're still with us, get in touch.

Gatecrasher is planning on investing £5m on a 30,000 square foot 'hyper-club' in the heart of Sheffield.

They plan to redevelop the basement of the infamous cheese grater car park (Q-Park) on Charles Street creating over 200 city jobs.

In what is either a genuine attempt at getting public backing or a shrewd attempt at rebuilding their database they're is asking clubbers to show their support for the plans. Their website promises "If you sign up to this petition you are expressing support for the proposal and your information will be passed onto the planning department."

Why the planning department would need to know each respondent's 'musical preference' is anyone's guess.

It's been three years since the old Sheffield club burnt to the ground. The brand hope to open the new venue by September.