With Sovereign, Ministry reclaims the position of kingmaker in British electronic music. The concept will see our team of experts handpick the very best, most influential artists in the scene today. We will celebrate each one with an all night long headline set on the best sound system in the world and present them with a bespoke, one-of-a-kind sovereign ring in recognition of their unparalleled contribution to electronic music.
Founded in 1991 as the UK’s first super club, over the next 31 years Ministry of Sound has defined the agenda for British club culture. The first club to bring US house music to our shores and a vital breeding ground for the domestic music scene, nurturing all genres – from jungle, to UKG, trance to tech house.
Genre agnostic, Sovereign will champion the leading voices of every corner of dance music, selecting the cream of the crop from every sound and scene. Each artist to headline a Sovereign event will be presented with their unique Sovereign ring on the night. It will serve as both a recognition of the artists contribution to dance music culture and as an official thank you for the joy their music has brought to so many fans.
Our debut event, and the recipient of ring number 001, will be progressive house hero, Sasha. With a career spanning decades, as both a solo artist and in collaboration with John Digweed, Sasha was the original superstar DJ. Sasha’s storied career has seen him win countless awards, including DJ Mag’s No.1 DJ, 4 International Dance Music Awards, 4 DJ Awards and a GRAMMY nomination.
His relationship with Ministry stretches back to the release of Sasha & Digweed’s legendary mix album, Northern Exposure, on Ministry of Sound Records. The double CD album is considered one of the greatest mix albums of all time and is a defining release of the 90s.
Sasha chose Ministry of Sound as the venue for his long-awaited reunion with John Digweed. 10 years after their last tour together, the two played a surprise B2B in our main room on 24th March 2016.
On Saturday 12th November, Sasha will return to Ministry of Sound for our biggest collaboration to date. As the headliner of our debut Sovereign event, we will present a night dedicated to celebrating his outstanding contribution to dance music and present him with the very first Sovereign ring.
RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA – October 20, 2022: MDLBEAST has just announced their headline acts set to perform at the SOUNDSTORM 2022 music festival taking place in Banban, Riyadh over the weekend of December 1-3.
This year’s SOUNDSTORM is the third edition of MDLBEAST’s flagship event and is anticipated to bring some of the biggest artists to Riyadh. Drawing in talents from near and far, SOUNDSTORM is the largest music festival to take place in the Middle East, and for some of the artists involved, it will be their first time ever performing in the Kingdom.
Delivering best in-class entertainment, this year’s lineup will be expanding even further to include cross-over genres, which will come to life through performances from some of the world’s bestselling artists including Bruno Mars, DJ Khaled , Post Malone and Wizkid.
Over the three-day event, a wide array of international names like Marshmello will be performing along with returning DJs such as Carl Cox, Solomun, DJ Snake and David Guetta. Saudi women DJs such as Biirdperson, DJ Cosmicat, Dorar, Kayan, and Solskin alongside their peers DishDash, Vinylmode and regional star DJ Aseel. More names are expected to be announced soon.
Talal Albahiti, Chief Operating Officer and Head of Talent Booking at MDLBEAST, said: “Saudi Arabia’s music scene has been thriving for the past two decades behind closed doors. With every edition of SOUNDSTORM, we further blow these doors wide open. It’s incredibly special to see music lovers enjoy this new reality, in a safe space with the highest standards of music entertainment.
“Talent is at the heart of everything we do at MDLBEAST. As well as bringing superstar global headliners to the Kingdom, it is also essential to us that we center our efforts on showcasing unseen talent from across the region.
“Feedback from the artists has been great so far. The buzz is real and is driving us to put on an even bigger and better show in 2022 for the whole world to come and enjoy.”
Organizers of the festival revealed that this year’s festival experience has almost doubled in size with more enhanced food & beverage offerings, open seating spaces to relax and parking on site for all General Admission ticket holders.
Also newly introduced this year, Premium and VIB ticket holders will now enjoy the festival on a connected network of elevated platforms and exclusive viewing areas at stages, on-site parking, and dedicated access at the exclusive VIB entrance. VIB Box guests enjoy the same benefits with the enhancement of private VIB Box valet and entry to their suites.
Last year’s SOUNDSTORM welcomed more than 730K attendees, with 89% expressing that the music festival was “an iconic and culture defining moment”, according to an independent study conducted last year analyzing MDLBEAST’s impact in Saudi Arabia.
SOUNDSTORM tickets were released on September 22nd in four tiers: General Admission, Premium, VIB, and VIB Box. The first batch of tickets dropped were specially discounted in celebration of Saudi National Day, making this batch the lowest-priced tickets of all the batches to come.
-ENDS-
About MDLBEAST:
MDLBEAST LLC is a music entertainment company committed to growing talent, building the regional scene, and advancing the creative economy. MDLBEAST was established following the success of its flagship festival, SOUNDSTORM, in 2019.
Through its focus on artists and talent, MDLBEAST is building a talent infrastructure and providing them with opportunities which put them on global stages. Similarly, through owned events and experiences, content, conversation, fashion, and more, MDLBEAST is helping to build a thriving, and economically sustainable music community in and for the region. MDLBEAST operates under its three corporate arms: XP Music Futures, MDLBEAST PRESENTS and MDLBEAST Record Label.
As ARTBAT’s imprint UPPERGROUND reaches its sixth release, the Ukrainian duo release their collaboration with one of the biggest names in dance music, two time Grammy Award winning artist David Guetta, and the highly influential and popular DJ, producer and actor Idris Elba, to create the authoritative and euphoric track ‘It’s Ours’.
ARTBAT have been showcasing their emotive brand of melodic house & techno around the globe this summer, taking in performances at Tomorrowland, Coachella, Exit Festival and more. Another highlight of this summer was when they performed an exclusive back to back session with David Guetta in July at the French DJs massively popular ‘Future Rave’ night at Hi Ibiza.
David Guetta’s ‘Future Rave’ movement began back in 2019, with him creating his blend of dark and electrifying techno and progressive house, which has served as an entry point for many of his fan base to delve deeper into the world of underground dance music and explore new sounds, which when seeing the crowds at the event, has clearly been a huge success.
Equally at Hi Ibiza on Friday night this summer, 7 Wallace label owner Idris Elba has been packing the Club Room each and every week, enthralling clubbers with his raw and energetic, bass line driven house music, which has complimented perfectly with the darker sounds of the Theatre room. The English artist has been serving a slew of dance floor weapons including notable tracks such as Body Shots, Biggest and On Life, which was also remixed by David Guetta under his Jack Back alias.
This is the first time a mega pop star, an actor and underground artists, from three very different sounding genres, have done such a collaboration, and you may ask yourself, how is this record going to sound? Between them all, they have created a quintessential hypnotic melodic techno track titled ‘It’s Ours’. A track powered by a sense of pious energy, using immense soundscapes and an unforgettable synth riff to encapsulate the crowd, before Elba’s inimitable and iconic voice conveys a message of freedom, energy, and thoughts that everything around that belongs to whole universe in the breakdown to bring unity and rapture for those listening on the dance floor.
Joshua Brooks has lined up a massive finish to what has been a big year for the influential underground club. Between now and New Year’s Day, the likes of PRUNK, Roni Size, Ben Klock, Darius Syrossian, a Kiwi Label Party with Conducta, Metalheadz with Grooverider and Commix, DRS, Whippin Records, Elliot Adamson, and a huge Halloween party are all lined-up. Head to joshuabrooks.co.uk and tap the events tab for tickets.
The new team behind Joshua Brooks has got the club right back to the cutting edge of the scene. The programming has brought a fresh mix of forward-thinking artists from across the spectrum to the city, while the raw basement space itself is an absolute haven for true music heads. The sound system is beefy and crystal clear, the crowds are always welcoming and ready to go long, and the year’s final season has plenty to look forward to for the rest of the year.
Amongst the highlights are the always-firing monthly Moxy Muzik parties with house hero Darius Syrossian and a special three-hour set from drum & bass royalty Roni Size with Dynamite MC on Saturday, 5th November.
PRUNK host on 26th November, and then on Saturday 3rd December, the one and only Metalheadz crew are in town with d&b dons Grooverider, Commix, Ant TC1, and Diverge with host Medic MC. Friday 9th is a celebration of the freshest garage as boss Conducta hosts the Kiwi Label Party, and on Tuesday 27th December, Berghain’s techno mainstay Ben Klock lines up.
Joshua Brooks host’s regular parties such as the weekly Blou with Elliot Adamson and Josh Baker. Plus a Supernature day party, Shermanology, a Whippin Records party, a visit from house legends The Shapeshifters, To The Deep with Miguel Campbell, Russ Yallop & Huxley, House Masters with Jon Pleased Wimmin, and plenty more.
Keep your eyes peeled for New Year’s Eve details and get booking tickets for New Year’s Day with Moxy Muzik head Darius Syrossian as it will sell out.
OCTOBER
Friday 14th – With Belters Only & Jazzy
Saturday 15th – Free party with Fletch & more
Thursday 20th – Blou with Elliot Adamson
Friday 21st – With Rendher, Rsqaured, Tre Reynolds & Luke Welsh
Sunday 22nd – General Levy
Sunday 22nd – Supernature [day party in the JBs bar]
David Guetta returns to the pinnacle after taking home the crown in 2019. Last year’s winner Vintage Culture takes second place, with Kryder coming in third place for the second straight year.
1001Tracklists have also released the ‘Future Of Dance’ List spotlighting 101 women and POC artists alongside the Top 101 Producers. Together with Corite they have created 1/1 NFT trophies for select artists, with all proceeds going to the ‘Future of Dance Fund’ to support underrepresented artists in dance music over the coming year.
The sold out celebratory Top 101 Producers event and livestream will take place on Thursday, October 20, with award presentations and surprises for all those in attendance in Amsterdam and watching at home.
The Top 101 Producers 2022 are here and there’s no denying the impact that David Guetta had this year across his solo releases, Future Rave collabs with MORTEN, and underground Jack Back records. With an unmatched output and a soundscape that touches all corners of electronic music, he’s a truly deserving champion.
The Top 101 Producers showcase the artists whose productions have been supported the most by DJs around the world. It’s a 100% data-driven ranking, and something that is very unique in the music industry. The rankings are calculated by summing up each artist’s unique DJ support between October 1, 2021 and September 30, 2022.
22 countries are represented in this year’s rankings, led by the Netherlands (25 artists) and the UK (24 artists) who had by far the greatest representation. Other countries which had strong contingents are Brazil (8 artists), the US (8 artists), France (6 artists), Italy (6 artists), Germany (4 artists), and Spain (3 artists). The following countries were also represented: Australia, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, Indonesia, Ireland, Morocco, Norway, Poland, Russia, Serbia, Sweden, and Ukraine
Coming in at #2 is last year’s champion Vintage Culture. He put together another incredible year of releases on Insomniac and Defected, highlighted by collabs with James Hype, GOODBOYS, and Sonny Fodera, and has been in serious demand on the club and festival circuit around the globe.
Finishing in third place for the second year in a row is Kryder. “Piece Of Art” was an enormous release for the Ibiza based DJ/producer and he has become one of the most sought after remixers in dance music.
After taking home his first Top 5 finish last year, John Summit has remained burning hot and moves up one place to finish at #4 in this year’s rankings. Singles “La Danza” and “Human” led the charge for the American who continues to impress with his consistent production output balanced against a packed global touring schedule.
Crossover record “The Motto” led the way for Tiësto, who rounds out the top 5 and who has now finished in the top 10 for every edition of the rankings.
2022 features 34 artists making their first appearance in the Top 101 Producers, as well as 9 artists re-entering the rankings. Westend at #16 is this year’s highest new entry, followed by Anyma at #22, Joshwa at #25, and Thomas Newson at #30. This year’s biggest movers are HUGEL, who is up 73 places to #20 this year, and James Hype who has climbed 61 spots to #6. ARTBAT rose 52 places to #42, CID is up 49 spots to #11, and ALOK has moved up by 32 places to #32.
To elevate the Top 101 Producers concept in 2022, 1001Tracklists has partnered with Corite, a blockchain based, fan engagement platform that combines traditional label services like marketing and funding with web3 products such as NFTs and play-to-earn mechanisms. Together, 1001Tracklists and Corite have created 1/1 NFT trophies for this year’s artists, many of which will be available to win via raffle at https://corite.com/1001 starting on Wednesday, October 19th.
On Thursday, October 20th, 1001Tracklists celebrates the Top 101 Producers with a sold out event at the Room Mate Aitana Hotel in Amsterdam. Headlining the event will be two of the hottest names in dance music, James Hype and MEDUZA. Also playing will be BYOR, Crusy, DubVision, Fancy Inc, Julian Jordan, Kryder, Lucas & Steve, RetroVision and a host of special back to back sets — Justri b2b Merow, RayRay b2b MorganJ, Thomas Newson b2b DONT BLINK, and Revealed presents Plastik Funk b3b Tim Hox b3b VINNE.
1001Tracklists are hoping to make steps towards changing the electronic music industry with the ‘Future of Dance.’ Released alongside their annual Top 101 Producers rankings, the platform has also published a list of the 101 Female and POC artists that have played a huge part in the dance music scene over the past year.
First conceived last year as a selection of 60 artists, for its second year, 1001Tracklists has ensured that the list is given equal weight as their Top 101 Producers by matching the amount of featured artists as well as publishing both on the same day. Born as a result of an ongoing lack of representation and empowerment within the music industry, the Future of Dance is not just a list – it’s a movement to inspire greater change in the dance music scene.
On Wednesday, October 19th, 1001Tracklists hosts its inaugural Future of Dance event at Soho House Amsterdam and will feature sets from some of the most inspiring female and POC artists over the last year including Andruss, AmyElle, Caiiro, ESSEL, Francis Mercier, George Mensah, Hannah Laing, Joyce Muniz, Juliet Sikora, Rayzir, Saffron Stone, and Selena Faider. Striving for more inclusivity in the electronic music community, 1001Tracklists has made it their mission to create global opportunities exclusively for minority groups, offering a platform for them to showcase their talent, as well as developing their careers further.
1001Tracklists and Corite are also teaming up to start the ‘Future of Dance Fund,’ a charitable collaboration project which will support and showcase 12 artists from November 2022 to October 2023. The fund will deliver financing, marketing, and other support to underrepresented dance music artists each month.
The Future of Dance Fund will come from the charity raffle for the Top 101 Producers & Future of Dance NFT trophies held at https://www.corite.com/1001. Individual funds raised from each NFT raffle will go directly into an aggregate pool, which will be split evenly between the 12 monthly selections receiving support over the upcoming year.
For more information about the Top 101 Producers, the ‘Future Of Dance,’ head over to: www.top101producers.com
About 1001Tracklists:1001Tracklists is the world’s leading DJ tracklist database, home to over 400,000 tracklists to date. While providing tracklisting and listening for festivals, radio shows, DJ sets, podcasts, and promo mixes, 1001Tracklists has built a comprehensive database and a devoted international community, firmly establishing itself as the Wikipedia of dance music. Because of its unique insight and transparent data, the 1001Tracklists website has become a trusted reference point, industry standard, and leading media brand in electronic music.
About Corite:The Corite platform empowers artists to engage their fans in new, mutually beneficial ways by allowing fans to become backers, supporting the artists’ vision, work and music. By launching fan-funded campaigns on Corite, artists can generate additional revenue streams prior to releasing music, allowing for enhanced marketing and promotional release strategies, while simultaneously rewarding their active backers with a portion of the royalties. The Corite platform employs fan missions that enable fans to earn fan power, which can be used for physical and digital rewards such as NFTs, digital merchandise, VIP tickets, meet and greets, and more.
JBM Music is delighted to announce the return of ‘Garage Nation’ to the iconic Manchester Albert Hall this winter, bringing a stacked lineup of garage heavyweights to the venue from 21:00-03:00 on Saturday 3rd December 2022.
‘Garage Nation’ will welcome garage lovers for a night of floor filling performances from some of the genres finest acts, including garage royalty DJ Luck & MC Neat, the duo behind the UKG anthem ‘A Little Bit Of Luck’, and Sweet Female Attitude, creators of the noughties classic and UK #2 hit ‘Flowers’.
Heading to Manchester’s beloved Albert Hall for another instalment of the renowned ‘Garage Nation’, this all-star lineup looks set to bring yet another phenomenal night to a capacity crowd of party people in the northern capital. With performances from DJ sets from Matt Jam Lamon, 24 Hour Garage Girls Ft Shosh,Girl’s Don’t Sync & a special live performances from Lisa Mafia & Romero from So Solid Crew! Further support comes from UKG favourites Kele Le Roc & Nay Nay
With Garage Nation returning for 2022 to join the abundance of widely popular events by UK brand JBM Music, the long-standing company continues to deliver a diverse range of events to party goers across the nation. Raising the industry standard within the UK dance scene throughout the years, JBM Music have quickly become a formidable force renowned for bringing big names with the venues and production to match on every occasion, with Garage Nation continuing this trend for its winter return at the Albert Hall. With tickets already on-sale and available here, garage ravers should grab their passes ASAP for what will undoubtedly prove to be another sold-out Albert Hall special.
A critical understanding of electronic music heritage, combined with his continued experiences in clubs around the world, means NHOAH is able to construct tracks that are informed by his lineage, while also offering a glimpse into the future. The delicate balance in his music creates moments of exhilaration, harmony and pure, undiluted dance floor energy.
Although he’s already got a few years under his belt, the new album will feature music that can and will determine future nuances in club music in 2022. A bold statement perhaps, but indicative of his prophetic approach, ‘flashbacks to the future’ as he calls it.
Ukrainian artist The Organism drops title track and announces his superb new album “Dictator” on his own label Organic Tunes. The seven track collection shows off his rich array of house styles in fine fashion.
The Organism has roots in the scene that go back 20+ years. By now he is an international name with credits on influential labels like Disco Halal & Diynamic, has had high profile support from the likes of Solomun, Dixon and DJ Tennis, and has had several tracks in the high end of the melodic charts on Beatport. This new album is a showcase of his hypnotic bass vibrations, exciting vocals and mystic ethnic sounds.
Dictator opens with silky drum loops and percussive tinkles that sink you into a clean groove next to bird calls, jungle humidity and playful bass. Ego has twanging synths and more organic sound effects next to another rolling and catchy rhythm. Polo heads into the heart of the late night dance floor with tech house drums and cosmic synth work before Hora then ups the ante once more with flashes of synth and techno energy over deeply buried drums. The atmosphere is detailed with ambient pads and rising tension.
Gopak is another infectious cut with well sequenced synth arps, succulent drums and an ecosystem of sci-fi effects that place you deep in the cosmos. There is turbulence to Speeech that will add drama to the dance floor, and finally comes Dictator (Bonus Version) which is a wonky and off beat tech house pumper.
The Organism’s Dictator is a left of centre house album with a unique electronic soul.
As we head into Halloween territory, BLOODSTOCK has dropped an absolute face slasher of a band announcement! Here’s the latest on what’s coming to Catton Park in 2023!
Swedish metal luminaries IN FLAMESland themselves Friday’s special guest slot on the Ronnie James Dio main stage. Last month, the band dropped a music video for new track, ‘Foregone Pt. 1’, taken from their forthcoming album, ‘Foregone’ which is set for release in Feb 2023. Perhaps BLOODSTOCKers will get to hear some new tunes live!
Saturday’s RJD main stage special guests are the mighty ANTHRAX! 2021 marked the band’s 40th Anniversary and to celebrate, they recorded the ‘XL’ livestream which was released digitally this Summer (and will be available on BluRay later this year). Check out their performance of ‘Aftershock’ here.
Also grabbing main stage slots on Sunday are Brazilian metal icons SEPULTURA, who recently played an incredible set at this year’s Rock In Rio together with the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra and Cali alt rock squad UGLY KID JOE, who release their new album, ‘Rad Wings Of Destiny’ later this month. Check out ‘That Ain’t Livin’, the lead track from that record, for all the AC/DC vibes.
Headlining the Sophie Lancaster big top stage on Friday are deathcore frontrunners WHITECHAPEL, who released their most recent album ‘Kin’ last October, investigate that here. Florida heavy rock squad NONPOINT, who dropped a high octane video for new track, ‘Paper Tigers’ recently, and Norwegian folk metal maniacs TROLLFESTalso join the bill on Friday. Be sure to bring a ‘Pina Colada’ for those guys!
NY hardcore legends BIOHAZARD are set to headline Sunday night on the Sophie stage, with their original line up! Check out their monster landmark track, ‘Tales From The Hard Side’ taken from their classic ‘State of The World Address’ album. Also landing a Sunday slot are retro sounds from the brothers and sisters of the CHURCH OF THE COSMIC SKULL. If you’re not yet aware, get a handle on their 70s psych rock with the video for ‘Sorcery & Sabotage’.
In addition, the grass roots music-supporting METAL 2 THE MASSES 2023 programme is underway! If you’re a self-released or unsigned band, throw your hat in the ring to land a slot on BLOODSTOCK’s New Blood stage next August. Regions announced so far are: CHESTERFIELD, NORTHERN IRELAND (Belfast), REPUBLIC OF IRELAND (Dublin), SHEFFIELD, HITCHIN, MANCHESTER, MILTON KEYNES, BOURNEMOUTH, LEEDS, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ESSEX (Colchester), KENT (Gravesend), BRISTOL, NORTH WALES (Wrexham), LEICESTER, STOKE ON TRENT, SOUTH WALES (Cardiff), NOTTINGHAM, DEVON & CORNWALL (Saltash), SCOTLAND (heats locally, final in Edinburgh) and LONDON. Full details of venues and who to contact to enter in each region, can be found here or on Facebook. Heats kick off soon!
BLOODSTOCK’s 2023 Ronnie James Dio main stage headliners are KILLSWITCH ENGAGE and MEGADETH, with the third to be announced in the coming months. Also appearing are DEVILDRIVER, FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY, DECAPITATED and GATECREEPER, plus over on the Sophie Lancaster stage, expect to see ZEAL & ARDOR, KING 810 and UNTO OTHERS. Many, many more are yet to be announced.
With tickets selling faster than ever, all VIP packages and campervan passes are already sold out and Early Bird tickets are down to their last few, at a discounted price. Grab yours now at the ticket store.
Title track ‘Cha Cha’ percolates and throbs, using a distinct vocal clip and exhilarating synth arrangements to create indelible memories. ‘Precious Unica’ brings in vocalist Lelah for a dour journey into our mind’s emotional centre.
‘Momentum Of The Arapaima’ merges unusual percussive elements with a moody bassline and an earworm vocal clip for ultimate dance floor effervescence.
Finally, ‘Majstor’ utilises minimal framework to awaken our primitive state, encouraging deep primal expression.
