Exit Festival
Location: Petrovaradin fortress, Novi Sad, Serbia
Date: Thursday July 12 – Sunday July 15 2012
Tickets: £95 + bf (standard tickets)
Visit: www.exitfest.org
The long-running iconic Exit festival sees a multitude of stages and arenas take over the Petrovadian Fortress outside Novi Sad in Serbia. Exit offers everything from huge headlining mainstream acts to the chance to spend time with new names and acts on the rise.
You’ll be able to check out names such as Avicii, Plan B, Little Dragon, Laurent Garnier, Felix Da Housecat and Kenny Larkin. There’s rock, there’s alternative, there’s dance, urban, Latin music…you get the picture. Exit really is THE European festival. It’s also much more than just a music festival, with cinema screens and all kinds of performance art available at Exit. The festival has also been at the forefront of a range of social campaigns, campaigning in Serbia and throughout Europe since the inception of the festival in 2000.
Despite the cavalcade of stages and arenas, the festival has managed to maintain a village feel, and the site is close to beaches, forests and the historic town of Novi Sad. A festival tourist service means that everything is taken care of for festival-goers, covering as it does tickets, flights, transfers and accommodation. With so much on offer, Exit is a must visit event.
Monegros Desert Festival
Location: Monegros desert, Huesca, Spain
Date: Saturday 21 July, 2012 (from 5pm – 20+hours non-stop raving)
Tickets: 70 euros
Visit: www.monegrosfestival.com
Monegros Desert Festival is the biggest dance music festival in Spain. Set in the desert between Madrid and Barcelona, the Monegros festival is a 20+hour non-stop sunset to sunrise party for those who truly, honestly, deeply love their electronic music.
Line up includes the massive Prodigy, 2ManyDJs, Ben Sims, Caspa & Rod Azlan, Dubfire, Loco Dice, Richie Hawtin and loads more.
Join 4,000 people under the stars this summer for the biggest party this year.
Benicàssim
Location: Benicàssim, Costa Azahar, Spain
Date: July 12-15
Tickets: £155
Visit: www.benicassimfestival.co.uk
Benicassim, or the Festival Internacional de Benicassim to give it its full name, has been a fixture on the European festival scene since 1995.
There is a whole range of music from right across the musical spectrum. Aspects of pop, dance, hip hop and electronica are evident, with iconic names from the UK, Europe, UK and worldwide. The line up of acts such as De La Soul, David Guetta, Florence & The Machine and Dizzee Rascal mean that those looking for a holiday and a festival in one will be in seventh heaven.
Camping and caravans as well as a range of hotels are available at the site near Valencia, which offers stages, a silent disco, a marketplace and more – all in one place.
The organisers say: “Cities can be born a thousand and one times; reconstructed from their ashes or reinvented through imagination. The reborn Benicàssim that we know today owes as much to its sun, surf and sand as it does to Oasis and Leonard Cohen; as much to its peculiar mountain range, polka-dotted with caves, crags and cliffs, as to the magic of Björk and the howling of Jon Spencer; as much to the Las Palmas desert as to the Festival’s concert venue.”
Outlook Festival
Location: Fort Punta Christo, Pula, Croatia
Date: Thursday 30 August – Monday 3 September 2012
Tickets: £135 + bf
Visit: www.outlookfestival.com
Outlook Festival returns to Croatia towards the end of summer 2012. The leading bass music and sound system culture festival is now in its fifth year, and has been all over the social media networks with its amazing DJ competition. Expect drum and bass, dubstep and beyond.
The line up includes Fat Freddys Drop, Jah Shaka, Skream, Andy C, Joker, Mungos Hi-Fi, dBridge, and these names alone help to reflect the diverse ethos of Outlook. There is much more on offer, and the names above are just the tip of the iceberg. This festival is just the thing for those looking for the feel of the big city in an outdoor, away-from-it-all location.
The unparalleled artists are spread across a number of stages and are complimented by a series of boat parties. You may know of some of the artists on the outstanding line up but the sheer range on offer means that you will discover something new. The beautiful setting acts as a counterpoint to the electronic selections on offer.
The team behind Outlook are also bringing you Dimensions Festival in the same abandoned fort setting, which will bring even more bass goodness to devotees old and new.
Sun & Bass
Location: San Teodoro, Sardinia, Italy
Date: Saturday 1 September – Saturday 8 September 2012
Tickets: 149 euros
Visit: www.sunandbass.com
With stunning beaches and the best in drum and bass, Sun & Bass has wall-to-wall dnb with all styles and genres covered. Festival-goers will be able to take their pick from such luminaries as Bailey, Alley Cat, Black Sun Empire, Marcus Intalex, Marky and Seba.
Drum and bass heads from around Europe and the rest of the world will be offered the chance to see friends old and new, check out old-skool sets as well as the freshest new talents on the scene.
Sardinia is the perfect setting for the twinning of the sun and bass elements. The climate, matched with the beaches and sites of the island, mean that you’ll be able to match all the dancing by night with relaxing by day. All of the festival’s venues are within easy walking distance and include the Hotel Al Faro, Ambra Day and Ambra Night. The festival is rightly famous for truly epic beach parties which stretch beyond anything else.
1Xtra’s Bailey certainly is a fan of S&B. The presenter is quoted as saying “It’s definitely special, man! It’s a proper drum and bass holiday. You can take as much or leave as much as you want of the drum and bass and the holiday sides. It’s nice, man!”
