Big changes are afoot at Drum&BassArena HQ and I’d like you to know about these personally.
We’re now in our 18th year of spreading the good word of drum & bass. And both the scene and our brand have never been healthier… As drum & bass enjoys more chart success and more creative diversity than ever before, and drum & bass fans have been enjoying their favourite music in many different ways, we’ve been covering new ground with our content, albums and events, too.
Basically, it’s never been a better time for drum & bass!
However, it’s not such a great time for download stores. In fact it’s never been harder to exist in digital retail and we feel our resources are much better spent on the many other Drum&BassArena operations such as Content, Compilations, Events and much more…
So, after a lot of thought, we have decided to wind down our download store. And, as of December 12, 2014, you will no longer be able to buy digital downloads from Drum&BassArena
It goes without saying that we want to give a massive thank you to every single one of you who has invested in music through our download store over the years. And you won’t be left high and dry if you still have purchases left to download… All download store account holders will be able to access their personal accounts and download any purchases until July 31, 2015.
Why are we doing this? Because we want to go back to what we were originally founded on and the amount of time and energy it takes to run a reliable download store doesn’t allow us to do this. We’ve had an amazing seven years in digital sales but the market has become tougher and tougher – especially now as most music lovers have moved to streaming platforms – and it’s taking our attention away from the sole reason I founded Drum&BassArena 18 years ago…
To celebrate and support drum & bass!
There are loads of great places to buy your beats. But supporting it, documenting it, promoting it and creating original, unique and authentic content for all of us true scene fans to enjoy is what this brand was founded on. I think it’s what we are best at, too: We were hosting webcasts, live mixes and video content long before any other brand – and this is what we’re going to continue to do.
This month you will see an amazing redesign of our website and forum. The new forum will give our huge community of dedicated drum & bass fans a brand new social experience with a great new look and heaps of new functions. While the site itself will allow this unique and exclusive content to take centre stage, quenching your thirst for exciting, unique and upfront drum & bass content. Events, podcasts, mixes, top 10s, photos, videos, reviews, competitions, tips, tricks, tracks and loads more.
Essentially, the new-look Drum&BassArena will remind the world that we are THE main destination for all things D&B with something new, exciting and exclusive to offer each and every day.
We can’t wait to reveal the new site in the near future. PLUS all of this cool stuff we’re planning right now…
Drum&BassArena 18th Birthday at Ministry Of Sound
First we celebrated our 18th anniversary in Bristol with Noisia, Calyx & TeeBee, Mampi Swift, Rockwell and DC Breaks. Then we took our birthday business to Barcelona to celebrate 18 years with Andy C and The Prototypes. Next up: the legendary Ministry Of Sound. On October 25 we’ll be taking over the infamous Box with an incredible line-up that celebrates every corner of our favourite genres… Fabio & Grooverider (classics set), DC Breaks, Rene LaVice, A.M.C and TWO special guests who will be revealed on the night. This one is going to go off extra hard… It’s a privilege to be celebrating our birthday at such an illustrious venue.
Debut Australian Tour
Between October 16 – 25 we will be shipping our brand down under for the very first time. Hitting the very best clubs in Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney, Perth and Brisbane with a killer line-up comprising The Upbeats, DC Breaks, Cyantific and Technimatic, this will be the first time we’ve taken our brand to Australia, and we can’t wait to deliver the goods to our Aussie friends!
D&BTV
From global live streams to rebooted exclusive archive content, D&BTV is adding more and more next-level content to its channel. With mixes and performances from the world’s most respected headliners and the most exciting emerging players, D&BTV is developing at a rapid pace, documenting and delivering the very best drum & bass sets from around the world.
Drum&BassArena 18 album
Following from the hugely successful Drum&BassArena 2014 and Summer Selection 2014 releases, our final album of the year will celebrate our 18 years longstanding status in the scene. As you read this I am collating an album of heavyweight proportions… We can’t wait to unveil it!
Drum&BassArena Awards 2014
Now in their sixth year, the Drum&BassArena Awards are one of the most essential cross-scene events on the annual drum & bass calendar. A gathering of the industry’s finest minds and biggest fans, not only does it give the drum & bass community a chance to show their love for the most well deserved labels and creative individuals but allows us to celebrate the entire scene. Watch out for this year’s campaign which will start this Autumn and climax with another yellow-carpet sensation in December.
All this and LOADS more… 18 years deep and still totally dedicated, Drum&BassArena is THE home for all shades and styles of D&B.
Thanks for reading.
The Risky