The latest instalment of Toolroom TV is here, bigger and better than before!

Episode 3 heads to the International Music Summit where Wally Lopez gives the lowdown on being part of the Toolroom family, the evolution of Ibizan clubbing plus the legendary Paul Oakenfold offers invaluable advice about the spiritual ethos of the island. Next up at the World Heritage Site, Dalt Vila, global superstar David Guetta tells all about underground sounds project Jackback Records, big room tunes vs dark beats at F*ck Me I'm Famous Pacha, his residency at Ushuaia!  A brief break from Ibiza and back to London for the premiere of ‘Ecstasy’ at Ministry of Sound where Toolroom TV catch up with director Rob Heydon, lead role Adam Sinclair and even Felix of Basement Jaxx fame. 

Not even time for a cup of tea before Toolroom head back for some Balearic action with Mark Knight who gives the lowdown on his latest album along with a snapshot of Ibiza vibes at the legendary Space. Carl Cox gives an in-depth insight to Ibiza and the Space Opening Fiesta, and as if all that wasn't enough Toolroom TV also gets behind the scenes at Toolroom Knights' opening party at Space; Jack Savidge from Friendly Fires talks apples and oranges, Grandmaster Flash lets in on reading a crowd, Miguel Cambpell's offers past and present influences, and Mark Knight praises the Ibiza party ethos of open-minds and eclectic music.

But why you still reading about it all, watch it for yourself!

Celebrate Toolroom Knights 6th Birthday at Ministry of Sound on October 6th! For more info and for tickets, just click here!

This summer is certainly shaping up to be a hectic one! From the Olympic & Paralympics games to the countless number of red hot music festivals around the country and the best club nights right here at Ministry of Sound – it’s no wonder we all need to relax, and help is at hand! The Chillout Session features 3CDs of handpicked melodic, down-tempo tracks and the hottest laidback anthems, perfect for those long summer days.

CD1 is full to the brim with some huge recent hits including Lana Del Ray’s smash debut single ‘Video Games’, followed by the stunning vocals of Eva Cassidy’s ‘Songbird’. Ed Sheeran slows down Example’s ‘Last One Standing’ with his chilled out remix while up and coming artist Nina Nesbitt offers soothing folk with ‘Apple Tree’ - perfect for winding down to.

After indulging yourself in some of the hottest music from recent years, CD2 is an intoxicating mix of both past and present tracks. On one hand you’ll find yourself on a nostalgic trip down memory lane, reminiscing to all-time anthems such as Faithless ‘Drifting Away’, Chicane ‘Poppiholla’ and Royksopp’s ‘Porr Leno’. On the other, you’ll be soothed by a collection of future underground cult classics, from Jessie Ware’s down-tempo electro smasher ‘110%’ to the exceptional pairing of Gil Scott-Heron & Jamie XX. 

Last but definitely not least, CD3 will make you fall in love all over again with its slick set of super smooth, seminal chillout anthems, as the likes of Dido’s captivating ‘Here With Me’ segues into a selection of stunningly beautiful tracks that’ll have you saying ‘Oh, I forgot how much I loved this one’. As the journey continues through a beguiling blend of nostalgic house tunes from the likes of Mylo and The Avalanches, CD3 wraps up  the perfect collection of chilled out anthems, whether you’re having a lazy Sunday afternoon or winding down after a heavy weekend.

The Chillout Session is out now. Click here for your copy 

They said it was going to be a wet weekend last Friday and Saturday but thankfully it held itself together for the first of this year’s London festivals, Lovebox. Every year the three day weekend comes to town with unbelievable line-ups crossing a lot of boundaries and opening up exciting artists to those that may not normally get the full experience.  People seem to be dead set on moaning about the club scene at the moment about the fact it feels generic, overly commercialised and a bit ‘lost’ in some respects. However... a day in a park has changed all of that!


There is a lot of house music floating about at the moment with the reference ‘deep house’ being loosely thrown about the houses. (No pun intended) However, the real sound of the deep hasn’t really been‘re-discovered’ it has just been recreated with pop vocals and deemed the new sound of clubbing. A tad saddening and a little corruptive in some opinions which is why when walking into the NYC download tent on Saturday at Lovebox, it was like being timewarped back to the real essence of what has been missing.  Throughout the day sets from Joy Orbison, Prosumer and Move D were all unique and completely off the hook but the finishing touch from Dixon was out of this world.  Closing the tent before he trotted off to Ministry of Sound’s official after party, Dixon cleansed the crowd with a captivating set that took you through several emotions from his first track right to his last which was an amazing Michael Mayer remix.


For the first time Damian Lazarus, Gerd Janson, Miguel Campbell and Dixon all played at Ministry of Sound club a slightly different mix of music policy from the regular Saturday night line-ups.  For those who follow Lazarus, an expected fruitfully odd set full of his weird and wonderful experimental vibes were on the cards, yet this was not the case with him playing one of the best sets heard in the main room this year. Perfectly picking up the crowd from a long day, he steered away from the obvious and kept his audience on form ready for DIXON. Now this is a man who oozes of coolness from his threads down to his analogue mixer that only he of course would use. Playing straight after Lazarus from the side, you could see him taking the club in and picking carefully his first track blew everyone away. Finishing up about 7am it was by far one of the best nights the club has had this year and one of the best nights in London for a long time.


Check out this Dixon mix of Saschienne’s track ‘Unknown’ and fall in love just like we did.

Sunday 18th September 2011. 20 Years Of House. All distilled into one precious night. And what a night it was.

Old friends, the club's founders, many of the legendary DJs who have helped to shape the club and its music policy over the years, current residents, staff both past and present and many music industry faces all came together to mark the making of dance music history as Ministry of Sound celebrated our 20th Birthday.

Right from the very start of the night the scene was set for a heady return to the halcyon days of Ministry's early days. The vibe from start to finish was electric, with a crowd that was solely dedicated to having a good time. And they definitely did - all you could see all night long was a sea of smiling faces, hands in the air and happy feet!

There was a sense that anything could happen, and in a sense it did - Jamie Principle put on an incredible live PA of 'I'll Take You There' with Frankie Knuckles, longtime resident Nippa drove a miniature tank through the club just because he could and our co-founder Justin Berkmann ripped up the 103 as if the past 20 years hadn't even happened.

And the magic continued in the Box. They say that 3 is a magic number - and so it proved as the night's headliners CJ Mackintosh, Frankie Knuckles and David Morales gave us a masterclass in just how house music should be done. Playing the kind of tracks you don't hear at most clubs anymore, what they gave us was a return to our New York, Paradise Garage-inspired roots of soulful, vocal, uplifting, feel-good, foot-stomping house. The infectious groove of the music filtered through the legendary sprung dancefloor and stacked speaker system, through the rainbow-hued lights and lasers into your feet, hands, chest, face until it became a very part of you, putting a smile on your face and your hands in the air. Which was filled with piano hooks, old skool drum breaks and 808 machines as the sheer simplicity of pure house music shone through in all its glory. This could just be our rose-tinted glasses talking, but back in our early days it really did feel like house music was there purely for one reason: to make you feel good. To lift you up, to make you dance, to make you revel in the moment and the music.

And we did, until David Morales ended both his set and the night with a moving tribute to his longtime friend and our co-founder Justin Berkmann (who had not long finished playing an incredible set of his own in the 103). As he praised Justin's vision of bringing what was a totally unique concept in clubbing to the UK, we got goosebumps all over - and not for the first time that night. With the club currently under threat from property developers and facing future closure, Sunday night was even more special, even more poignant, even more precious than it would have already been. A perfect night of celebration captured and crystallised in the clubbing sands of time.

And so I say, here's to you, Ministry of Sound - and to everyone who has been a part of your history - and once again Happy Birthday. Sunday night reminded the clubbing community just exactly how special you are - let's all hope that you really will be around for another 20 years.

To sign the petition to save Ministry of Sound, click here.