Editorial
Electrisize 2026: Big Festival Energy, Small Festival Heart
Electrisize Festival closed its seventeenth edition with a record 55,000 festivalgoers, over 150 artists, and eight stages in Erkelenz, Germany.
Electrisize Festival closed out its seventeenth edition this year with a record-breaking 55,000 festivalgoers, more than 150 artists across eight stages, and three full days of madness at Haus Hohenbusch in Erkelenz, Germany. Here’s my Electrisize Festival review of the perfect sunny weather, good music, incredible energy, good vibes, and that rare combination of large festival production with a truly intimate energy.
Getting There
I traveled from Den Haag in the Netherlands using public transit the whole way, one tram and two trains within the Netherlands, then a train from Venlo to Mönchengladbach, where someone picked us up and drove us to the hotel, about fifteen minutes from the festival grounds. Easy trip, and if you know me and have read previous articles, you know that’s not always the case.
That ease was no accident. Electrisize puts everything you need, from shuttle times to travel routes to the full timetable, right on their app and website, which made the whole trip feel effortless from start to finish. It’s a small thing, but it says a lot about how organized this festival is behind the scenes.
We stayed at Hotel Burg Wegberg, a castle that also happens to be a wedding venue. There was a wedding taking place while we were there, and the contrast between festival gear and wedding guests in the same hallway made for some funny moments. Breakfast was great, and the whole place had that old world charm you don’t expect to find fifteen minutes from a festival this size.
We didn’t camp ourselves (as an elder raver those days are behind me), but we walked through the Electricity Campsite and it was impressive. There was a stage right on site, a full grocery store stocked with everything including meat for the grill, and people had some serious camping setups, home away from homes. The energy over there was just as good as on the festival grounds.

Stages and Festival Layout
Electrisize now runs eight stages, and the range on offer is part of what makes it stand out. This year’s edition marked ten years of Hardsize, the hardstyle stage, and fifteen years of Tapuya, the techno stage, both getting special anniversary treatment.
The Mainstage was a set of towering spires in white, purple and orange that looked almost like a futuristic skyline, with fog and pyro shooting out between them throughout the day. Even in full daylight, with a blue sky behind it and thousands of people packed in front, the production still managed to feel massive and immersive at the same time. It’s the kind of stage design you stop and just stare at for a minute before remembering you’re supposed to be dancing.

My favorite stage of the weekend was Tapuya. The lineup was packed with artists I hadn’t heard before and loved every one of them, and Stage Producer Jan Weber introduced a new industrial concept this year that completely changed how the crowd experienced the DJ booth. The setup wrapped around the booth with different levels, so you could be right up close to some of the hardest techno on the lineup without needing VIP access at all. As Weber put it, “You don’t need VIP access to be right in the middle of the action.” And yes, there was a swimming pool backstage, something I have never seen at a festival before.
View this post on Instagram
Beyond the stages, the whole site was built for chilling out between sets. Hammocks and chill areas were scattered throughout the grounds, and the pop ups added a fun, unexpected layer, including a pull up challenge from XL Nutrition that humbled me. I could not even reach the bar.
View this post on Instagram
The Hardsize Stage brought out heavyweight names like Brennan Heart, Sickmode, Ran-D and Coone for the ten year anniversary, and by Sunday it was packed shoulder to shoulder between the old shipping containers. Coone summed up the energy afterward: “Wow, it was absolutely packed. I think they should turn the Mainstage into the Hardsize Stage next year. It was that busy. Every time I come to Electrisize Festival, I ask myself, can we make it even better than last year? And yes, it gets better every single year.”

Ten years of Hardsize was treated as the milestone it deserved to be. Throughout the weekend, MC Livid hosted the stage, one of my favorite MCs in the scene, and having him guide the crowd not only through th weekend but through a special ten years of hard dance history set made it feel like a truly special moment. The History of Hardsize – A Year Story was a special set consisting of Crest B2B Dropixx B2B Resensed bringing us all the classics we know and love got their moment, and it was the kind of retrospective that only really lands when the person leading it has been part of the scene the whole way through.

New this year was the Valley of Sound Stage, born out of a fresh partnership with the Austrian festival of the same name. It brought a small, intimate feel to the grounds, representing a festival that normally takes place up in the mountains, and it was a nice change of pace from the bigger stages. The Source, a new Experience Area tucked into the festival’s green surroundings, hosted workshops ranging from DIY pearl bracelets to Root and Bloom sessions, and every single slot was fully booked.
View this post on Instagram
One stage I did not expect at a mostly electronic festival was Thunder, a dark, indoor stage designed to look like a house, where live rock and metal bands performed all weekend. It’s not something you see every day at a festival like this, and it added a whole different texture to the lineup.
Camp Asbach was another favorite, a bar and stage in one, built out of an actual camper van, playing tech house and deep house in a cozy, low key setting that felt totally different from the bigger stages.
View this post on Instagram
For anyone chasing a change of pace, the Turbo Beach Club leaned into party hits, German classics and singalongs, the kind of stage where you go to let loose to songs everyone knows.
View this post on Instagram
The festival design overall was full of small, thoughtful details, the kind of thing you only notice once you start really looking around. We also took a ride on the ferris wheel and got to see the Mainstage from way up high, which gave a whole new perspective on just how big this festival really is. On top of that, there were fun pop ups scattered throughout the grounds, including an inflatable dart board and karaoke.
Music
The lineup moved across house, drum and bass, hardstyle, uptempo, house music and more, and there was something for everyone.
Showtek’s set was a standout, mixing the classics like Freaks on E and FTS with a lot of new music, and the energy never let up. We all went crazy to Sandstorm and L’Amour Toujours. When I sat down with them afterward, they told me they only had an hour and felt they could have easily played ninety minutes, especially once the crowd found its groove about thirty minutes in. They also spoke about what makes the Electrisize crowd different from other festivals on this scale: “I think the location is insanely awesome. There’s like an energy here that is really unique, and I feel like with the mixed type of DJs that are here, they can enjoy any type of sound. I think it’s great because right now it’s really hard to get all your favorite artists in one place. And if you look at the lineup here, it’s incredible.”
Brennan Heart’s set was another highlight. He played Nobody Said It Was Easy, and for once I actually made it through without crying, which never happens. He also played Wake Up, one of my favorite Brennan Heart tracks, and the whole crowd sang along to Time to Say Goodbye.
One of my favorite parts of the whole weekend was discovering new artists I had never heard before. I fell in love with Ben Techy and Kotorri, and Sonciz b2b Thyrze was also awesome and completely new to me. Finding artists like that is exactly what makes a diverse lineup worth it.
Food and Drinks
The food and drink options were plentiful, and everything ran on a token system, with four tokens costing 19 euro, so one token worked out to about 4.75 euro. Here’s a sample of what was on offer, though there were multiple food areas spread across the grounds with plenty more to choose from:
- Pizza (Margherita, Salami or Caprese) — 2 tokens
- Butter chicken — 3 tokens
- Spring rolls — 1.5 tokens
- Korean chicken tenders — 2.5 tokens
- Doner kebab — 2.5 tokens
- Currywurst — 2.5 tokens
- Pulled chicken sandwich — 2.5 tokens
- Fries with mayonnaise — 1.5 tokens
My personal festival favorite, as always, was the fries with mayonnaise, worth every token. Drinks ranged from beer at 1 token to cocktails at 2.5 tokens. My favorite drink of the weekend was the 24ice strawberry daiquiri ice slushie.

Atmosphere and Organization
What sets Electrisize apart isn’t just the headliners, it’s the way the festival is built around the guest experience first. I spoke with one of the founders Michael Frentzen about how the event started back in 2009 as a small open air party for 150 people, and how it has grown, organically, into 55,000. Despite that growth, he told me it still feels familiar. “It’s family, but it’s also a word that could be negative because you can’t choose your family, it’s a family I choose,” he said, describing what Electrisize means to him. “It’s not only with the team and the crew, it’s also with the audience. If I go to the festival ground, I almost know everybody.”
That family feeling showed up behind the scenes too. Frentzen told the story of the Saturday night fireworks Ceremony, which was delayed by a few minutes, not because of a technical issue, but because several members of the Electrisize team hadn’t made it off the Mainstage before the fireworks safety zone was closed. “I thought, where is everyone? I looked at my phone and saw the WhatsApp message, we can’t leave the stage anymore, the fireworks safety zone is in place. So I immediately called and said, stop. There’s not going to be a Ceremony tonight if the crew can’t watch the show together. The fireworks were already armed and everything, but that was never an option for me. Not without the team.”
Co-founder Raphael Meyersieck echoed that same sentiment, calling this year “the most beautiful, best and at the same time still the most family oriented Electrisize we’ve ever had.” Even as a first timer who has been to a lot of German festivals, I felt that vibe from the moment we arrived, everyone was so nice, I felt very welcome.

Fireworks and End Shows
Every night at 22:00, Electrisize put on an epic firework display, and it was one of the best parts of the entire weekend. Fireworks, laser beams and pyro all going at once, timed perfectly to the music. Friday’s opening show hit me harder than I expected, lasers shooting through the air, fire going up into the sky, and Don’t You Worry Child by Swedish House Mafia playing as the whole thing kicked off. Even though I couldn’t understand the German being spoken over the show, I got chills.
Each night, the fireworks went off in every direction, a wild amount of them, layered with a mix of different music during the ceremony. Everything was perfectly synchronized with the lasers and fireworks, and it was clear just how much planning went into pulling that off every single night.

Overall Impression
Electrisize proves that a festival can scale to 55,000 people without losing what made it special in the first place. It has all the production value of a major festival, eight stages worth of genre diversity, big name headliners, and still, somehow, that intimate, close knit energy that Michael Frentzen and Raphael Meyersieck built the whole thing on back in 2009. Moments like Time to Say Goodbye with the whole crowd singing along are exactly why you keep coming back to festivals like this. Plans for the eighteenth edition are already underway, running August six to eight, 2027, back at Haus Hohenbusch. This was my first time at Electrisize, and it definitely won’t be my last.
Subscribe to our Newsletter
Editorial
Seven Stars 2026: 7 Most Anticipated Sets at GRiZ’s Cosmic Campout
As the second annual Valley of the Seven Stars approaches, bass music fans across the country are prepping their gear and locking in their set times. Taking over the Oak Ridge Estate in Arrington, Virginia from October 8–11, this gathering marks the long-awaited payoff of GRiZ’s two-year hiatus. The event has quickly earned a reputation as one of the bass community’s premier “homie” festivals, trading commercial refinement for deep curation and authentic energy. Whether you are hunting for ground-shaking low end or sunset grooves, here are the 7 most anticipated performances to highlight on your schedule:
7. Richard Finger
Set Time: Saturday, 4:50 PM – 5:50 PM
Operating entirely behind anonymous masks, Richard Finger has become one of bass music’s most intriguing underground phenomena. The mysterious duo popped onto the radar with relentless sound design and uncompromisingly heavy drops, rapidly earning a rotation in festival sets worldwide. While internet investigators continue trying to uncover their true identities, the project lets the sheer sound of low end rhythm do the talking. Catching them in the afternoon heat on Saturday is guaranteed to wake up the crowd.
6. Hedex
Set Time: Sunday, 8:30 PM – 9:30 PM
Hedex has been at the forefront of the modern drum and bass explosion. He has been taking jump-up rhythms out of underground UK clubs and pushing them onto major American festival stages. This performance serves as the official launch for his North American “Nu Era” tour. Known for quick double drops and explosive crowd control, his Sunday slot will deliver a shot of pure adrenaline just as festivalgoers enter the final night.
5. GRiZ (Chasing The Golden Hour)
Set Time: Saturday, 6:05 PM – 7:20 PM
GRiZ has always known how to curate a vibe, but his Chasing The Golden Hour (CTGH) concept holds a legendary place in the scene. It was originally conceived as a mixtape series built around vintage samples, mellow hip-hop beats, and live sax riffs. CTGH offers a soulful counterweight to his heavy dubstep headline sets. Following packed-out demand at past events, this sunset window is made for collective unwinding. It is the defining emotional anchor of the weekend, best experienced surrounded by friends on an open hill.

4. Mersiv
Set Time: Saturday, 8:30 PM – 9:30 PM
DJ & producer Anderson Gallegos, known professionally as Mersiv, has carved out a dedicated subculture with his trademark “Pretty Dark Loud” sound design. Mersiv crafts sets that feel simultaneously meditative and heavy by combining hypnotic downtempo atmospheres with distortion-heavy basslines. Dropping into Saturday prime time, his set will steer the valley into its deepest, most psychedelic sonic territory.
3. Seth David (R&Bass)
Set Time: Friday, 1:00 AM – 2:00 AM (After Hours)
Returning to the Seven Stars lineup for a second run, Seth David brings his signature R&Bass sound to the Satellite Stage. The project fuses classic 90s and 2000s R&B vocals with sub-bass frequencies. This set gives night owls a refreshing alternative to the standard festival sound anding directly in the after-hours slot,
2. Distinct Motive
Set Time: Sunday, 6:50 PM – 7:50 PM
Hailing from Ontario, Distinct Motive has spearheaded the revival of pure 140 BPM sound system culture in North America. His productions emphasize sub-bass, surgical mixing, and deep roots in old-school UK dubstep. Since his anthem “Wait A Minute” dominated stages everywhere, his profile has skyrocketed. Sunday evening marks his debut on the mainstage, bringing chest-rattling low frequencies to the festival’s largest sound system.
1. Kaleena Zanders
Set Time: Thursday, 8:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Revered as one of modern dance music’s most captivating vocal powerhouses, Kaleena Zanders channels gospel roots through classic house grooves. With major collaborative releases alongside fellow headliners, her live sets go far beyond ordinary DJ performances. Slotted into Thursday evening, she will set an uplifting, soulful tone for the entire cosmic campout before the heavier bass takes over.
With four days of music spread across The Valley, pacing is going to be everything. Set conflicts are inevitable when a lineup has this much variety. Be sure to leave room in your schedule to wander between stages and stumble onto artists outside your radar.
Grab the official festival app to stay updated on any last-minute schedule shifts and look out for your crew.
View this post on Instagram
Subscribe to our Newsletter
Editorial
MiNT XL: Leeds’ Newest Nightclub Opens With A Bang
MiNT XL opens its doors in Leeds with a sold-out party for 2,500 ravers, as Craig Richards, Enzo Siragusa and Sonja Moonear launch the new nightclub
MiNT XL officially opened its doors on Friday, 25 September, with a sold-out opening party featuring names like Craig Richards, Enzo Siragusa and Sonja Moonear. 2,500 ravers gathered in the heart of Leeds city centre to experience the latest addition to the city’s rich rave culture, marking a memorable beginning for MiNT XL.
Taking over the former nightclub, PRYZM Leeds, MiNT set themselves the challenge of giving the venue a new identity through their own production and iconic signature. In an interview with EDM House Network earlier this year, MiNT marketing manager, Mikey McMahon said they wanted people to walk into MiNT XL and feel like they were part of something forward-thinking. There is no doubt they have achieved this, with the opening night already setting MiNT XL apart from other venues in Leeds.

Credit: David Dumitru
Exploring The Venue’s Layout
Arriving at the venue, you could feel the excitement in the air as people made their way into the club. Music was bumping through the walls and the night was just getting started. Walking inside, the dark environment immediately made it feel like a rave and not a regular nightclub.
Heading up the stairs from the entrance, we reached the main hall of the venue, which houses two of the three rooms at MiNT XL, as well as an open-air terrace. The ‘Clubroom’ was the first room people encountered on the floor, while the main room, also known as the ‘Ballroom’, sits to the left of the hall.
The second floor is a great extension of what the main floor has to offer, hosting the venue’s third room, ‘Cage’, as well as an additional bar with sofas and seating for those wanting a quick break from the dancefloor. The VIP area is also located on this floor, providing a comfortable chill-out space with its own bar and seating area.

Credit: David Dumitru
The Rooms at MiNT XL
1. Ballroom
The largest of the three rooms, the ‘Ballroom’ is a warehouse type of space hosting the headlining names on MiNT XL’s line-ups. Some of the lighting features that stood out as soon as we walked into the room included the large ring structure above the dancefloor, as well as the linear rigs placed horizontally across the ceiling, which rotate to create a wave-like effect through light.
Another standout piece of the room is the newly installed Funktion-One Vero sound system, delivering bass that pumps through your body and an overall premium sound quality. The same system can also be found in the other two rooms, where its impact is even greater due to their smaller capacities.

Credit: @elliotyoungphoto
2. Cage
Probably the most interesting room of the three, and our personal favourite, ‘Cage’ delivers an experience like no other. Its design feels unique and fresh out of the box, while still maintaining a lush feel. Throughout the opening night, the room was lit up with orange lighting, creating a somewhat comfortable atmosphere amid all the chaos going on.

Credit: David Dumitru
‘Cage’ also has a few sofas placed around the room, helping complete its luxurious feel. The cherry on top, however, is the fact that the space will often welcome DJs playing on vinyl. We had the chance to witness this live, and let me tell you, seeing the artists flip and swap records behind the decks totally elevates the experience.

Credit: David Dumitru
3. Clubroom
With a large light panel on the ceiling covering the centre of the dancefloor, ‘Clubroom’ is an ode to MiNT Warehouse, the brand’s second ever venue. Sharing similar characteristics, the room brings the MiNT Warehouse spirit to MiNT XL, carrying over the energetic vibes that have become a trademark of the brand.
While the room has a great design from a production perspective, the air conditioning isn’t felt as well in some corners, often making it a very hot space.

Credit: David Dumitru
4. Terrace
An open-air space with a nice view of some of Leeds city centre’s tallest buildings, the terrace is a well-arranged spot for those who want to unwind a little and take a breath of fresh air. Located close to the ‘Ballroom’, the path to the terrace can, however, become very busy at times.

Credit: David Dumitru
The Music at MiNT XL
The venue opened with the brand’s own event series, ‘system.’, taking over the decks. Across the three rooms, a well-curated line-up delivered the soundtrack to MiNT’s new beginning.
From the perspective of EDM House Network, our highlights were Foehn & Jerome at the ‘Cage’, Craig Richards B2B Francesco Del Garda at the ‘Ballroom’, and then back to the ‘Cage’ for a vinyl session with Fumiya Tanaka.

Credit: @elliotyoungphoto
Beyond the opening night, a wide range of renowned DJs are set to follow at MiNT XL, with the likes of Ewan McVicar, Riordan, Morgan Seatree and a Worried About Henry (WAH) takeover among those already announced. While so far only electronic music events make up the calendar, organisers have said they are excited to expand into new genres and live music.
Atmosphere Inside The Venue
MiNT XL operates a no-phones policy at all events, meaning attendees can fully immerse themselves into the music. Having experienced an event with such policy for the first time, it was impressive to see how big of a change it makes.
Seeing people living in the moment and having fun truly gave everyone a taste of what some mean when they say ‘raving was better in the 90s’. The no-phones policy genuinely made the night feel like a time machine that teleported us back to a time when people used to socialise and not chase Instagram clout at raves.

Credit: @elliotyoungphoto
With three state-of-the-art rooms, a 2,500-capacity venue, a sound system that blows the roof off and a no-phones policy, MiNT XL has real potential to become one of the best nightclubs in the entire UK. The opening party was not just the green light for a new venue in Leeds, but felt more like a statement that MiNT XL is here, and for good.
The club season is only just getting started, with a packed list of upcoming events already lined up at MiNT XL.
Friday 9 October – Marsolo Invites: Marsolo + more TBA
Saturday 10 October – Airspace: Notion, Kyle Starkey, Camille Doe + more
Saturday 17 October – Mint XL Presents: Cam Stockman b2b Tommy Phillips
Friday 30 October – Airspace: Riordan, Stef Davidse + more
Saturday 31 October – Ewan McVicar Presents: Halloween – Ewan McVicar, Special Request, Olive F
Saturday 7 November – Mint XL Presents: ALISHA, Robbie Doherty + more
Saturday 14 November – Mint XL Presents: Morgan Seatree + more TBA
Friday 20 November – Framework Presents: Ben UFO, Papa Nugs + more
Saturday 21 November – Jampacked Would Tour Leeds Edition: Jamback, Anil Aras, A For Alpha
Saturday 19 December – Framework x Mugpie Presents: Christian AB, Unai Trotti + more
Subscribe to our Newsletter
Amsterdam Music Festival News
EDM Festivals October 2026: Festivals We Can’t Miss
EDM Festivals October 2026: Festivals We Can’t Miss worldwide as major events fill the month across North America, Asia, Europe, and South America
October 2026 brings another busy month for the EDM festival calendar, with events taking place across North America, Asia, Europe, Africa, and South America. In the US, 808 Festival, Breakaway Utah, We Belong Here Central Park, Experts Only at the Gorge, Niteharts, Head Trip, III Points Miami, Escape Psycho Circus, BOO! Seattle, BOO! Arizona, and Hocus Pocus Miami fill the month. Meanwhile, EDC Korea and Chill O’posite Festival add major dates in Asia and Africa. No Art Lisbon and AMF represent Europe, while EDC Colombia and Ritvales bring two large weekends to South America. Here’s a full look at the EDM festivals taking place throughout October 2026.
808 Festival
Dates: October 2–3, 2026
Location: BITEC, Bangkok, Thailand
808 Festival returns to BITEC in Bangkok from October 2–3, 2026 for two days across two stages. The Phase Two lineup includes ILLENIUM, SLANDER B2B NGHTMRE, W&W, Argy, Ben Nicky, 999999999, Mesto, and KAAZE. Meanwhile, JUSTUS, RIVO, Dorian, Ian Asher, and Mary Droppinz are also confirmed. Several special performances are scheduled, including Adam Beyer B2B Chris Avantgarde and Nifra B2B Will Atkinson. Giorgia Angiuli will also perform live. More artists are still due to be announced before the festival returns to Bangkok in October.

Subscribe to our Newsletter
-
EDM Music3 weeks agoNew EDM Friday Sep 18: HALŌ, HUGEL, Sara Landry & More
-
EDM Festival News3 weeks agoLost Lands Announces Full Set Times and Streaming Details
-
EDM Festival News4 weeks agoTomorrowland Winter 2027 Dates and Ticket Sales Announced
-
EDM Music2 weeks agoNew EDM Friday Sep 25: Charlotte de Witte, Armin van Buuren & More
-
EDM Music4 weeks agoNew EDM Friday Sep 11: David Guetta, Armin van Buuren, Skrillex & More
-
EDM news4 weeks agoTiësto Revives ‘In Concert’ for 2027 Stadium Show
-
EDM Festival News4 weeks agoDjakarta Warehouse Project Unveil First Lineup Phase For DWP 2026
-
EDM news3 weeks agoNoisia Announces Return with Amsterdam Comeback Show




















