With the smashing success of music based video games such as Rock Band and Guitar Hero, many people are looking for the next logical step in instrumental gaming. Though we’ve been holding out hope for “Marching Band” and some sort of woodwind musical adventure , preferably “Oboe Master”; we think the folks at Activision have probably taken the more advisable route with their plan to focus on club music via DJ Hero. Come Fall ‘09 you’ll be able to bring the dance party to your living room, whilst spinning some hype beats from the comfort of your own couch. So forget those pumped up cover charges and invest in some serious surround sound, because you’re going to have a big beat blowout and we presume everyone’s invited as long as they don’t block the TV. Fricka, fricka, fricka fresh.

Via Uncrate

If you’re in Philadelphia this weekend, there’s one party happening that trumps any ordinary night out. For its third year DJ Tritton’s Zombie Butt Touch is moving from the underground warehouse to a major venue: the 941 Theatre. Tritton’s own team of make-up artists will zombify every party-goer willing to rock like the dead. Dance to a dozen DJs spinning everything from dubstep to psytrance. Notable acts include Native State’s KiloWatts and lyricist Amagine for a project called Super Galactic Expansive. This is one of those parties that will set the tone for the rest of the summer. Let’s go nuts.

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The DMC Championship has seen the world’s finest turntablists cut and mix their way to the top of the game, but only once was this honor taken by a 15-year-old kid. It was 12 years ago that DJ A-Trak’s muderous fingers led him to become the youngest punk-ass to win, jumpstarting his career, which now finds him on tour with Kanye West. The release of his new mix Infinity +1 follows a series of performaces across the U.S. and Europe, including half a dozen sets at the Winter Music Conference in Miami. This is a lot less chopped masterpiece and plenty more club mix, with tracks from Spinna, Mehdi, and current love interest Kid Sister, among others. Thankfully, this is not a slapshod mixtape, but rather an actual continuous mix. Remember those?

From dubbed out acid synth to the low key swing of French pop, Denver’s Spaceflight Orchestra (Bobby Collins) is sugary, rhythmic, and packed with the same hype, upbeat voice clips that are making a resurgance in general these days. For all its means, An Orchestra of One (Black Bridge) comes off sounding like P-funk more often than not. Now that we’ve filled your head with what to expect, maybe you should try it out for yourself.

A brand new store opens in downtown Manhattan tonight featuring a set by 20 year-old style queen DJ Harley Newton. The transplant from L.A. is quickly gaining hype through her regular DJ night at LIT and her recent score as a model for DKNY’s next campaign. Based on the opening, we can expect lots more great nights at this fledgling venue. Don’t miss out on this first one though. And be sure to rock your freshest gear. RSVP at DDCLAB [at] factorypr.com

Dude. Your table has balls. And why not? It was created for Red Bull DJs after all. Designed by Canadian creatives Cocoon, the table ventilates toasty laptops, sports plenty of space for an audiophile’s vinyl records, plus room to store giant CD booklets. And if you look underneath you’ll see a phallic cutout through which you can feed your laptop cord. Red Bull, Cocoon’s just given you wings.

via DesignBoom

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With countless volumes of compilations and the short-lived lounge hits that comprise them, few stand out in the world of down tempo. The prolific (yet not wasteful) collective of DJs and producers known as Jazzanova hold down one of the finest records of quality in this genre. It’s been a couple of years since they’ve released something other than a remix album, and it’s about time we heard something new. In a brand new effort to fuse instrumentalists, mixing, and production, the crew drops Of All the Things, tomorrow, October 21st, giving us all a solid replacement for that Ibiza Chill-out Lounge Volume 134 we were thinking of picking up.

Out today is Mr. Scruff’s Ninja Tuna. His first LP in six years, the marathon DJ is releasing his album on a brand new label (also called Ninja Tuna) which is his brainchild in collaboration with Ninja Tune, a label considered the standard for DJs, hipsters, and aficionados alike. The album features the familiar funk and dance style of a classic Scruff, not venturing too far from his previous Trouser Jazz, but certainly showing more developed production know-how. You can pick up the album through Ninja Tune. More at mrscruff.com.

The stress of pronouncing the strings of consecutive consonants in DJ Sasha Crnobrnja’s name are easily remedied with a simple name cutting simple breaks. Cosmic Rocker’s Action Breaks Remixes EP explores a fun side of down tempo that plays like something between K&D Sessions and a less ornate take on Wagon Christ’s style. Stuff that may have had its finest hour at least a decade ago, but if you remember correctly (as I do), was totally head-bobbingly awesome. Just play track 2, “Tonic”– note a break you’ve heard at intervals from Brand Nubian to Vibert to Spank Rock, and try not to tap your sneaker. It’s gonna be hard.

The most delicate challenge that all music festivals organizers have to overcome is putting together a lineup that pleases a large enough number of John and Jane Musicfans, but also convinces them the ticket is worth the price. It’s a make-it or break-it deal and determines whether the festival will be staged again in the future. But let’s say you got to play curator and put together your own show befitting your tastes — seems like a shoe-in success, right? That’s precisely the approach the promoters of Sao Paulo’s annual Skol Beats electronic music fest is taking for this year’s event, set to take place at the end of September. It could set a regular concept into motion for other music fests. Skol Beats just opened a special forum on their site this week to let the public discuss potential headliners and other supporting acts (even options for VJs and possible formats like indoor/outdoor, hours and venue). Fans are already excited about the idea of Justice, Erlend Oye and Air adding their names to the roster for an event that, in the past, has included acts like The Prodigy and Sao Paulo’s own DJ Marky. Skol Beats will present a shortlist of artists culled from the discussion for a final vote later, with results to be shared August 22. See, this is the kind of election that we can really get behind.

I’d consider Eric San (aka Kid Koala) a musician more so than the limiting definition of DJ. His turntableism breaks free of the traditional ideas of scratching the latest club hits. Born in Vancouver, Canada, Kid Koala was the first North American act signed to Ninja Tune and has been releasing innovative works since 2000. I was lucky enough to attend the LA release party for his latest album, Your Mom’s Favorite DJ, and it was quite the experience. The two gapless tracks, made to mimic the two sides of an LP, include spoken audio snippets from movies and music, and samples that run the gamut from jazz to grunge rock. His stage presence is positive and he has a cheery and uplifting demeanor. His transitions are flawless, employing three turntables and a mixing board. Despite listening to the CD in my car numerous times, I am still surprised with each transition since it’s hard to partition 50 minute tracks. Take a look at his first major release, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, and move on to Your Mom’s Favorite DJ. You’ll see the evolution of one of the most innovative and sought-after turntable masters.