DEADLINE LOOMS FOR UK CLUBBERS TO VOTE

While the EU referendum is a hot topic in the UK at the moment — we haven’t heard anything on the ramifications for dance music fans and touring DJs.

With the freedom of movement within the EU, both DJs and music fans have benefitted immeasurably from the ability to just pop on a plane and be in Berghain (if you can get in) or Space in just a few hours.

“While voting is everybody’s personal choice, the pitfalls of a Brexit remain unexplored for our international scene — and there could be many for existing Europe-wide relationships. After a so-called Brexit, you might need a visa to go to or play in Croatia or Ibiza,” explains DJ Mag’s Editor Carl Loben.

If the UK decides to leave the EU, the current paradigm of hassle-free European travel could be lost forever and, in turn, could have a major impact on your next trip to a festival in Europe.

“There are so many uncertainties,” warns Loben. “Don’t get bamboozled by the platitudes from a few ambitious, careerist politicians doing the bidding of billionaire offshore media moguls — make an informed choice yourself.”

Due to the way registration is now done, many young people have been unceremoniously taken off the register, and at midnight if you haven’t registered to vote it will be too late.

Something UK-based DJ and producer Doorly is all too aware of. “We will be paying dearly for this for the rest of our lives — so take five minutes and vote now, otherwise common sense and reason doesn’t get to have a say, purely because you didn't care enough yet.”

Not only could it be more time-consuming to get to festivals in the EU, there’s the cost implication of leaving the EU too, with many political commentators expecting a sharp fall in the pound if we decided to leave — making your next trip to Croatia that much more expensive.

The Volume Group co-founder Ed Jenkins, which manages artists including Doorly, Matador, Claptone and Josh Butler, is also concerned about the UK sleepwalking into a Brexit. “The artists we manage are from the UK and from Europe and thrive upon collaboration between fans, labels, promoters and media all over the world.

“Ours is a scene without borders and barriers, so to potentially see a division between UK and Europe seems crazy. We have to register to vote and make sure it doesn’t become reality.”

You can register to vote here.