Event
Paul Oakenfold on Creamfields: ''CREAMFIELDS was unique. It was a gathering of the best DJs in the world and some of the finest acts. It was professionally run by the Mean Fiddler with the Cream logo embossed on the whole event. It was the best festival of the year, and one of the best gigs for the DJs. They all said it was incredible. "The feedback was amazing. People came up to me at Cream saying they wished they had been there. That's always a sign of a good event. "I wasn't on stage until about two, so I didn't get there until 11. I went out in to the site with my girlfriend to get the vibe, just walking around the stalls. That's really what festivals are about. One of my highlights was seeing the Dope Smugglaz in the VIP tent. They were the biggest surprise of the event. They blew the roof off! Everyone was talking about them for weeks. They mixed The Beatles with LL Cool J, right across the board. I signed them to Perfecto after seeing them.

"Dave Ralph was really good in the Courtyard. Monkey Mafia were cool - Jon Carter was just being Jon Carter! Norman was good, Pete Tong had it rocking. I didn't see Run DMC, but I heard everyone complain about them soundchecking over Sasha's set. But bands need to soundcheck. Whoever was playing would have had that. You've got to be realistic in those circumstances. Festivals are about the people, not an individual."

Object
According to the newspapers, Viagra was the new club menace. But did anyone actually see any?

News
Creamfields turns out to be the only major dance festival this year: Universe's three-day event is first rescheduled and then cancelled due to poor ticket sales
- London's Café De Paris announces plans to reopen the legendary Studio 54
- minus coke-snorting celebrities
- Tinky Winky of the Tellytubbies's picture is used on acid tabs
- India and Pakistan both conduct nuclear tests amid condemnation from the world
- The tabloids reveal that England's World Cup squad train to dance music. A favourite tune was Submerge's Victor Imbrez-produced 'Take Me By The Hand'
- Puscha engages in a war of words with the Ministry of Sound after quitting its residency there. The glammer-than-thou promoters blast Ministry's punters as "lowlife"
- The Drugs Czar slams E testing kits as an "immoral, money-making venture", promising to look into their legality

Year Review: 6/1998