The team behind acclaimed Midlands festival Forbidden Forest is changing the game again: We Are WHSE is a brand new series of events with real cultural significance right on Derby’s doorstep. This much needed, serious new space is a trailblazing home for cutting-edge sounds and it kicks off at the new warehouse venue Ultra on New Year’s Eve 2025.
Derby has long needed a flagship series like thousand it comes at brand-new 3,500-capacity industrial haven, Ultra. By tapping into the raw, stripped-back essence of original club culture but with state-of-the-art lighting, sound and production, the We Are WHSE events will be a proper hideout for those who are ready to truly lose themselves in the music and leave the outside world behind. The venue itself boasts exposed steel girders, corrugated walls and an atmosphere that channels early rave spirit.
Kicking things off in style, the We Are WHSE NYE Launch Party features a powerhouse lineup including new school house and tech disrupters Max Dean, Luke Dean, Gaskin, DXNBY and more all bring their edgy sounds to a suitably immersive space.
On the new series, the Forbidden Forest team say, “Derby has been crying out for something like this. We wanted to build something that feels real and rooted in the underground with the production and quality you’d expect from the Forbidden Forest team. We Are WHSE is exactly that.”
Founded in 2016 and set within the picturesque grounds of Belvoir Castle, Forbidden Forest has become one of the UK’s most respected electronic music festivals. Bringing together the biggest names in house, techno, tech house and d&b, it’s a true celebration of community, creativity and the unifying power of electronic music.
Those values will be at the heart of We Are WHSE. As part of a full 2026 event series, it will deliver regular shows featuring the most exciting names in electronic music spanning house, d&b and beyond, all solidifying its place as a key player in the UK scene.
No more long treks to Nottingham or Birmingham for top-tier events. We Are WHSE is a serious statement of intent from a brand built by one of the UK’s most accomplished festival teams.
