New Years Eve is a time for champagne and celebration, but it’s also become an excuse for hardcore partying, and, of course, dance music. (Which holiday will be next?) This year your options are better than ever, so we’ve gathered a list of our DA-approved parties for cities all over the USA. This first part of our guide focuses on events out West, and we’ll have a roundup of East Coast options as a followup. Of course, we’ve just gathered a select few elite parties and there’s a whole lot more of them out there, so check out Wantickets’ list to see all your options.

Las Vegas

RINGING IN 2012 WITH XS NIGHTCLUB (Purchase Tickets)

Friday, Dec 30: Sebastian Ingrosso
Saturday, Dec 31: Steve Angello
Sunday, Jan 1: Afrojack
Monday, Jan 2: Deadmau5

Why you should go:

1. Ingrosso
2. Angello
3. Afrojack
4. Deadmau5
5. You shouldn’t need anymore reasons.

Why you shouldn’t you go:

1. You hate house music.
2. You’re not 21 yet.
3. You’re at Marquee seeing Kaskade

KASKADE NYE AT MARQUEE NIGHTCLUB (Purchase Tickets)

Why you should go:

1. “Turn it Down” is one of the songs of the year and Kaskade is the mastermind behind it.
2. He has three small children… someone has to pay for those Xmas presents.
3. Kaskade is known for giving phenomenally good live performances.

Why you shouldn’t go:

1. You’re feeling like a quiet night in.
2. You’re seeing Steve Angello at XS
3. You’re not 21 yet.

Los Angeles

WHITE WONDERLAND (INSOMNIAC EVENTS) at ANAHEIM CONVENTION CENTER (Purchase Tickets)

Insomniac is ripping off paying homage to Sensation White with a brand-new New Year’s Eve festival, White Wonderland. While the lineup may not be as “sensational” as the real thing European version, it’s still pretty damn good.

Saturday, December 31: Paul van Dyk (!), Benny Benassi, Kaskade, Dada Life

Sunday, January 1: Steve Angello, AN21 & Max Vangeli, Thomas Gold, Tara Brooks

Why you should go:

1. Paul van Dyk’s set will probably be a spiritual experience.
2. You’re over 21, and you don’t want to ring in the new year with sweaty teenagers.
3. Thomas Gold’s set will be better than Steve Angello’s. That’s not a jab at Steve, but rather an indication of how ridiculously good TG is.
4. It’s always fun to party dressed in white. It adds a certain classiness to the affair.

TOGETHER AS ONE (GO VENTURES) at OAK CANYON PARK (Purchase Tickets)

Together As One (TAO) used to be a co-produced by LA’s two biggest promoters — Insomniac and Go Ventures. Following the Monster Massive fiasco misunderstanding, however, Insomniac has relinquished all affiliation with the one-day event. We can confirm that Go Ventures has entered an agreement with a venue — meaning the event isn’t just hypothetical. We fully expect this one to go ahead as scheduled.

Saturday, December 31: Dirty South, Duck Sauce, Chromeo (DJ set), Felix Da Housecat, Bloody Beetroots (DJ set), Funkagenda, LA Riots

Why you should go:

1. The lineup is much more eclectic than White Wonderland’s. You’ll get progressive, electro, house, and everything in between.
2. You’re not 21.
3. You’re looking for a “rave” atmosphere, as opposed to White Wonderland’s “club” atmosphere.

Why you shouldn’t go

1. The security checkpoints at TAO last year were a disaster. Even if you go without anything on the banned items list, you still had to wait for up to two hours in poorly-managed lines.
2. You’re a progressive house junkie, and don’t want to listen to anything else.

JOHN DIGWEED AT AVALON HOLLYWOOD (Purchase Tickets)

John Digweed comes from a time before DJs were global celebrities. He comes from a time in which the music did the talking. A time when less was more. A time when fist-pumping was socially appropriate only if it came with the requisite amount of groove.

Why you should go:

1. You like dancing like someone trying to shake off the effects of a general anesthetic.
2. You’re not a newbie, and need a little more subtlety from your dance music
3. You’re a music snob

Why you shouldn’t go

1. The crowd at the Avalon is notoriously ‘diverse’ — meaning at any moment, you could find your backside subjected to the unwanted gyrations of someone else’s crotch.
2. You’re looking for variety, and need a bunch of different sets to keep you entertained.

 

San Francisco

NYE WITH RUBY SKYE (Purchase Tickets)

 
Thursday, Dec 29: Nero
Friday, Dec 30: Wolfgang Gartner
Saturday, Dec 31: Cedric Gervais
Sunday, Jan 1: Fedde Le Grand

Why you should go:

1. You happen to live in San Francisco and also happen to love EDM.

2. Ruby Skye is a fantastic venue and they have lined up some great acts for New Years.

3. You want to get a wide sampling of EDM. Dubstep Thursdays, Electro Fridays and Progressive Sundays.

4. Your favorite EDM website (Yes, I’m referring to Dancing Astronaut) is teaming up with TORQ to bring you Nero on Thursday and we know how to get it done.

Why you shouldn’t go:

1. You happen to live in San Francisco but also happen to hate EDM.
2. You don’t live in San Francisco.

Doing something different for New Year’s Eve? Be sure to shout it out in the comments!