You have to hand it to Tiësto: despite being an all-conquering trance god for many years, the Dutchman was no longer feeling the music he was playing around the world back in 2010.
'Levels' might have been the track that catapulted him to superstardom in 2011, but it's perhaps this year's 'Silhouettes' that best sums Avicii, and indeed the whole EDM 'explosion', up.
Of all the winners of the DJ Mag Top 100, David Guetta has been arguably the most controversial. Not for what he's said, or what he is, but for what he does.
You wouldn't think that, having dominated the international dance scene for nigh on a decade, the Dutch DJ elite like Tiësto, Ferry Corsten and Armin van Buuren would really be suffering from what
Sonny John Moore might have three Grammys under one arm and Ellie Goulding on the other, but it wasn't the gongs and the celebrity girlfriend that really confirmed Skrillex had reached a whole new
Willem Rebergen has stormed up the Top 100 this year, illustrating perhaps that the influence of the hardstyle splinter of dance music is gaining further momentum.
In June this year, the Swedish House Mafia announced they were to split. It was unexpected. So for them, 2012 signified having done what they set out to do.
"My year's been another super one, seeing how, in the US, dance music keeps growing and growing and to be one of the ambassadors of the sound here has been very rewarding," beams trance star Markus
One of Paul van Dyk's principal achievements this year has been the release of his sixth artist album, 'Evolution', and the ongoing global dates he's played to support it.
This is Aly & Fila's third consecutive appearance in the Top 100, and as such the Egyptian pair are doing as much for their country's electronic music scene as anyone out there.
André Tanneberger's back catalogue stands as a testament to his continuing productivity, with eight studio albums and six mix compilations spanning a successful 15-year international career.
"I did a lot of shows around the world in both Americas, Asia and Europe," beams Russian firebrand Arty, quantifying the highlights of his 2012 so far.
Ryan Raddon's rise from purveyor of deep, soulful house music for the likes of San Francisco's Om Records to euphoric stadium gauge EDM (taking in remixes for the likes of Katy Perry and collaborat
Multi-award-winning DJ/producer Calvin Harris has had another momentous year, culminating in the imminent release of his new album '18 Months' that features a veritable who's who of modern pop musi
Knife Party is probably one of the worst-kept secrets in dance music: If you don't know, we aren't about to spoilt it for you, but this Australian, electro house cum dubstep duo are not exactly new
Regardless of what you may think, the sound Chuckie has made famous across the world in recent years, dirty Dutch house, is not just about house music.
In just a few short years, party-starting house duo Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike have been propelled well-and-truly into the big league. "It's been an amazing year," they confirm.
2012 has seen Nic and Bossi touring last year's 'Wake Your Mind' album globally. Playing over 140 shows this year, it's a wonder they can pinpoint their favourites.
He might only just be out of school, and he might be seen as one of the figureheads of the new EDM craze sweeping America, but that's not stopping Porter Robinson from evolving his own way.
In terms of Dutch hardcore, it doesn't get much hardcore-r than leading exponent Angerfist, mixing techno with gabber, euphoria, industrial and straight-up hardstyle, accompanied by MC Prozac's dar
Listening to their latest album 'Army Of Mushrooms', it seems Infected Mushroom have caught a case of the wobbles, since tracks like 'U R So Fucked' on the Israeli-born, California-based Amit Duved
Tucked away in a hidden location (probably) somewhere in the environs of Paris, France, Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo have this year mostly been working hard on an album they're
Carl Cox is as chatty and buzzing as ever when DJ Mag catches up with him: Not bad given his long service to electronic music and enduring place in the Top 100. So what's his secret?
Twin sisters Miriam and Olivia Nervo are delighted when we get in touch to inform them that they've been voted into the DJ Mag Top 100 DJs list this year - and have come in as the Highest Female DJ
Pete Tha Zouk has had a busy year. Ricocheting between the studio and the airport, so he can fly off to one of his well-attended gigs, he says he's had hardly any time to think.
While Bobina, or Dmitry Almazov, has had another busy year as part of the Russian DJing elite, with bookings and releases galore, his highlight of 2012 has a more personal tone.
Russia's DJ Feel, aka Philip Belikov, has been a regular in the Top 100 for the past few years, with his success tied in with burgeoning Russian and Eastern European scenes.
Wolfgang Gartner is five-years-old. Well, the moniker is, and after plenty of hard work for the man behind it, aka Joey Youngman, it's finally paying off.
Antoine Joseffson is Steve Angello's brother (Angello also has Joseffson in his name), and although he says that's what he's probably best known for, it's as AN21 that he's been making waves in int
Having entered the Top 100 last year, Guatemala's leading DJ and producer, Francis Davila, has had an even bigger 2012. "It has been a year full of blessings," he says humbly.
Diederik Bakker and Stefan den Daas began their partnership in 2004, taking inspiration from Bakker's father's musicianship and the happy hardcore scene.
Dutch duo Bingo Players, aka Paul Bäumer and Maarten Hoogstraten, must have done something right in 2012, because after finishing 116th in last year's poll, they have made the official Top 100 in 2
After smashing into the DJ Mag Top 100 in 2010, Psyko Punkz now look to be a regular fixture in the poll, as the global appetite for Dutch hard dance - and Psyko Punkz's jagged, heads-down, fist-pu
American-born Taiwanese DJ/producer Andrew Chen, aka Shogun, first made his name warming up for DJs like Tiësto and Paul Oakenfold when he was resident at Ministry Of Sound in Taipei.
Although he began DJing in the late '80s, Benny Benassi's solo breakthrough came in the first years of the 21st century, and since then, his mix of house and electro styles has seen his reputation
In the midst of a huge world tour, tyDi proves difficult to pin down. We catch him while he's in Israel, following a long flight from the US and prior to another one to the Czech Republic.
A trance up-and-comer from the Republic of Moldova who's broken into the Top 100 this year, Andrew Rayel counts the support he's received from his home country as one of his biggest inspirations.
Hungarian DJ/producers Myon & Shane54, known to their mothers as Márió Éget? and El?d Császár, come packed with one of the most unique attitudes in the trance scene.
The fact that 2012 is the first year in which Heatbeat have broken into the Top 100 - after years just outside - can be attributed to many things, according to one half of the duo, Agustin Servente
One of the more memorable sights in dance music during 2012 was Thomas Gold's live 'drum line' onstage at EDC Vegas and Governor's Ball, NYC, heightening the electro house producer's huge sound and
Roger Shah is that rare breed whose reputation as one of the biggest names in trance doesn't overshadow the equally well-known Balearic-based flavours that see the light of day on his label Magic I
As Spor, Jonathan Gooch has released drum & bass on labels such as Renegade Hardware, Barcode, TeeBee's Subtitles, and his own Lifted Music, but it's as Feed Me that he's really made his mark g
Deadmau5 and SBTRKT aren't the only ones to rock the masked DJ look - house producer Mike Candys and his signature smiley mask have been doing pretty well for themselves during 2012, completing ove
Having been producing and DJing for 15 years and having spent many of those years on the Top 100 list, Andy Moor could be forgiven for becoming complacent.
Hardstyle DJ/producer and lyrical supremo Ran D makes his entry into the Top 100 for the first time this year, and he's sounding pleased with what he's been able to achieve.
Richard Durand found the perfect sunrise, in Goa, India, when he played Sunburn Festival for the fourth year on the trot. It's a burgeoning scene, where Richard has some serious fans.
Brazilian duo Felipe Lozinsky and Gustavo Rozenthal make up Felguk, who made the official theme to the Electric Daisy Carnival and have remixed the likes of Madonna, Flo Rida and The Black Eyed Pea
As ever, enigmatic techno producer Paul Kalkbrenner chooses to keep his cards close to his chest, dedicating himself to his music and little else at present.
Henrik Twardzik aka Neelix's bid to enter the Top 100 with a Napoleon Dynamite 'Vote For Me' campaign worked a treat, although some of his fans weren't too impressed.
"The year started off with a fantastic gig in Cordoba that I loved so much I released the mix as an album through my label," says Top 100 mainstay, John Digweed, whose loaded schedule has also take
In the Top 100 last year, hardstyle heavy Coone named Norway's Da Tweekaz as his breakthrough act of 2011, and this year the duo of Kenth Kvien and Marcus Nordli make their own entry in the poll.
When DJ Mag catches up with Thomas Shaw and Ryan Henderson, the Canadian duo have just headlined Lavo and closed Pacha in New York, met with Sony Music and been told they've made our Top 100 list.