ADE Spotlight: Celebrating devotees of the craft at Horst Arts and Music Festival 2024
words by Meike Jentjens and images by Ewa Piotrowska
No art form is linear
One of last year's highlights of ADE was the collaboration between contemporary culture and art centre Het HEM and Horst Arts & Music for the second edition of 'New HHHorizons' — a combination that makes sense if we look into both parties' missions. Het HEM has participated in several editions of ADE, bridging the gap between night culture and art as a daytime pastime. The old bullet factory where the art centre is located has seen many ADE visitors roam the place to learn about the history of 'rave culture'.
The ADE Arts & Culture 'New HHHorizons: Het HEM x Horst' event offered contemporary makers a stage to blur boundaries between disciplines and genres. That's where the partnership with Horst came in, a collective consisting of true believers in merging art forms and creating space for talented artists. Horst Arts & Music just celebrated its tenth birthday with a sunny three-day festival near Brussels, where the star of the show once again was the tangible love for electronic music and its club scene.
The festival is a space where night culture gets celebrated in more than the obvious ways. The festival's programming balances booking the breakout stars we'll most likely see during ADE 2024 and the names that have been taking control of dance floors during earlier editions. Next to music, other art forms take up space, too. For example, Horst invites dancers to their guided art tours, which they host multiple times daily. Another festival staple is commissioned architects and design studios that have carefully constructed the yearly renewed stages to fit the different soundscapes. Where else do you see that?
Big statements and comebacks
This edition of the Horst festival saw stars rise and heroes being celebrated. Nene H is an excellent example, the gut-twisting techno artist who has already been announced for Speedy J's STOOR Live sessions at ADE 2024. Nene H has been making waves all over Europe and has repeatedly been called an artist that 'pushes the scene forward'. Nene's set at Horst proved nothing less than that statement being legitimate, and being invited by Speedy J for one of ADE's yearly highlights must mean more people see that. Dutch multidisciplinary artist Woody92 played a deep and dark set with Sunju Hargun, seeing the founding father of the 'Omen Wapta' concept again show his love for the craft in a partnership with Horst — just like last year at ADE.
Another highlight of the festival was the closing set of Ben UFO, the captain of U.K.-based label Hessle Audio, who played every subsequent ADE edition from 2012 to 2019. His Saturday night slot heralded his big comeback to European stages, if he ever really was gone, which could mean good news for bass-heads this ADE. If it's up to the programmers of Horst, that's definitely the direction the scene is going in, as Skream & Benga's big return on the decks drew maybe one of the largest crowds in seen all weekend. The dubstep and UK garage icons are ready to make the dance floor explode with a unique b2b once more this year at Paradiso on ADE Wednesday, shaping the ADE Festival programme with a new-found nostalgia for sounds from the United Kingdom.
Bass music was all around us this weekend in May, setting the precedent for what we can expect on European dance floors. From dubstep to experimental and deconstructed techno to trippy and bass-heavy breaks, let's dive into the Spotlights found at Horst Arts & Music Festival, which will tell us what kind of sounds we can expect to hear even more this summer and autumn.
No art form is linear
One of last year's highlights of ADE was the collaboration between contemporary culture and art centre Het HEM and Horst Arts & Music for the second edition of 'New HHHorizons' — a combination that makes sense if we look into both parties' missions. Het HEM has participated in several editions of ADE, bridging the gap between night culture and art as a daytime pastime. The old bullet factory where the art centre is located has seen many ADE visitors roam the place to learn about the history of 'rave culture'.
The ADE Arts & Culture 'New HHHorizons: Het HEM x Horst' event offered contemporary makers a stage to blur boundaries between disciplines and genres. That's where the partnership with Horst came in, a collective consisting of true believers in merging art forms and creating space for talented artists. Horst Arts & Music just celebrated its tenth birthday with a sunny three-day festival near Brussels, where the star of the show once again was the tangible love for electronic music and its club scene.
The festival is a space where night culture gets celebrated in more than the obvious ways. The festival's programming balances booking the breakout stars we'll most likely see during ADE 2024 and the names that have been taking control of dance floors during earlier editions. Next to music, other art forms take up space, too. For example, Horst invites dancers to their guided art tours, which they host multiple times daily. Another festival staple is commissioned architects and design studios that have carefully constructed the yearly renewed stages to fit the different soundscapes. Where else do you see that?
Big statements and comebacks
This edition of the Horst festival saw stars rise and heroes being celebrated. Nene H is an excellent example, the gut-twisting techno artist who has already been announced for Speedy J's STOOR Live sessions at ADE 2024. Nene H has been making waves all over Europe and has repeatedly been called an artist that 'pushes the scene forward'. Nene's set at Horst proved nothing less than that statement being legitimate, and being invited by Speedy J for one of ADE's yearly highlights must mean more people see that. Dutch multidisciplinary artist Woody92 played a deep and dark set with Sunju Hargun, seeing the founding father of the 'Omen Wapta' concept again show his love for the craft in a partnership with Horst — just like last year at ADE.
Another highlight of the festival was the closing set of Ben UFO, the captain of U.K.-based label Hessle Audio, who played every subsequent ADE edition from 2012 to 2019. His Saturday night slot heralded his big comeback to European stages, if he ever really was gone, which could mean good news for bass-heads this ADE. If it's up to the programmers of Horst, that's definitely the direction the scene is going in, as Skream & Benga's big return on the decks drew maybe one of the largest crowds in seen all weekend. The dubstep and UK garage icons are ready to make the dance floor explode with a unique b2b once more this year at Paradiso on ADE Wednesday, shaping the ADE Festival programme with a new-found nostalgia for sounds from the United Kingdom.
Bass music was all around us this weekend in May, setting the precedent for what we can expect on European dance floors. From dubstep to experimental and deconstructed techno to trippy and bass-heavy breaks, let's dive into the Spotlights found at Horst Arts & Music Festival, which will tell us what kind of sounds we can expect to hear even more this summer and autumn.
Between the power plants
ketia
ketia is one of those artists who proves you don't need cheesy pop edits to have crowds eating out of your hands while serving bangers. Percussion is the main star of their set at Horst. ketia was almost casting a spell over dancers who swarmed together in the sunny 'Ring' stage. Between the power plants, they made 'bass faces' collectively. The golden, round structure shaped like an amphitheatre saw people climbing all sorts of elements - and even the roof of the booth - to catch a glimpse of this Berlin-based artist who dancers would love to see make their ADE debut.
Jasmín
Jasmín is an Amsterdam-based artist known for her love for experimentation on dance floors. After playing a closing set at Amsterdam's iconic De School venue during its goodbye weekend, where Jasmín fully and truly started her career, playing Horst's dark and labyrinthian 'The Swirl' stage was the next logical step. Apps like Shazam don't stand a chance when she plays, Jasmín pulls out the deep cuts for deeper sets like this one at Horst or during last ADE's 'De School - Het Weekend' event.
Between the power plants
ketia
ketia is one of those artists who proves you don't need cheesy pop edits to have crowds eating out of your hands while serving bangers. Percussion is the main star of their set at Horst. ketia was almost casting a spell over dancers who swarmed together in the sunny 'Ring' stage. Between the power plants, they made 'bass faces' collectively. The golden, round structure shaped like an amphitheatre saw people climbing all sorts of elements - and even the roof of the booth - to catch a glimpse of this Berlin-based artist who dancers would love to see make their ADE debut.
Jasmín
Jasmín is an Amsterdam-based artist known for her love for experimentation on dance floors. After playing a closing set at Amsterdam's iconic De School venue during its goodbye weekend, where Jasmín fully and truly started her career, playing Horst's dark and labyrinthian 'The Swirl' stage was the next logical step. Apps like Shazam don't stand a chance when she plays, Jasmín pulls out the deep cuts for deeper sets like this one at Horst or during last ADE's 'De School - Het Weekend' event.
Onohno
The fact that trance can be trippy, tribalistic, and heavy on deep basslines instead of just being a gimmick isn't a new philosophy, but seeing a younger generation of DJs spread the gospel of hybrid aesthetics at Horst is worth mentioning. Brussels-based artist Onohno played Horst's yurt-like 'Moon Ra' stage, curated by Kiosk Radio. Last year, this stage was subject to many sped-up gabber edits of pop songs. 'Moon Ra' served as a backdrop for forward-thinking ritualistic music this year, with Onohno's set fitting right in: mysterious and hypnotic without losing its dubby aspects.
Onohno
The fact that trance can be trippy, tribalistic, and heavy on deep basslines instead of just being a gimmick isn't a new philosophy, but seeing a younger generation of DJs spread the gospel of hybrid aesthetics at Horst is worth mentioning. Brussels-based artist Onohno played Horst's yurt-like 'Moon Ra' stage, curated by Kiosk Radio. Last year, this stage was subject to many sped-up gabber edits of pop songs. 'Moon Ra' served as a backdrop for forward-thinking ritualistic music this year, with Onohno's set fitting right in: mysterious and hypnotic without losing its dubby aspects.
Deconstructed club culture
DJ Shahmaran
With an Instagram bio that says 'Bass, breaks, and feelings', it's hard not to deliver. DJ Shahmaran has previously shared a lineup with Jasmín during ADE and now had people flock to the 'Ring' stage at Horst, where their fast-paced and deconstructed breaks almost melted the sound system. It's obvious that the Rotterdam-based artist pays tribute to the origins of club culture by using classic elements of house music mixed with experimental sounds, next to pushing the scene forward by unifying communities.
Etienne 4U
Like last year, Resident Advisor curated one of Horst's biggest stages. 'Vesshcell' was the heart of the fun and poppy sets the previous year but matured a bit during this year's Horst Arts and Music Festival. Etienne 4U is a DJ who never steers too far away from edits and goofiness but works 'underground' sounds into his sets wherever possible. Pop music and culture are a part of electronic music's scene, is what Etienne 4U proves with his set, once more underlining the importance of cross-pollination of art forms.
Deconstructed club culture
DJ Shahmaran
With an Instagram bio that says 'Bass, breaks, and feelings', it's hard not to deliver. DJ Shahmaran has previously shared a lineup with Jasmín during ADE and now had people flock to the 'Ring' stage at Horst, where their fast-paced and deconstructed breaks almost melted the sound system. It's obvious that the Rotterdam-based artist pays tribute to the origins of club culture by using classic elements of house music mixed with experimental sounds, next to pushing the scene forward by unifying communities.
Etienne 4U
Like last year, Resident Advisor curated one of Horst's biggest stages. 'Vesshcell' was the heart of the fun and poppy sets the previous year but matured a bit during this year's Horst Arts and Music Festival. Etienne 4U is a DJ who never steers too far away from edits and goofiness but works 'underground' sounds into his sets wherever possible. Pop music and culture are a part of electronic music's scene, is what Etienne 4U proves with his set, once more underlining the importance of cross-pollination of art forms.