Brussels’ Listen! Festival 2019 announces line-up and activities

The line-up of the upcoming fourth edition of Listen! Festival was announced today. After three successful editions, Listen! will once again be a Brussels-wide celebration of diversity in electronic and dance music, bringing together some of the scene’s most talented artists from Belgium and abroad. In 2019, Listen! will take place from Wednesday 17 April to Sunday 21 April (Monday 22 being a public holiday in Belgium) and will feature DJ sets, live concerts, showcases, talks, workshops, exhibitions, record fair, gear fair and more.

The enigmatic Horta Gallery, the side entrance to Brussels Central station designed by Brussels most famous architect Victor Horta, will be once again the main venue of the festival, hosting DJs and live performances in three different rooms on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings. Among the international artists invited, Karenn ‘live’, Motor City Drum Ensemble, Kamaal Williams, Objekt, Palms Trax, Avalon Emerson and many more. Great local based acts will also join the bill, such as Lefto, Cleveland, DTM Funk, Alfred Anders, soFa, Vice City DJs, Walrus…

Similar to the previous editions, the festival will host events in several other locations in Brussels:

The beautiful Art Deco building of Flagey will host Listen!’s opening concert night on Wednesday 17 April. For the occasion, two masters of rhythm, the “father of Afrobeat” Tony Allen and techno pioneer Jeff Mills, will perform live for the first time together in Belgium.

New to Listen! Les Halles Saint-Gery / Sint-Gorikshallen, a late 19th century building in the heart of Brussels previously hosting the covered market halls, will become The Sound District, the very daytime meeting point of the Festival. The Sound District will bring together music enthusiasts from all over Europe, from beginners to professionals. To this end, the District will host several online and offline activities:

● Brussels very own Kiosk Radio will move to the District, co-broadcasting radio shows together with some of the main international web radios: Amsterdam-based Red Light Radio, Le Mellotron from Paris and LYL Radio from Lyon.
● The Independent Label Market will celebrate independent music, bringing together label owners from Belgium and abroad.
● Poppunt, Court Circuit & SAE will support young artists in improving their knowledge and skills through workshops, feedback sessions and masterclasses.
● Turnlab will showcase the newest trends in music production at their Gear & Synth fair.

Listen! will also host a series of extra events curated by some of the most successful Belgian labels, promoters and collectives:

On Thursday 18 April, a series of showcases will be held in various locations in the city centre of Brussels, where some of the most promising Belgian labels will invite like-minded international labels for a joint night of live music and DJ sets. Among the labels taking part in the showcases, Vlek, Lexi Disques, Ekster, We Play House, Kalahari Oyster Cult, Radio Martiko and many more. The showcases are free for everyone.

On Friday 19 April the Ghent-based label STROOM will bring the best of Belgian ambient to Les Brigittines. On Saturday 20 April, VK will host a night dedicated to global sounds in collaboration with the Rebel Up collective, while Le Bureau Électronique will programme an experimental electronic night at La Vallée, surrounded by the audiovisual installations of “La Vallée de l’Image”. Finally on Sunday 21 April, the queer party collectives Spek & Gay Haze (from Antwerp and Brussels respectively) will host a party at Quay 01, from afternoon till late evening. The full line-up of Thursday’s Showcases and the extra events will be announced in January.