{"id":51792,"date":"2026-03-25T01:42:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T00:42:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ket.brussels\/?p=51792"},"modified":"2026-03-21T10:51:32","modified_gmt":"2026-03-21T09:51:32","slug":"brdcst-2026-brussels-most-genre-fluid-festival-turns-listening-into-a-political-act","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ket.brussels\/fr\/2026\/03\/25\/brdcst-2026-brussels-most-genre-fluid-festival-turns-listening-into-a-political-act\/","title":{"rendered":"BRDCST 2026: Brussels\u2019 most genre\u2011fluid festival turns listening into a political act"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

From 3 to 6 April, BRDCST 2026 takes over Ancienne Belgique and spills into Cinema Palace and the Vanhaerents Art Collection, with nearly 50 artists and three new spaces opening ahead of AB\u2019s full reopening. Curated in part by Ichiko Aoba, Keeley Forsyth and Stephen O\u2019Malley (Sunn O))))), the festival doubles down on its core promise: no algorithms, no trends \u2013 just music that pushes boundaries, including plenty that resonates with queer, experimental and diasporic communities.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n


BRDCST describes itself as AB\u2019s annual indoor festival \u201cwhere musical boundaries are left behind\u201d, and the 2026 edition takes that mission seriously. Across four days, the programme pulls together artists from Iceland, South Korea, Japan, Ireland, Iran, Kenya, Bolivia, Morocco, South Africa and beyond, creating a soundmap that feels much closer to a global underground than to a typical European spring festival. Events are spread across AB\u2019s different rooms, a freshly upgraded AB Salon, the new AB Antenna, arthouse Cinema Palace and the industrial\u2011chic Vanhaerents Art Collection, temporarily turning the city centre into a dense network of listening rooms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This year, three artists act as curators: Japanese songwriter Ichiko Aoba, British multidisciplinary performer Keeley Forsyth and drone legend Stephen O\u2019Malley from Sunn O))))). Each of them invites their own constellation of guests, from Icelandic theremin player Hekla to Galician bagpiper Carme L\u00f3pez, Irish violinist Ultan O\u2019Brien and Belgian outfit Klinck Trio, who bring their debut album My Hair Is Everywhere<\/em>. It is an approach that trusts artists\u2019 communities more than marketing categories: if you come for one name, you are almost guaranteed to fall in love with two or three others you had never heard of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For queer and queer\u2011adjacent audiences, a key focal point is Los Thuthanaka, closing BRDCST 2026 with what AB calls one of the most radical records of recent years. The project of American\u2011Bolivian artist Chuquimamani\u2011Condori (also known as Elysia Crampton) and Joshua Chuquimia Crampton, Los Thuthanaka fuses electronic experimentation with Andean folklore, indigenous Bolivian heritage and unapologetic queer celebration. Their self\u2011titled debut skipped the usual streaming platforms, yet still ended up as Pitchfork\u2019s Album of the Year, with Resident Advisor calling it \u201ca fucking trip\u2026 One that might forecast the future of electronic music\u201d. Seeing that future close a festival like BRDCST, in a city like Brussels, feels significant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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