Horst Arts & Music Festival 2025: Where Boundaries Fade, Creativity Thrives

Nestled in the post-industrial landscape of Vilvoorde, Horst Arts & Music Festival 2025 reaffirms its status as a visionary space where architecture, music, and art dissolve into a seamless cultural experiment. Across three days, Horst transcends the conventional festival format, operating as an open-air laboratory for sonic and visual innovation.

Now more than ever, Horst prioritizes artistic depth over digital presence, highlighting musicians who challenge norms rather than conforming to fleeting trends. In an era where high-speed, high-impact club music dominates, the festival amplifies voices pushing the boundaries of electronic sound.

This year’s lineup highlights a bold and globally diverse selection of artists. MAKADSI bridges Arabic and North American influences, while BADSISTA and Verraco bring the raw energy of Brazil and Colombia’s underground club scenes. gyrofield reinvents IDM from Hong Kong, carving out new sonic territories. Meanwhile, DVS1 curates an entirely new stage, introducing the dub techno collective Generations in Sync (DJ Pete, Erik Jabari, Moritz von Oswald), alongside a live set by Surgeon following performances from JakoJako and GiGi FM.

Belgium’s underground remains at the festival’s core, with a lineup featuring Brussels’ Boudewijn Ericx, Antwerp’s deep sound explorer SRD (Sound Running Deep), dub enthusiast Elisthere, and Ghent’s own gguusstt and Gaiko. Adding to the anticipation, a series of rare and first-time back-to-backs will unfold: electro-house icon Erol Alkan meets Palms Trax, Polygonia pairs with Steffi, and London’s legendary duo Hannah Holland and Josh Caffé unite for a high-energy set. Longtime Horst resident AliA joins forces with rising talent Mia Koden, while Detroit legend DJ Stingray 313 locks into an electrifying session with German electro powerhouse Helena Hauff.

The dialogue between architecture and music remains central to Horst’s identity. This year, the festival welcomes the return of circular stage designs such as Ring by Piovenefabi and Moon Ra by Leopold Banchini, alongside a bold reinterpretation of the Veshcell stage. New guest architects will bring fresh perspectives, designing spaces that merge industrial rawness with organic, fluid forms. As always, these structures are co-created with Horst’s Atelier participants, reinforcing the festival’s ethos of collaborative experimentation.

Those who stray from the main paths will find themselves immersed in Horst’s ever-evolving artistic landscape. In 2025, the festival strengthens its bond with its surroundings, evolving into an ongoing cultural hub. Once the festival ends, the art installations will remain on public display throughout the summer, inviting visitors to engage with the site in new ways.

Beyond the dancefloor, Horst continues to spark dialogue, bringing together artists, designers, and thinkers for workshops and discussions exploring the intersection of sound, space, and community.

This year, InDepth joins forces with Horst for an extended feature focusing on the techno artists of the 2025 lineup. The balance between music, art, and architecture is at the core of both Horst and InDepth, making this partnership a natural fit. As InDepth relaunches its digital platform and editorial vision, there was no better first collaborator than Horst to set the tone for this new chapter.

Horst 2025 is more than a festival, it is a living experiment in music, architecture, and human connection. As night falls and the festival transforms into a dreamlike landscape of light and rhythm, one truth emerges: Horst is a space where boundaries fade, and creativity thrives.