Cover photo by Alex Heuvink
Once in a while, we leave the comfort zone that is Amsterdam, and venture out to explore what the rest of this flat, windswept country has to offer. Over time, we’ve found there’s no better place to do that than The Hague, and no better time than that week in April when Rewire takes over the city.
Once a year, all the artists you’ve been secretly stanning online, the ones you’re convinced no one else has heard of, come together in The Hague, alongside every other music snob exactly like you. Now in its fifteenth edition, Rewire is an annual festival built for adventurous music: That feeling you get when you discover an artist whose albums you can listen to in full, on repeat, for days, while feeling smugly alone in your appreciation – but in festival form.
Spanning live electronic, dub, neo-jazz, experimental, and everything in between, Rewire is less a genre festival and more a philosophy: boundary-pushing music, performances, installations, club nights, and all kinds of multimedia happenings, spread across four days from the 9th to the 12th of April.
The alumni list alone should tell you everything. Rewire veterans include the likes of Dean Blunt performing under his Babyfather moniker, Nicolas Jaar with his live show, Soundwalk Collective and Patti Smith, Oklou, Arca, and the list goes on, and on, and on.
This year’s edition packs basically every artist we’ve been obsessing over in the past twelve months into one place. But beyond the names you’re about to get acquainted with *patience* what we’re also genuinely excited about is the simple act of wandering. Rewire has a track record of being the first stage for artists who go on to mean a lot: Amsterdam-based Bby Eco got his first live show here, and the iconic collaboration between Patti Smith and New York duo Soundwalk Collective, Correspondences, had its premiere here too.
This year feels no different. The curation is sharply in touch with the cultural moment, bringing together artists spanning post-punk, improv, jazz and far beyond, all the artists we’ve been dreaming of seeing live.
Our top 15 acts!
Under a fairly hefty time pressure, I started writing this with a shortlist of 7 artists in mind. But the more I explored the lineup, the more that initial ambition unraveled. And then I discovered the festival was in its fifteenth year, which became the perfect excuse to double the shortlist and spend a sleepless night scouring the Bandcamps, SoundClouds, Spotifys and NTS pages of every artist whose name even remotely caught my eye. All this to say: this was an extremely difficult undertaking, and what I imagine choosing between your kids must feel like.
After much deliberation, I landed on 15 artists that are more than worth the train ride, and honestly, I’d take a transatlantic flight for some of them. I might be exaggerating (but only slightly.) So, here’s who we’ll be at Rewire for.
Acopia – Saturday April 11th / 20:00 – 20:50 / Paard II
If you’ve listened to any of the Aa playlists in the past few months, you might have noticed that Acopia has been a permanent fixture. I’ve had both of their latest albums, Blush Response (2025) and Acopia (2023) on repeat since last year. The Melbourne-based trio of Kate Durman, Morgan Wright, and Lachlan McGeehan come together to create a melancholic blend of shoegaze and electronic rhythms, characterized by nostalgic bass lines, guitar, and dreamy vocals that will soothe any heartache.
Smerz – Friday April 10th / 21:10 – 22:00 / Paard I
All ears have been on the Scandi-pop girls lately, and the duo of Catharina Stoltenberg and Henriette Motzfeldt, recording under the alias Smerz, have been at the forefront of the movement. Mixing post-rock and R&B into dreamy soundscapes, their music has a way of making any moment feel like an alt coming-of-age movie.
Purelink Saturday April 11th / 19:00 – 19:45 / Paard I
Purelink’s music oscillates between ambient and downtempo, sitting at the crossroads of digital and organic, building a tension that keeps you locked in. At Rewire, Tommy Paslaski, Ben Paulson, and Akeem Asani are joined by multidisciplinary artist Mika Oki, who brings the show to life with kinetic visuals.
Kim Gordon Saturday April 11th / 23:15 – 00:30 / Amare – Concertzaal
Ex-Sonic Youth bassist, guitarist and vocalist, Kim Gordon played a masterclass in reinvention when she debuted her solo career in 2019. Her second solo album The Collective earned her two Grammy nominations, and her latest, Play Me, expands her oeuvre further with more melodic beats, a deeper dive into Krautrock, and a restless cross-genre experimentalism. The Rewire performance marks the Netherlands premiere of the album.
Bby Eco Friday April 10th / 20:10 – 20:55 / Korzo – Studio
Bby Eco is my favorite Amsterdam-based artist. His sonic universe, a genre he’s coined as eco-pop, is made complete through a whimsical visual world that turns engaging with his work into a fully immersive experience. He made his Rewire debut in 2020 alongside the release of his first album Grow!, and comes back full circle to present his most vulnerable album to date, Sky (i), joined by Jespfur on bass and Jack Milner on electric cello.
Tracey Friday April 10th / 22:10 – 23:10 / Paard II
Beyond the banger that is Sex Life, London duo Tracey’s discography is an eclectic mix of sounds and vibes, from slow and atmospheric to booty-shaking dubstep, all tied together with a signature Tracey sass.
Devon Rexi Friday April 10th / 19:10 – 20:10 / Koorenuis
Amsterdam-based trio Nicola Reverda (Nicolini), Nushin Naini, and Goya van der Heyden (La Rat) have been mainstays on our recent playlists with their dubby, playful, drum-infused tracks. The indiscernible vocals add a level of weirdness that we just can’t get enough of.
weed420 Friday April 10th / 20:00 – 21:00 / Paard II
A Venezuela-based DIY music collective whose maximalist, genre-blending sound overflows with creativity and boundless energy. Simply put, we have no idea what to expect, and that’s exactly the point.
Ouri Saturday April 11th / 18:00 – 18:45 / Korzo – Studio | Sunday April 12th / 17:15 – 18:00 / Koorenuis
Ouri’s Daisy Cutter popped up on my Spotify out of the blue one day, and I’ve been addicted to her sound ever since. It feels rough around the edges yet startlingly clear, the kind of music that’s hard to explain but impossible to ignore.
Malibu Saturday April 11th / 23:15 – 00:00 / Grote Kerk
A French composer and vocalist whose music drifts between drone, neoclassical, and pop, layering piano, woodwinds, and strings into something euphorically meditative. The Grote Kerk feels like the only right place to hear this.
Abdullah Miniawy Trio Friday April 10th / 22:30 – 23:15 / Nieuwe Kerk
A Paris-based Egyptian composer, writer, and singer who blends jazz and Egyptian influences into something minimal and emotionally charged. On his latest album Peacock Dreams (2025), his voice moves between spoken word and song, accompanied by two trombonists and wrapped in ambient, reverb-heavy production.
Oneohtrix Point Never Friday April 10th / 23:45 – 00:45
A pioneering figure in American electronic music since the early 2000s, Daniel Lopatin has produced for the Weeknd and Moses Sumney and scored films for the Safdie brothers including Uncut Gems and Marty Supreme. He returns to Rewire with Tranquilizer, his 2025 Warp Records album built from salvaged commercial sample CDs, moving between ambient strings and clattering maximalism, accompanied by visual artist Freeka Tet.
Sumac & Moor Mother Saturday April 11th / 20:55 – 21:45 / Amare – Concertzaal
Sumac are a metal band known for infusing free jazz unpredictability and noise music chaos into their sound. On their 2025 collaboration The Film, they join forces with poet and sound artist Moor Mother, whose spoken word cuts through the sludgy, cacophonous instrumentation with remarkable clarity and force. They bring the project live to Rewire 2026.
Ok Williams Sunday April 12th / 05:00 – 07:00 / Laak
A London-based DJ who has built a reputation in the global underground dance scene through high-energy, bass-heavy sets that move freely between techno, gqom, jungle, amapiano, UK funky, and far beyond. Her cult NTS radio show has earned her a loyal following, and she takes over cult-club Laak to close out the third day of Rewire 2026. The only acceptable way to end a festival day.
Eraserhead x Xiu Xiu Saturday April 11th / 22:05 – 22:55 / Amare – Danstheater
A decade after their cult Twin Peaks performance at Rewire, Xiu Xiu return with a radical live reinterpretation of Lynch’s debut film, using field recordings, modular synths, and musique concrète alongside evocative visuals. A full circle moment for the festival, and one of the most anticipated sets of the weekend.
P.S. It’s never been more important to support independent artists! Rewire’s Buy Music Club features the Rewire team’s favorite music into one bandcamp playlist, making it easy to discover and purchase your next favorite track. Find it here.
Rewire 2026 takes over multiple venues across The Hague from April 9th to 12th. Timetable and the full program are available here.
