Brussels Summer Festival: focus on Belgian bands

From the 14th until the 18th of August, 2018, the city will once again shake to the rhythm of the Brussels Summer Festival.

For 5 days, Belgian and international artists will come on stage and sing to the crowds, dance to powerful rhythms, and share their love for music with the people of Brussels.

The eclectic program of the BSF gives the stage to all musical genres: pop, hip-hop, rock, song, electronic music, and many more. Headliners rub shoulders with up and coming artists in perfect balance across four different unique locations: Place des Palais, the Mont des Arts, the Place des Musées, and the Madeleine.

The 2018 edition brings together more than 50 concerts on all four stages: Thirty Seconds To Mars, Orelsan, Shaka Ponk, dEUS, Romeo Elvis x The Motel, Therapie Taxi, Arsenal, Millionaire, Calexico, Raphael, Camille, among others.

Watch out. Every year, almost all the concerts at the BSF are full.

There are some additional perks as well: To holders of a 5-DAY Pass, the BSF will once again offer a series of discounts and special rates at many of the cultural attractions in the city: the MIM, the Royal Museums of Fine Arts, the Atomium, Bozar, MIMA and many more!

Some of the Belgian bands to keep an eye on this year:

Arsenal
18.08 – 20h45
Ethias Stage/Place des Palais
Arsenal was formed in Brussels by Hendrik Willemyns and John Roan, and it bears the name of a weapons depot next to their studio. For their latest album, scheduled for the spring of 2018, they invited a group of Nigerian musicians who, with Tim Bruzon (Wave Machines), released the big artillery!

dEus
17.08 – 22h30
Ethics Stage/Place des Palais
The sacrosanct Belgian “independent” rock band no longer exists. Accompanied by his new guitarist Bruno De Groote, dEUS is back to perform their powerful songs to the public at the BSF. They will ignite Place des Palais during a two-hour concert. Be prepared!

Charlotte
16.08 – 20h
La Madeleine
A young Belgian singer, Charlotte wants to propose a personal and strong universe, combining image and comedy on an alternative pop. Formerly, composer and performer, she has surrounded herself with talented young producers (Nico D’Avell – Co-Composer, R.O) to build her musical identity. With her first title, “Pars”, she proposes an intimate and captivating song, testifying to her original universe with indie-pop influences. She is now back with the song “Ta Peau”, on more pop-electro rhythm.

Jasper Steverlinck
17.08 – 20h45
Orange Stage/Mont des Arts
In his new album, he returns to the source: his unique voice. As sparkling as a Swiss mountain stream, as high as an eagle in full flight. Wonderful songs, too many to name. Get comfortable listening to “Night Prayer”. Take your time. Listen to the album again. And you will realize that you have found the album of the year.

Slongs
17.08 – 22h00
Place du musée
Behind the name ‘Slongs’ lies the star of the Antwerp rap Charissa Parassiadis. Slongs has Greek blood, but she has Antwerp in the heart. In less than two years, she has gone from being queen of underground hip-hop to a public figure with her heart in her hand. With ‘Lacht Nor Mij’ she was the Dutch-speaking success of the summer in 2013, followed by an MIA Award for ‘Beste Doorbraak’. Inspired by reggae, dancehall and hip-hop, she released her first album ‘Goeien Dag’ in 2015 with Sony Music, which went on to achieve Gold status in sales. She is currently working on a new album. Slongs is back with a new sound and a real live band.

Wild Shelter
15.08 – 20h00
Place du musée
The creative minds behind this project, brothers Adrien and Alex Waeyenbergh, have been immersed in music since their earliest years, moving from academies to sound engineering schools. The duo showcases their eclectic musical influences, ranging from classical to electronic music, seventies rock, folk and pop, marrying sustained rhythms with catchy melodies while keeping a mesmerizing melancholy.

Noa Moon
15.08 – 20h00
La Madeleine
Moving between deep electro-pop and more acoustic folk songs, Noa Moon manages to surprise us, yet she keeps the disarming sincerity that had charmed us so much from her first album.

R.O. x Konoba
17.08 – 17h30
Ethics Stage/Place des Palais
The two Belgian artists R.O and Konoba, already known for their collaboration “OnOurKnees” and “GetHome”, have launched a project that will travel ten countries for ten months to create ten new songs. They will take a break from their trip to ignite the BSF.

Pale Grey
17.08 – 20h00
La Madeleine
Locked in their studio apartment for more than a year, the band returns with a salvo of new tracks mixing light folk-pop, minor introspections, sound experiments, hip hop and electronica. The work of Pale Grey is the fruit of real collaboration. In the form of a game at first, the members exchange fragments of songs, choruses, couplets, and everything mixes to give birth to protean pieces.

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