Words: Domenico Frascino
Awakenings goes all out to celebrate its 25th anniversary. After 2 years of Covid-induced drought, Awakenings came back in 2022 with a double weekender: 4 nights and 2 days during the Easter weekend and a three-day Summer edition on a brand new location with a first ever campsite from July 29th to 31st.
We attended Awakenings Summer Festival and saw a major expansion. The biggest techno festival in the world added a campsite and an extra day to the techno weekender, making Awakenings the first multi-day techno festival in the Netherlands.
Even a historic organisation like Awakenings needs some changes every now and then. The festival that takes place in summer has been relocated from its historical spot in Amsterdam to the south of the Netherlands. The multi-day festival took place at the breathtaking venue of Beekse Bergen, a safari resort where the imposing futuristic stage architecture creates a clear contrast with the wild green woods and delightful lakes and water spread in the festival area.
This created the perfect background for the festival. Over 130 of the best international techno artists performed at the 11 majestically designed stages. The large lineup allowed an extremely diverse selection of techno and electronic music. Techno legends like Jeff Mills, Richie Hawtin, Ricardo Villalobos, and Seth Troxler shared the stage with hot DJs such as Amelie Lens, Tale of Us, and Maceo Plex. The menu also included a more industrial and dark techno lineup with Dr. Rubinstein, Adiel, I Hate Models, 999999999, as well as house and disco vibes from the Blessed Madonna, Dam Swindle, and Denis Sulta. This diversity allowed for dancing to different styles of music attendants like.
Along with the music, the numerous art shows and installations added a unique and out-of-this-world character to the festival. Throughout the day, party-goers can easily bump into interactive live art performances, immersive multi-sensory sound and light installations, optical and water shows, making the festival a full artistic experience.
The Awakenings organisation has also put a great effort into sustainability, social responsibility, and inclusivity. Recycle stations were spread all around the festival areas to make sure that the waste is reduced to the minimum. Hungry festival-goers could enjoy healthy and vegan options at the numerous food stands. Last but not least, people were able to contribute to relevant causes with donations to reduce their CO2 emissions and to back associations supporting humanitarian help in Ukraine and the LGBTQ+ rights.
As usual, people are what makes this festival truly special! Awakenings is one of the world’s leading techno festivals and attracts an extremely international crowd. Out of the 100.000 people who attended over the weekend more than 75 nationalities were represented. The carefully styled outfits, shiny clothing and bright smiles and of course the best techno there’s to offer brought together people from all around the world to dance together once again after a long time of pandemic.
