© PR

»I never considered my job to be about music. My prime responsibility is to produce raw energy where people feel 'it’s happening right now'. Of course music and artists with talent are key ingredients but I think location and party philosophy are just as important to create an electric atmosphere. Try to go to a festival in Sweden or Norway – it’s a snooze-fest. Roskilde and Distortion are the two festivals in Scandinavia with this special touch. I never calculated how to get there, but I can see now 26 years later: My technique has been to be in a constant disequilibrium and to give away more than I could manage. I started with Distortion as my platform in 1998 and it started to go viral as an energy force in 2009 that is 11 years as a volunteer where almost everything was for free. When it exploded we became famous for out-of-control street parties with an unsophisticated music profile – but at its very heart, Distortion was a hard core rave, since 1998. And it is this rave energy that motivated us to turn the city upside down as a social experiment, more than it was music. It was both loving but also a little destructive. Then in 2014 and 2018 came Karrusel and Hangaren – two 'professional spinoffs' – I mean 'music products' based on electronic music. But Distortion is not a product – it is a raw uncontrollable energy, going in a hundred directions.« 

Thomas Fleurquin calls himself a Party Maker & Chief Architect of festivals, happenings, off-location events, mobile installations. Specialised in public space, social architecture and rave culture. Moved to Copenhagen and active in arts & culture since 1998. Raised in Paris, Danish mother French father. Founder of Distortion (festival), Karrusel (festival), Hangaren (venue), Human Office (newsletter), Animal (consulting agency), and the NusNus Secretariat.

© Peter Gannushkin

»Music for me is a world full of sound that you can explore, juggle with, systematize, be inspired by and form a starting point for meetings between people across cultures and generations.«  

Håkon Berre (b. 1980) has made his mark as a central figure on the Danish improvised music scene. His practice is characterized by an expanded approach to percussion, where both traditional instruments and everyday objects – such as doorbells, tin plates, chains and kitchen utensils – are included in a nuanced and often unpredictable sonic expression. He has performed at clubs and festivals internationally and collaborated with a wide range of notable musicians, including Peter Brötzmann, Phil Minton, Axel Dörner, John Tchicai, Jamie Branch and Otomo Yoshihide. Berre contributes to an extensive discography with more than 40 releases, many of which on the artist-run label Barefoot Records, which he co-founded. He has also composed and arranged music for theatre and exhibitions, and worked on interactive sound installations shown in museums in Denmark and Germany. He is active in a number of ensembles and collaborations, including Ytterlandet, TEETH, VÍÍK and Mirror Matter, as well as in various duo and quartet constellations.

© Niklas Ottander

»Music is a deep, but not serious, spiritual practice, in which creator, collaborator, and consumer alike are their own personal pope.«

James Black (b. 1990) is a composer, performer, and artistic director of Klang Festival – Copenhagen Experimental Music. Originally from Bristol, England, they moved to Copenhagen in 2013. Black's works have attracted a large amount of attention both nationally and internationally for their signature combination of artistic courage and vulnerability, described by the Danish Arts Council as »a universe of real madness where everything goes«. Their work is a deep and personal exploration of topics such as religion, loss, and queer identity, that is unafraid to be stupid or serious in any direction.

© Christian Klintholm

»Music is just something for me.«

Christian Juncker is a Danish musician and songwriter who has released a number of Danish-language albums. He debuted in 1995 with the band Bloom. Together with his friend Jakob Groth Bastiansen, he formed the duo Juncker in 2002. He is also behind the Christmas carol »Luk julefreden ind« from 2024.

© Guy Wasserman

»Music, for me, reveals the emptiness of boundaries and definitions – in consciousness, in space, and in music itself.«

Idan Elmalem is an oud player and composer working across world and popular music, now presenting his debut instrumental EP and live performance project. Following years of collaboration within the Israeli music scene, he turns toward a more personal and intimate musical voice, blending traditional oud with a contemporary sensibility. Influenced by his studies with master Nissim Dakwar, Elmalem’s music explores the space between tradition and innovation. His debut EP, Time, features three live-recorded pieces that move between past, present, and future, combining classical Arabic and Persian elements with jazz, minimalism, and cinematic sound. Based in Tel Aviv, Elmalem draws on his Moroccan-Danish heritage in his work. He is a graduate of the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Ethnomusicology at the University of Haifa, alongside his work as a player and composer.

© PR

On May 29, the Aalborg-based collective Datahaven9000 takes over the venue Skråen, transforming its main hall into a concentrated one-day festival of electronic music. The event is part of the concert series Bystanders #3, where the stage is handed over to local scenes rather than the venue’s in-house programming.