Rewire 2026 is now truly in the books, both figuratively and literally, as the last few reviews for the festival's 15th anniversary edition are coming in. Today we publish our ‘Rewire 2026 in reports’ article, which gathers quotes and impressions from earlier in April when Rewire festival again transformed The Hague into a place for attentive listening, experimental encounters, and inspiring sounds. Ranging from different national and international publications, we are grateful to share with you these writers’ own perspectives on Rewire 2026. Please note: as reviews and articles are released, they will be added below.
“A torchbearer for underground talent, The Hague's Rewire festival is thriving on exciting curation and community spirit” – The Line of Best Fit
Read The Line of Best Fit’s review
"Rewire manages something rare: it restores the possibility of being surprised and experience something genuinely, fundamentally new." – Glamcult
Read Glamcult’s review
“You leave [Rewire] dosed with just enough inspiration to carry you through until the next year. Its scale should be unwieldy; yet somehow it isn’t. Fifteen editions in, there is nothing else quite like it.” – Crack Magazine
Read Crack Magazine’s review
“This year’s Rewire festival proved why, once again, it’s one of the most compelling weekenders right now.” – Resident Advisor
“Rewire is adept at staging wildly different iterations of sound.” – The Quietus
Read The Quietus’ review
“Come to Rewire, and you may just leave feeling that music is still capable of surprise, and that the world, through it, can feel larger, stranger and newly possible.” – Metal Magazine
“The Hague is not a city whose reputation rests on cultural glamour. Its prestige is largely juridical, tied to tribunals, ministries, embassies, and the polished language of international order. However, fifteen years on from its twenty-nine-artist-strong opening gambit, Rewire festival has cemented an equally serious counter-narrative for Den Haag’s tourist board: Europe’s richest ecology of sound happens here.” – Metal Magazine
Read Metal Magazine’s review
“Fifteen years in, and Rewire still hasn't learned how to be comfortable. That's the highest compliment you can give it.” – Coeval Magazine
Read Coeval Magazine’s review
“While all experimental music festivals aim to hold space for the quiet and the loud, Rewire’s programming seemed to hit every level on the dial.” – Stereogum
Read Stereogum’s review
“By now, [Rewire] has become something of an obligatory visit, offering a near-perfect overview of contemporary experimental music in all its forms” – Kaput
Read Kaput’s review
“The streets around Amare were milling with easily identifiable attendees despite coming from many different countries, all to meet up in The Netherlands to immerse themselves in experimental and notoriously ’difficult’ music.” – Record Turnover
Read Record Turnover’s Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
“There is an implicit awareness here on how sound and music are good for far more than just being bread and circuses to amuse the masses: it can be an agent of true transformation.” – Beats Per Minute
Read Beats Per Minute’s review
“Running away from reality wasn't an option this weekend. Transcending boundaries, music can show us a way to cope with this world” – Musikexpress (in German)
Read Muzikexpress’ review
“This year, Rewire perhaps reached its peak in terms of its artistic programme. Not only because of the sheer number of performances, but also because of their quality.” – Zero.eu (in Italian)
Read Zero.eu’s review
"A festival so rich in emotion and sound, yet equally open to innovation."
Read Playtusu's review (in Turkish)
“Haags festival vindt de perfecte balans tussen urgent en high-brow” – 3voor12
“Maar na afloop van vier dagen struinen door het Haagse overheerst toch de blijde verbijstering. Over dat het wederom gelukt is om zo'n urgent en spannend programma samen te stellen zonder dat het te highbrow wordt. Je snapt onmiddellijk waarom Rewire afgelopen jaar het IJzeren Podiumdier won voor 'Festival of the Year'. Dat zou ze voor deze editie zomaar opnieuw kunnen lukken.” – 3voor12
Read 3voor12’s review
“Waar de meeste festivals om budgettaire of winststrevende redenen veranderen, is dit een festival waar consequent wordt vastgehouden aan de belangrijkste pijlers: avontuurlijke muziek, grote virtuositeit, grenzen verleggen en daarbij schijt hebben aan alle conventies.” – OOR
Read OOR’s review
“Tijdens dit jaarlijkse festival ontvangt de binnenstad van Den Haag de internationale top van de avant-gardemuziek.” – de Volkskrant
Read de Volkskrant’s review
“Het programma van de vijftiende editie van Rewire in Den Haag was alweer van uitzonderlijk niveau. Vlot verteerbaar was het zelden, memorabel des te meer.” – Festileaks
Read Festileaks’ review
“Als de zalen leeglopen, de stad en het ochtendgloren het weer overnemen, blijft dat typische Rewire-gevoel hangen: je hebt lang niet alles gezien, waarschijnlijk het belangrijkste gemist, en toch precies genoeg meegemaakt om te weten dat je volgend jaar weer terug wilt.” – 3voor12 Den Haag
Read 3voor12 Den Haag’s Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday review
"Bij elkaar opgeteld ben ik vier uur lang onophoudelijk aan het dansen gezet tijdens een clubnacht op Rewire die tal van anderen ruim overschaduwt. Het doet me nogmaals beseffen hoeveel muzikaal meesterschap er ieder jaar op Rewire bijeen wordt gebracht." – Gonzo(circus)
Read Gonzo(circus)’ review
“Rewire fungeert als ontmoetingsplek voor makers die de conventies van elektronische muziek en kunst openbreken en het publiek uitnodigen zich in nieuwe esthetische en zintuiglijke werelden te laten onderdompelen.” – Written in Music
In conversation with Eliana Glass – Numero
In conversation with Ouri – Numero
Bby Eco on making space: for grief, the present moment, collaboration, and his very own eco-verse – Double A Magazine
Peering into the future through the cracks of the present (Chunky Move) – Zero.eu
A conversation with Susu Laroche – Subbacultcha
Moor Mother & Hieroglyphic Being in conversation – Huck Magazine
Interview with Mariska de Groot – NPO Cultuur
SENTIMENTAL VALUE – In conversation with Torus – Struma + Iodine
Interview with ØKSE – NewOnce
Cameron Picton on starting his new project, My New Band Believe, and adapting its 20-plus-musician debut for the stage. – Crack Magazine
Goya [La Rat] Conversation - Kaas FM
100Komma7
Operator Radio
Refuge Worldwide (Ordinary Wednesday)
Radio Helsinki (in Finnish, 7 April 2026)
Please note: as reviews and articles are released, they will be added above.
Photo by Camille Blake