Documentary / The Sound of Belgium

This film is a real study of a cultural phenomenon from Belgium: how one small country in the north of Europe came under the huge influence of foreign soul music, and then the Electronic Body Music scene emerged under the influence of Kraftwerk’s work, which gradually mutated into new beat madness, which in turn mutated into a prominent wave of Belgian hardcore that became the predecessor of UK hardcore. This film is about how yesterday’s farmers, believing in themselves, turned into trendsetters for a short decade. It’s about how in the late 1980s Belgium suddenly became a northern Ibiza, where all the club youth from the neighbouring Netherlands, France, Germany and the UK came to party.

“Years ago Ibiza and Belgium were pretty similar. It was the same blend of music and the same desire for mixture. Except the only difference is that in the Ibiza music you hear the sunshine and in Belgian music you hear the rain,” says Jozef Devillé, director, cameraman and author of the film.