What’s behind the HARDEST Hardcore festival? – [Interview with the Hardshock Festival team]

Within a matter of weeks, whilst the basics of society are sitting at home and stuffing their faces with Easter eggs, the hardest of hearts will be gathering at the idyllic Almere Strand for the HARDEST Hardcore gathering, Hardshock Festival! With the edition fast-approaching, we couldn’t be more excited to kick off the festival season with a bang.

With their colossal sixth edition about to take place, we had the opportunity to pick the brains of trailblazing organisation High Energy Events, who would like to share their story with the public. Speaking about their world, why they do what they do, their drive and motivation, we are pleased to have John (Founder) Jacolien (Festival Manager & Merchandising) and Ruben (Marketing & Head of Program) on Alive At Night to speak more about Hardshock Festival!

– Thanks for joining me today guys! Let me start off by asking: when you first started Hardshock Festival six years ago, did you expect it to grow as much as it has?

JOHN: Now six years old, Hardshock Festival is a concept that was born from a true passion for music. As a team, we had the goal to create a festival that was truly unique and revolved around one central theme – Hardcore! We are very pleased to see how the festival scene has embraced the concept so greatly. For us, the key to its success has been listening to customers’ needs and desires – this is how Hardshock has reached such prominence and stands out from the rest. Fun fact: the very first edition of Hardshock was held in 2009 in a gym in Zwolle with only a few hundred visitors? Looking at how much we’ve grown, we can only feel proud of this accomplishment!

– What was the main motivational factor Hardshock Festival’s creation?

JOHN: As I mentioned earlier, the entire team of High Energy Events all have a massive passion for the harder styles…

RUBEN: Around 2012 I noticed that the vast majority of events were booking the same acts over and over again, certain organisations were so busy pushing their ‘own’ artists and boycotting others due to politics and thus, the artists with truly unique and creative talent were unfortunately beginning to fall through the cracks. I felt like these more ‘underground’ artists really deserved a podium to be showcased on; I wanted to give these guys the opportunity to thrive and be at a festival that was all about displaying their talents. Around that time, there were so many huge musical productions and tracks released by talented Hardcore producers around the world; I wanted them all to perform at Hardshock and that was a great motivation for me.

– There are many Hardcore-only festivals around nowadays, what are some unique things that Hardshock festival offers to the Hardcore scene that the others don’t?

RUBEN: Hardshock Festival has never even compared to other Hardcore festivals! We guard our identity with everything in our power. From our unique programming, to continuous out-of-the-box thinking, our incredible beach location and the incomparable togetherness of visitors from around the world, Hardshock Festival is truly unique. Each year, we pride ourselves on creating a great vibe that both visitors and artists talk about for months after – we aim to create the ultimate experience…

The festival stands out primarily due to the fact that we program 100% Hardcore and harder. Where we first began Hardshock, we thought that the Raw Hardstyle area fit perfectly into the programming, however after the second year we dropped that area, because as a team, we believed it didn’t fit the Hardshock Festival vibe. Both the fans and us as a company thrive on the strictly 100% Hardcore statute and that’s how we want to keep it! Another important conception we have is to diversify our line-ups each year. Other festivals make small changes to their line-ups each year, however with Hardshock you know that you can expect the opposite! We thrive on innovation and place a high value on diversity.

– As a festival organisation, do you feel as though you play some role in guiding the ‘trends’ in the Hardcore scene?

JACOLIEN: I don’t think that we necessarily affect the scene regarding trends, but we certainly try to leave a mark within the Hardcore community with our vision. There is so much diversity in our festival programming that if it rubs off on other organisations and they begin to book artists more diversely, then that’s great!

Our merchandise is also really important for the overall Hardshock Festival brand. We see people wearing our official merch more than ever; they like our new designs and are proud to walk on the streets wearing the Hardshock brand which is great to see!

– When creating an a-class line-up, what are some things that you need to consider as an organisation?

RUBEN: When creating a line-up, we really try to think outside of the box. We aim to give talented producers a platform to spin their new tunes, book various pioneers of the Hardcore genre and of course, include exclusive live-acts and special battles. This year we have created three stage partnerships with labels and communities that we feel are diverse and worthy. These are ‘The Third Movement’ (Voltage Area), ‘Hardcore Italia’ (Wired Area) and ‘PRSPCT’ (Hertz Area). Through doing this, we provide the real Hardcore enthusiasts with more ‘true’ Hardcore.

– This year, the main stage contains more underground artists compared to who you’d see on something like the main stage at Dominator. Why do you guys choose to showcase the harder or more experimental sounds?

JOHN: We want to ensure that you don’t always see the same names over and over again on the mainstage. We’re allergic to the ‘standard’ mainstage line-ups – we break the rules. We want exclusive battles, new live-acts and artists who other organisations wouldn’t dare put on their main stage. Let’s be honest – this year’s mainstage is SUPER PHAT!

– This year, you’ve added a new area. What is your reasoning behind this new addition?

JOHN: Due to the popularity of ‘Uptempo’ Hardcore, we’ve chosen to add an additional area called ‘Frequency.’ The ‘Radiation’ area, which is our hardest area at the festival, wasn’t big enough for all the extreme Hardcore sounds you have nowadays and we didn’t want to change that area, so we decided to get a little crazier and add a whole new area devoted to absolute brutality!

– In addition to Hardshock Festival 2016, you also put on an event in Paris, France, where the Hardcore scene is ever-evolving, during the ‘Techno Parade’, can you tell us about the success of this?

JACOLIEN: Last year, we had the opportunity to add a Hardshock Festival truck to the ‘Techno Parade’ in Paris, which is an event with over 350,000 visitors from all around the world. This was a huge success and milestone for us; the Hardshock parade made a HUGE impression – our social media pages were flooded with French posts, new followers and a lot of interaction!

At the beginning of the Techno Parade, our truck was parked next to the world-renowned Louvre, which was an achievement in itself. However, what we didn’t realise until later was when we finished the parade that the ‘Hardshock’ name was all over the French news sites! Once we translated it, we realised that due to the heavy bass vibrations from our huge sound-system, the Louvre was forced to evacuate an entire wing of the museum because the alarms kept going off, haha! If one thing is for sure, it’s that France cannot ignore Hardshock!

– Over the years, what have been the biggest ‘lessons’ you’ve learnt about holding a festival?

JOHN: After the first two editions, we knew for sure that Hardstyle didn’t belong at the event – Hardshock is all about 100% Hardcore and harder! Additionally, listening to the visitors has always been an important part of establishing each edition and without feedback from the visitors, Hardshock wouldn’t be as successful as it is!

What’s the importance of not only executing a compelling line-up, but also executing a massive, visually appealing production?

RUBEN: You need to do your best to be different, unique, bold and creative and these are the main components we consider when putting on great show from all angles. To go more in depth, we don’t want to start talking about sub-genres as it’s all Hardcore to us, but as opposed to having 7 areas labelled as Hardcore, we felt that it was important to identify each area with a name, description and fathomable look. This way, visitors can easily distinguish what ‘type’ of Hardcore is playing where.

JOHN: We put a lot of effort into obtaining the beautiful Almere Strand beach grounds and we are really happy that we did. The location is very important; not only is Almere Strand beautiful, but it’s a large, relaxing area that’s fun to explore and also close to transport. In regards to the stages themselves, we work really hard with our production team to create truly awesome designs for each stage that complement their individual identity. Of course, there’s also extreme effort put into the appearance of the mainstage, the pyrotechnics and of course, the end-show. This gives you, the visitor, the most memorable experience that you can possibly have at our festival!

– And of course, another important component of the festival is the anthem! Can you tell me a little bit more about this year’s Hardshock Festival anthem?

RUBEN: This year’s anthem has been produced by none other than The Third Movement’s D-Passion. This hero has created a truly PHAT track “Shock The Hardcore” and it’s coming out on The Third Movement soon, so keep an eye out for it! You can check out the preview below:

– Can you give us some more juicy details about the new Hardshock Merchandise?

JACOLIEN: For the upcoming edition of Hardshock Festival, we’ve created a line of brand-new merchandise especially for you, our supporters! We’ve expanded the line by adding more great training jackets, new t-shirts, hoodies, caps and more! What’s new in this year’s collection? Well, we’ve designed an exclusive Hardshock bomber jacket that you’re going to love, as well as some sweat-pants to complete your outfit. Of course we’ll be selling all of these items at the festival itself, so jump online and check out all of our products before the big day: www.hardshockmerchandise.com!

– What can visitors expect from Hardshock 2017 in terms of production?

JOHN: This year, the mainstage is going to be enormous and it really tops all previous Hardshock mainstages. In addition, the organisation has opted for an ‘weather-proof’ terrain; that means that this year we have six indoor areas and one insanely awesome outdoor mainstage – all with the very best in lighting and sound to pamper our dedicated visitors!

Furthermore, we’ve also found a new sound-system company, who will ensure that all the areas are equipped with the very best speakers and technical equipment. So, prepare yourselves for a mind-blowing and top-notch sound like never before!

– Do you have any final words to excite our readers for Hardshock Festival?

RUBEN: Hardshock Festival is the first 100% Hardcore festival of the season and with over 125 top-tier artists spread over 7 eclectic areas, what else could a Hardcore-head want?! Held on Saturday, the 15th of April (Easter weekend) for an insane 12 hours, this edition is going to be bigger and grander than ever! With stage hostings by Hardcore Italia, The Third Movement and PRSPCT, this is a must-attend for any true Hardcore fanatic!

With just over two weeks ’till the big day, get your finest Nikes and rave outfit prepared for HARDSHOCK FESTIVAL! For those who haven’t secured their tickets yet, you can do so at the official website – HERE. 

10 reasons why you CAN’T miss Hardshock Festival 2017!

1. Hardshock Festival revolves around one thing – being 100% Hardcore & harder!

2. This year, Hardshock Festival has an additional area, meaning that we now have seven areas FULL of real Hardcore.

3. The line-up is composed of more than 125 incredibly talented Hardcore DJ’s from around the world.

4. This year, the mainstage will be even bigger and better than ever before; it’s an absolute must-see!

5. We book artists who showcase absolutely every corner of the Hardcore spectrum; from Early to Millennium, the hottest new releases and hardest, raunchiest depths of the genre – it’s all here!

6. We’ve included exclusive DJ battles, including Radium vs. The Braindrillerz, The Outside Agency vs. Mindustries or Sjammienators vs. Death Shock.

7. This is a family reunion like no other…the Hardcore kind! Come have a beer with your rave-fam at Almere Strand!

8. The matchless atmosphere is surpassed by NO other festival. Grab a drink, lay down in one of our hammocks or by the salty beach and dip your toes in the water whilst enjoying the ravaging Hardcore beats.

9. This is a no-brainer – you simply have to witness our spectacular end-show at the mainstage. Enjoy the biggest and baddest festival ending we’ve ever thrown!

10. We’re simply awesome – do we even need another reason? Grab your friends, get your tickets and come see what all the fuss is about! Don’t miss out!