Animistic Beliefs & Jeisson Drenth^NL

Rotterdam-based Animistic Beliefs draws from Techno, IDM and "Global Club" music in order to craft exhilarating hybrid sets. Following a more conventional debut on stage and the release of a first album, Linh Luu and Marvin Lalihatu felt the need to explore their respective cultures by incorporating the musical heritage of their ancestors in their productions; first in their stage performances, then through their latest album MERDEKA, released last year. Their distinctive, Gabber-inspired sound, intertwined with Linh’s punk vocals, oscillates between wistful Vietnamese poetry and punchy beats produced by their peculiar analog instruments; of note, the totobuang, part of the gamelan, an Indonesian orchestra that employs scales unknown to Western music. Through this unique musical palette, the pair explores their experience as queer people of color living in the Netherlands, expressing the range of possibilities and transcending the modern club circuit.

Constantly evolving and driven by tireless historical, technical and emotional exploration, the duo has joined forces with media artist Jeisson Drenth, who routinely collaborates with musicians and DJs that inspire new creative processes for his own work. By combining experimental video, live performance, textual work and, more recently, mixed media sculptures, Drenth uses as many technical and physical means as there are facets to his story, itself marked by migration and queer perspectives.