10 Days Off 2012 | Ghent, Belgium

Ever heard of Ghent? I didn’t think so. Well, if you haven’t, don’t beat yourself up too much because not once have I heard that perfectly plain North American yammer during my time spent here, despite the town bearing Lonely Planet’s number 7 spot on its 10 Places to Visit Before You Die list.

But enough about the town. Its lovely. Trust me. Canals, churches, cobblestone, jolly drunks, pretty people, and prettier personalities; its all here. What else is here, though, is an incredibly unique concert series showcasing an acute selection of electronic music’s foremost purveyors. That’s the real reason I’m here. Found down a winding alley and along side a murky jade strip of river is the Vooruit Art Centre‘s 10 Days Off festival.

“In 1995, 10 Days Off started as 10 Days Of Techno. Today, almost every electronic music genre can be seen and heard at the festival. 10 Days Off has become a landmark in the international electronic music scene. The festival welcomes artists, clubbers, music lovers and media from all over the world.

The festival has its own character and style, built on its pioneering decisive choice for programming electronic music.”

[via 10 Days Off]

[Day 1 - Salva]

Each night sports a variation of style; from house, to bass, hip-hop, disco and so on and so forth. They keep it fresh, to say the least.

[Day 9 - The Magician]

Featured this year; Salva, Holy Other, Lapalux, Africa Hitech, Kutmah, Teebs, Addison Groove, Booka Shade, John Talabot, The Magician, as well as many more. Lucky for you, the majority of these sets can be heard in their entirety, below. Personally, Mr. Talabot’s performance really tickled my fancy.

[Day 7 - Africa Hitech]

[Day 8 - Booka Shade]

Now you can’t say that you’ve never heard of Ghent, Belgium.

sam.i.am