You say you want a revolution
Well, you know
We all wanna change the world
You tell me that it’s evolution
Well, you know
We all wanna change the world
But when you talk about destruction
Don’t you know that you can count me out?
(The Beatles, Revolution)
———————————————-
Singing power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people, right on
(John Lennon, Power to the People)
For a number of years, there’s been a debate about whether EXIT is still what it used to be. Some of the original fans gave up on it long ago, practically as soon as the festival took on a more rock-oriented vibe in 2003, betraying, in their eyes, its predominantly electronic music beginnings. Then came the era of lamenting the absence of rock legends like Iggy Pop and The Stooges and the late, beloved Shane MacGowan, as EXIT began to bring in radical guitar bands like Garbage, The White Stripes, or Arctic Monkeys. When Billy Idol, Robert Plant, or The Cult appeared, some wondered where they found these Methuselahs. And then, sure, it’s excellent that The Prodigy are coming, but no, actually, it’s not so great that they’re coming again. However, since COVID, there’s been a quietly persistent attitude that anything goes on the Main Stage now, and no, it absolutely can’t be tolerated anymore.
If it’s any consolation, such views mostly come from those who haven’t attended EXIT in a long time.
If they did, they would have been amazed this July by the diverse rock and pop selections on the Tesla Universe Stage – always on the cutting edge and always with humanitarian messages. Oliver Tree, Black Eyed Peas, The Exploited, Cavalera Conspiracy, the ultra-cool Altın Gün, and finally Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine, Audioslave) – what a lineup of legends, old and new, that seemed to draw life energy from an unknown source to continually revitalize the rock ‘n’ roll planet, to share the celebration with millions of kids worldwide.
The future belongs to the young, definitely. The increasingly younger audience at the EXIT Festival clearly shows that they understand everything; they don’t dismiss any genre, are curious, and express genuine, unpretentious enthusiasm for every commendable artistic act, regardless of who it comes from. How else could one explain the capacity of the youth community here to accept and wisely honor their peers, as well as the distinguished veterans who created musical history, often long before they were born?
And the kindness they show each other in their peer etiquette, taking care of each other and making sure not to accidentally hurt someone in their state of euphoria – a relevant scientific study could be written about this today. The reason is that EXIT’s teenagers listen to their on-stage teachers – Oliver, Wattie, Tom, and will.i.am – who send them only one message: love, equality, respect.
Anyone who has attended EXIT has attended one of Europe’s most prestigious universities on becoming human.
I fell down to earth
From a hundred miles away, and somehow
I still make it work
But it’s overrated and somehow played out
(Oliver Tree, Alien Boy)
Oliver Tree is, without a doubt, an alien. We heard about him a few years ago when he performed at Dom Omladine in Belgrade. However, his satirical hip-hop theater didn’t quite shine through back then. Our friend Oliver has an appetite for the big stage. With his insatiable imagination, he takes thousands in the audience on a magically mysterious journey, leaving you smiling and happy while your alternative rock dignity remains intact. This Californian guy, highly educated to boot, works wonders when he plugs in, creating with his small band the illusion that you’ve landed on another planet, one you know so well as if it were your home.
This artist’s delightful, childlike influence made us jump up and down and giggle long after his performance, recalling his drastic approach to the concept of live performance. If you loved the show “The Mighty Boosh” and the works of the iconic Daniel Johnston, you might recognize some of Oliver’s humorous signposts hidden between the lines. But the central part of his show is himself, and the fact that everything happens seamlessly and spontaneously leaves plenty of room for surprise, both physical and auditory. This PE class, coupled with the best independent white rap you can imagine, is something you will surely never forget.
A bit later, the famous rapper and pioneer of the trap style, Gucci Mane, took to the same stage. With his gigantic stature, he dominated the space, combining his flamboyant street-inspired bars and barbaric strutting with the booming sounds provided by his DJ at the mixing desk. Even if you’re not a fan, you have to admire the grit in the genes of this man, who came from the southern United States. And if you were expecting something empty and banal, you got, on the contrary, a conglomerate of hip-hop subgenres in their rawest form, born out of his own bitter life experiences. This was yet another vivid page in EXIT’s textbook of contemporary musical expressions.
Tonight’s the night, let’s live it up
I got my money, let’s spend it up (I feel)
Go out and smash it, like, “Oh my God!”
Jump off that sofa, let’s kick it off (I feel)
(Black Eyed Peas, I Gotta Feeling)
On Friday night, the Black Eyed Peas catapulted the audience from the Main Stage into the stratosphere with their hits, making everyone dance and sing without holding back. The theme is love; the desire is for everyone to have an excellent time, and the kindness of the frontman will.i.am, spreading waves of genuine human warmth, is boundless. Their wide-open dance-pop lifts you up instantly, the mood they bring explodes upward, and the hard-hitting sound echoes powerfully through the Fortress but with masterful taste. The Black Eyed Peas are, of course, massive stars, with 80 million records sold, yet they still move around the stage with ease and jump more energetically than their enthusiastic audience. We, of course, still prefer uncompromising rock, but the Black Eyed Peas grab your heart and convince you to relax in their company, uplifting your spirit with the simple joy of the universe.
Hooters! etc
Sex!! I love sex I love all em sex
Hurry up sex and putting the boot in
Sex! Ha Ha!!
Sex and violence, sex and violence, sex and violence
(The Exploited, Sex and Violence)
The Exploited, having embodied the very essence of punk since 1978, brought a true celebration to the Tesla Universe Stage on Saturday! Their frenetic performance and outrageous antics with Wattie Buchan, owner of the most iconic Mohawk hairstyle in history and a voice that has been the pure definition of rebellion for nearly half a century, firmly answer the question of whether punk is dead. Watching Wattie and his energized crew, you’d think it’s the only music worth listening to.
The elixir of The Exploited’s rebellion, which refuses to acknowledge illness, poverty, or old age – because they’ve had all that in abundance – still excites to this day. We met them at EXIT in 2022, supporting their younger grindcore brothers, Napalm Death. But later that same evening, Wattie went to the Dance Arena to listen to Swedish techno DJ Adam Beyer, explaining that he’d been following his work for a while. Indeed, the constant curiosity to hear new music and form an idea of the auditory world in which they operate is probably what saved Wattie and his bandmates from the monotony of being hostage to their genre.
For this reason, encounters with Wattie Buchan are always inspiring. His presence and vocal authority shine as another musical relic that was making noise long before this July at the EXIT festival. There’s something relentlessly human about The Exploited, who wouldn’t sell their Scottish honor and conscience for any price but gladly share the stage with loyal fans during the legendary “Sex and Violence.” Long live The Exploited!
The British selection resonated deeply into the night on the Main Stage even after The Exploited. Originally from South Africa, electropop star Kenya Grace caught our attention with her original blend of bedroom pop with a mystical drum’n’bass foundation. She produces unusual rhythms on stage alone with her microphone and a giant machine that she skillfully operates by hand. Kenya’s voice is tenderly feminine yet carries a bold message. The music industry might eventually swallow her up, as it has many in showbiz, turning her into another washed-out hitmaker, forcing her to recycle herself. But we sincerely hope that doesn’t happen anytime soon. Keep an eye on this girl – she might become the successor to Sade of Generation Z.
We already know John Newman quite well, but he’s back stronger than ever. The popular format known as DJ hybrid live brings us the fiery Newman now as an expert handler of a powerful machine on stage – similar to his predecessor – but while everything in this set is flawlessly tight, when this guy grabs the microphone and lets loose his massive voice, Petrovaradin experiences an earthquake like never before. Newman’s athletic stamina captivates, and his humility as he rejoices in the audience’s exalted state, almost in disbelief, truly touches you. John Newman is rightfully one of the symbols of the EXIT festival.
The wigglin’ guitars, girl, the crash of the drums
Makes you wanna keep-a-rockin’ ’til morning comes
Let me be who I am
And let me kick out the jam
Yes, kick out the jams
I done kicked ’em out
(MC5, Kick Out the Jams)
And finally, the closing night. Should we start with the noise and fury of the sibling band Cavalera Conspiracy, the core of the defunct Brazilian Sepultura? We first met Max Cavalera at EXIT in 2004 with the unforgettable Soulfly. Now, here he is with his brother Igor on drums, as well as his own son in the lineup of this intergenerational thrash metal ensemble, delivering an unyielding sound that decapitates the front-row audience.
Or should we focus on the unique Turkish-Dutch musical phenomenon, Altın Gün, where the ancient saz blends beautifully with classic rock instrumentation, creating a psychedelic sonic vision straight out of One Thousand and One Nights? Everything is here – the sensuality of the Middle East, the intense musical and vocal dedication of the frontman with the unpronounceable name, and the hypnotic magic of old melodies. Altın Gün are precisely what the Turkish national team demonstrated at the recently concluded UEFA EURO: passionate, united as one, talented and committed, guided by something higher than themselves—a fascinating experience.
I walked the empty desert
And I was burned in the heat
But the road I must travel
Its end I cannot see
(Tom Morello, The Road I Must Travel)
Tom Morello has many faces, but each shines with righteousness. His arrival at the EXIT Festival initially seems like the fulfillment of a long-standing dream, but ultimately, it turns out to be a meeting of two friends who have always been in a kind of spiritual alliance. Tom Morello thus naturally immerses himself in the festival’s atmosphere and makes more noise than you could have imagined. And not with some brash decibels, but solely with the power of his spirit.
Tom Morello’s kindness, colossal presence on the music scene, fame, authorship, reputation as an activist, and unwavering commitment to the right side of humanity have made this artist a guiding star of resistance worldwide. Tom Morello would never accept being given the title of the new John Lennon, but really – is anyone doing it better these days? The touching gesture of including Kick Out the Jams by MC5 and Lennon’s Power to the People in his setlist, in addition to numerous songs that have marked his career, further attests to his generous adoption and transmission of the historical values of musical freedom that Morello tirelessly nurtures in his work. The only other person to do something similar was Kurt Cobain at Nirvana’s Unplugged concert in New York in 1993, when he performed songs by The Vaselines and David Bowie and then brought his heroes, the Meat Puppets, on stage.
Tom Morello showcased his immense humanity on the Tesla Universe Stage. Not only has he been a member of very influential bands and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last year with Rage Against the Machine, not only is he a wonderful father to his thirteen-year-old son Roman, a guitar virtuoso (they performed together! ), but he is also a monumental figure of our time. Consistently sending a message of reconciliation but also taking decisive action against injustice for decades, Morello has contributed to the revolutionary awakening of consciousness in various parts of the globe, including here. The sound of his electric guitar seems to come directly from the heart of rock and roll, suddenly speaking the language of a furious Jimi Hendrix – and you get goosebumps because you somehow recognize that, at that moment, you are conversing with history.
Just his presence among us changes our view of ourselves. Suddenly, it becomes clear how easy it is to be virtuous and noble and stand “on the right side of history.” It’s a matter of choice! Isn’t this what EXIT Festival has consistently done for our community for over two decades? Tom Morello’s muscular figure, bent over his guitar with a firmly clenched fist raised high, feels like the ultimate embodiment of EXIT’s mission, which started 24 years ago.
Tom Morello simply showed up at EXIT to tell us, firmly and without a doubt, that it was all worth it.
Text: Zorica Kojić
