Le Guess Who? returns to Utrecht from November 5th – 8th for its monumental 20th anniversary edition and the first major announcement for 2026 has finally landed. Two decades into its existence, the beloved Dutch festival continues to stand entirely in a league of its own, presenting one of the most adventurous, thoughtful and globally expansive programmes anywhere on earth. A gathering place for boundary-pushing sounds, radical artistic visions and transformative musical encounters, Le Guess Who? remains a vital celebration of cultural exchange and discovery, bringing together artists from every corner of the globe to perform in Utrecht’s idyllic churches, theatres, galleries and warehouses.
As always, part of what makes Le Guess Who? so special is the richness and diversity brought in by its guest curators, artists invited not only to perform but to shape and enrich the festival through hand-picked selections of favourite and like-minded musicians. This year Tropical Fuck Storm, aja monet, KMRU and Los Thuthanaka take the curator seat and today we get a thrilling first glimpse at the worlds they are building.
Returning to Le Guess Who? as guest curators, Melbourne’s post-apocalyptic acid punk disco four piece Tropical Fuck Storm have assembled a gloriously unhinged and eclectic programme featuring longtime inspirations, collaborators and fellow sonic adventurers. The Australian four-piece have proved to be one of the most exhilarating and unpredictable live bands out there. Their music veers between disintegrating noise rock, psychedelic freak-outs, grotesque humour and strangely infectious pop hooks, whilst chronicling societal collapse, state violence, media overload and collective paranoia with equal parts absurdity and fury. Their curation includes instrumental trio Dirty Three, Niger’s endlessly hypnotic desert rock band Etran de L’Aïr; Japanese experimentalist FUJI|||||||||||TA and goat (JP); the blistering guitar work of Bill Orcutt; experimental duo Mark Fell & Pat Thomas; Ishaaq Aarkistra & Ustad Hassan Haider Khan; ZÖJ and Gareth Liddiard himself.
Contemporary poet, writer, lyricist, and activist aja monet also returns to Le Guess Who? both as performer and curator. Her programme explores resistance, love and collective joy through deeply spiritual and politically charged sounds. Among the names appearing on her bill is celebrated and prodigious multi-reed player and composer SHABAKA, whose ever-evolving musical universe continues to transcend jazz traditions whilst remaining deeply spiritual and exploratory. Whether through Sons Of Kemet, The Comet Is Coming, Shabaka and the Ancestors or his recent flute-led meditative works, SHABAKA has long been one of the most visionary and singular musicians operating anywhere right now, and his inclusion alone already makes this edition feel essential. Also appearing on aja monet’s bill is Ghanaian frafra musician and kologo master King Ayisoba, Belgian-Ghanaian artist ESINAM and legendary dub poet Lillian Allen, whose politically infused spoken word and reggae-rooted poetry has been inspiring audiences for decades. Harriet Tubman & Georgia Anne Muldrow will also present their collaborative album Electrical Field of Love, a fearless collision of jazz, soul, psychedelia, doom metal and electronics, alongside Tshegue, Palestinian Sound Archive and Nicolas Premier’s AFRICA IS THE FUTURE project.
Kenyan sound artist and experimental musician Joseph Kamaru aka KMRU will bring a conceptually fascinating project. Grounded in field recordings, drone, noise and sound art, his sprawling WAI8 project is an eight-hour durational performance examining waiting as an active form of engagement, stretching and dissolving our perception of time through rhythm, silence, drones and repetition. Since first emerging in 2023, WAI8 has evolved into an open collaborative platform and he has invited a stunning cast of artists including Aho Ssan, Carmen Villain, Elvin Brandhi, NEXCYIA, Koshiro Hino, ouri and Whatever The Weather.
Founded by siblings Chuquimamani-Condori and Joshua Chuquimia Crampton, Los Thuthanaka traverse the past, present and future of the Pakajaqui Nation through a singular blend of Aymara composition, Andean traditions, psychedelia and experimental electronics. Their curated programme focuses on artists exploring Indigenous Andean culture through contemporary forms and is boasting some hugely exciting names. Appearing on their bill is Japanese noise legends Melt-Banana, the radiant and dreamlike sounds of Gigi Masin, Los Delfines del Amor balancing Andean tradition with glowing psychedelic textures, Comunidad Sikuris Berlin and solo performances from Joshua Chuquimia Crampton and Chuquimamani-Condori themselves.
Beyond the curated programmes, the first wave of artists announced for the general line-up is already staggering. We are ecstatic to see the addition of Moroccan trailblazer Maalem Houssam Guinia, carrying forward the deeply hypnotic and spiritual traditions of Gnawa music; maverick Japanese saxophonist, composer and producer Yasuaki Shimizu, whose singular work traverses jazz fusion, ambient dub and experimental composition, and Khadija El Warzazia performing alongside the multi-generational women’s percussion ensemble Bnat el Houariyatlegendary. Also announced is Ethiopian outfit Ibex Band, who helped define the sound of 70s Ethiopian music by modernising traditional rhythms and arrangements into exhilarating contemporary forms and Egyptian singer and songwriter Maryam Saleh, whose fearless and emotionally charged music fuses shaabi and folk traditions with experimental approaches. Elsewhere on the bill is the hypnotic and joyful Nakibembe Embaire Group from Uganda, performing on the giant wooden embaire xylophone played collectively by six musicians at once, experimental rock collective Water Damage returning with their extended performance Static Ecstatic, and pioneering post-rock outfit Tortoise, whose influence across experimental rock, jazz, electronica and post-rock is immeasurable. Last year’s Touch was one of our Album Picks of 2025 and their records remain masterclasses in tension, texture and groove, unfolding with patient precision whilst constantly reshaping the possibilities of instrumental music. There’s also the hugely welcome return of Holy Tongue, one of our absolute favourite live bands in recent years, whose intoxicating fusion of dub, free jazz, percussion-heavy psychedelia and experimental electronics feels entirely transportive in a live setting, propelled by the endlessly inventive drumming of Valentina Magaletti. The line-up also boasts the transcendent and haunting songs of Grouper, Venezuelan bassist and composer Raúl Monsalve y Los Forajidos, Japanese experimental rock icons OOIOO, the ever brilliant Loraine James, flamenco singer Ángeles Toledano, legendary dream-pop pioneers A.R. Kane, ambient composer Ana Roxanne and Montréal-based composer and musician Jessica Moss teaming up with Tony Buck. We’re also thrilled by the addition of Juana Molina, whose enchanting and endlessly inventive music has been mesmerizing us for years. Effortlessly weaving together folk, ambient textures, looping electronics and playful rhythmic experimentation, the Argentinian singer-songwriter and composer never ceases to be surprising. Another inspired addition is the collaborative project of Lebanese-Canadian composer, producer and Jerusalem In My Heart mastermind Radwan Ghazi Moumneh alongside Frédéric D. Oberland of Oiseaux-Tempête. Both artists have individually crafted some of the most immersive and emotionally resonant sound worlds of the past decade and their recent collaborative album Eternal Life No End beautifully intertwines buzuk, modular synths, voice, saxophone and electronics into something both fragile and politically urgent. Having previously witnessed the immense power of their collaborations within Oiseaux-Tempête performances at Le Guess Who?, this feels like one of the festival’s most tantalising additions. The line-up continues to unfold in every imaginable direction with Brazilian project Pra Gira Girar, Iraqi-Irish musician Mohammad Syfkhan, psychedelic duo TENGGER, experimental trio The Ex & Brass Unbound, Palestinian artist أحمد [Ahmed], industrial punk force Deafkids and the ecstatic and hypnotic rhythms of Arsenal Mikebe & Valentina Magaletti.
The festival’s COSMOS platform also returns, continuing its mission of spotlighting independent music communities around the world. This year’s embassies include Osaka’s NAKID, Amsterdam’s OCCII and Cabo Verde’s Tabanka Records, alongside the continuation of COSMOS’ collaboration with Berlin community radio Refuge Worldwide.
Twenty years in, Le Guess Who? remains one of the most visionary, adventurous and essential festivals on the planet. A place where borders dissolve, traditions are honoured and reshaped and entirely new sonic possibilities emerge. As always, the line-up announced today is overflowing with artists we adore, artists we cannot wait to discover and collaborations that simply could not happen anywhere else. Head over to leguesswho.com for the full list of names announced so far and ticket information. A very limited amount of 4-Day Festival Passes, Day Passes and 24 HOUR DUB passes go on sale Tuesday June 2nd.
