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EXIT FESTIVAL – PROBABLY THE BIGGEST FESTIVAL IN THE WORLD!

A record number of festival goers descended on the picturesque town of Novi Sad, with over 10,000 British enjoying delights of the Petrovaradin fortress for this year’s Exit Festival in Serbia.

Eager revealers arrived early and the campsite was overflowing by nightfall and as the first day of the festival arrived, the atmosphere in Novi Sad was buzzing with anticipation. Says EXIT’s Rajko Bozik, The English audience was great  friendly and in a good mood. There was a great atmosphere in the festival’s campsite and on the fortress, and many friendships were started among visitors from UK and Serbia/Balkans.

As the sun began to set on the eve of the first night, the view from the terrace on the fortress was simply stunning. With the thousands of people walking in expectation across the bridge like an army of ants making the pilgrimage to the festival entrance. Tanya Stephens and Groove Armada began the proceedings on the main stage, but it was The Prodigy that shook the 18th Century fortress walls with their opening track Breathe. Revving up the crowd to insanity, Exit was left in a state of euphoria and the band’s car was totally mobbed when they tried to leave the site. “It was the best festival we played this year! exclaimed Liam Howlett.

While all this was going on the crowd were treated to an amazing fireworks display before rock legend Robert Plant & The Strange Sensations took to the stage giving the crowd all the Led Zeppelin classics they had been waiting for and then culminating with the Stanton Warriors & Rodney P until sunrise.

Meanwhile on the Dance Arena the 25,000 strong crowd were treated to the delights of Aussie Deepchild, and then Trentemoller live, with one fan from Scotland saying “It’s so good it’s not right!” Next up was Green Velvet and Richie Hawtin who was took things tougher. “Exit was one of the most interesting gigs for me this year. The location was amazing and to feel the warmth of the people dancing and freaking out to my music was inspirational! Respect to the people of Exit for pushing the boundaries with their choice of lineup and bringing great new music one step further east!” enthused Richie Hawtin. Magda concluded the night with her selection of choice techno and her appreciation of the faithful crowd who showed her a true Serbian welcoming.

As the sun rose so did the temperature and the party people made their way back to their beds across the river in Novi Sad. But no time for rest as the beach party started at midday with Jo Mills bringing a slice of DC10 to the banks of the Danube. Pete Gooding and Alex Gold were also playing over the next few days for those who did not wish to sleep (or couldn’t).

Onto Day 2 and Friday was the turn of all girl group The Pipettes to kick things of on the Main Stage. “We were hit immediately by the enthusiasm of the crowd, we´ve never played a better party!” exclaimed Gwenno from the band. They were followed by the Brazilian band CSS with singer LoveFoxx modelling some very unique outfits including a sequined jumpsuit. Then it was the Beastie Boys turn to take command of the crowd with all their biggest hits and humorous stage antics. Followed by Zinc back to back with Friction and EXIT resident MC Dynamite bringing in the morning.

Cut to the Dance Arena where Ibiza’s We Love… crew played host, bringing with them the legendary Danny Tenaglia, 2020 Soundsystem live, Nic Fanciulli, Paul Woolford and Serge Santiago. Outstanding performances by all with a perfect ‘Exit moment’ when Danny Tenaglia donned a pair of large gold comedy sunglasses and busted some dance moves on the stage. Priceless – A true festival moment!

Exit festival has over 25 stages of all sizes and musical genres, a walk through the mystical fortress is like a magical wonderland…. Featuring the Café del Danube, the Elektrana Stage, Reggae Stage, Latino Stage, Urban Stage, Explosive Stage, Cinema, Happy Novi Sad Stage, Futureshock and trillions more. First up is the World Music Stage where the amazing group of percussionists from Novi Sad called Bateria SambaNsa were playing Brazilian rhythmic music.

Next up, the Reggae Stage hosted by Brixton’s Terratone crew who have been performing at the festival for 6 years and are considered residents of Exit! “The Serbian people are a joy to be amongst and treat everybody like royalty, the very little they have they openly share with you, it is truly touching” Wenti Coke enthuses. And this is a sentiment shared by many UK visitors to the festival. Said Mark, a punter from Manchester “The people of Serbia where so welcoming and friendly towards the festival goers to the point where we have made friends with many of them. The festival has a friendly atmosphere and is set in an excellent location.”

And there’s the MTV Movement stage – an intimate and rocking charity driven stage supporting social issues at EXIT. This year they launched the campaign ‘Movement’, promoting Tolerance and Diversity and encouraging people to free their minds from prejudice. Acts included The Loose Cannons, Kissy Sell Out, Rob Garza (Theivery Corporation), Bez (Happy Mondays) and Tayo, with surprise sets from Tom Finlay’s Groove Armada and Green Velvet doing an 80’s set no less. Diverse to say the least!

And onto the Fusion Stage where Serbian and regional bands perform. A group of Serbians explained that although the festival is a great party, it still means freedom to them. EXIT festival started as a student initiated project against the Milosevic regime in 1999 and although it has grown to into an internationally recognised event, EXIT still stays true to its roots and supports issues that effect the Serbian youth such as student mobility, youth activism and visa abolishment. Says EXIT’s Rajko Bozik “Because of visa regimes young people from Serbia and Balkan can’t travel easily, so having so many international visitors to EXIT was great opportunity for our local audience to find out more about festivals in UK and Europe. We hope very soon it would be easy for young Serbs to go to Glastonbury, just as it’s easy for young Brits to come to EXIT.”

And comparisons to Glastonbury are rife. With the variety of unique stages and performers, this year’s EXIT also featured Ms Lauryn Hill playing the diva, Basement Jaxx belting out their hits and the ultra smooth Snoop Dogg bringing the ‘bling’ to Main Stage, finishing with the delectable sounds of LTJ Bukem & MC Conrad.

Saturday also saw Roger Sanchez, the Godfather of house Frankie Knuckles, Buraka Som Sistema live, Justin Martin and Hannah Holland on the Dance Arena. “It’s great to see Serbia progressing in providing a place for people from all over the world to come together and enjoy electronic music. There were a lot more European attendees and for me it is very positive to see people like Frankie Knuckles on the line up. I really enjoyed playing this festival with a great crowd and wonderful organization” stated Roger Sanchez after rocking the 25,000 throng of revellers.

Sunday, the last night of the four day event featured the Audio Bullys, Pendulum DJ set, another amazing fireworks display and the mighty Wu-Tang Clan on Main Stage. With Wu Tang’s Masta Killah exclaiming after their performance “Man, they are crazy out there, crazy”. Meanwhile in the Dance Arena, Sebastien Leger preceding John Digweed, both playing at EXIT for the first time before handing over the decks to Eric Prydz, another first time performance. Said John Digweed “One of the best festival gigs that I have ever done. Amazing venue, thumping sound system and great crowd”. And as the sun came up on the last morning, it was left, as tradition has it, to local hero Marko Nastic to end EXIT’s four day musical and magical fest.

EXIT is truly an amazing experience and although it gets bigger each year the sentiment is still the same. It is great to be part on an event that actually means something and makes a stand to make things better for the young people of Serbia.

EXIT’s General Manager Bojan Boskovic sums things up “Every year we aim to out-do the previous year and this year is no exception. We, as the State of EXIT, wish to bring various people together, mainly inviting international and regional bands, artists and performers to Serbia in order to promote the interaction of different cultures, traditions and beliefs through music and social activities. EXIT has become a social force that is a symbol of togetherness and cultural diversity, that every year brings more and more people from various backgrounds and cultures, together.”

Long may the State of EXIT reign!

Copyright Nikki Wright 2007. All rights reserved.

MORE EXIT COMMENTS:

“We were not aware of the political roots of the festival, and now we know, we are double pleased we did it”. Adam “MCA” Yauch / Beastie Boys

“Man, they are crazy out there, crazy”. Masta Killah / Wu Tang Clan

“It’s a fascinating place with a raw and recent history and it’s got a real energy” Tom Findlay / Groove Armada

“I have waited for years to come and I am so excited to be here! Many of my colleagues in this business always told me that if you get the chance to do Exit Festival in Serbia you gotta do it. The energy is great and the weather is great and the hospitality has been wonderful from the Exit festival people” Danny Tenaglia

“First off I have to say respect to the 1000’s that waited for us to come on, as we were kept waiting 2.30 hours. Crowd always amazing in Serbia and we had a great time, thanks to everyone at Exit for helping us get there performance wise, must come back” LTJ Bukem

“We have done a hell of a lot of festivals in our time but Exit is clearly up there with the best of them. Artists. organization, location, weather and most importantly the stupidly big crowd that went mental when we played the main stage. Unforgettable. Thanx” Dominic B / Stanton Warriors

“Absolutely ridiculous!” Green Velvet

“Best Festival in the world.” Nic Fancuilli

“EXIT exceeded all my wildest dreams! It´s a well organised and beautiful place to immerse yourself in and I´ll remember playing to that awesome crowd forever!” Kissy Sell out

“Exit has got to be the most insane location for a festival imaginable. Plenty festivals have numerous stages, & thousands of smiling faces, but only Exit makes you feel like you´re doing it all in the mystical principality of Vulgaria from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang – I kept expecting to bump into the Child Catcher. In fact, that´s what I´m going as next year… Exit: The Carlsberg of Festivals – probably the best.” The Loose Cannons

“That was simply the best gig I have seen in 18 years of playing at acid house parties! Honestly…..” Ralph Lawson 20/20 Vision

“Fu**in’ top one!” Bez / Happy Mondays

“Exit was the highlight of my career, I absolutely loved it!” Zinc

“Fucking amazing festival, even if played early – I can honestly say its one of the best festivals I have ever done. The location is amazing, the sound system is perfect, the lights are great and the crew very nice. I would love to play there again!” Sebastien Leger

“The BEST festival I’ve ever been too… Utterly amazing from beginning to end. You have a truly special event there and you should be proud of it” Serg Bienati / We Love Tours

“Quite simply, the best run, most inspiring and genuinely heart-warming festival I´ve played at. Impeccably well looked after by fantastic hosts on volunteers, and a pleasure to be a part of a genuine ´team´ of individuals offering so much to the community. Musically excellent as well as risk-taking; a rare and inspired selection of both bigger acts and those who are at the grass-roots of the European musical community. How 20,000+ individuals crammed into the dance arena can exude such peaceful warmth and positive energy can only be a testament to the overriding spirit of this festival – a genuine celebration and affirmation of Serbia´s people´s dignity and future hopes. An honour.” Deepchild

“Exit Fest!!!! WOW! this was hands down the most amazing experience of my djing career. playing at sunrise for such a large crowd of beautiful, openminded, eager, dancing music fans was a dream come true. I had a very spiritual time and have been buzzing off the energy since I left that stage. I am a new man, and I only can hope and dream to be a part of such a wonderful thing again in the future. Thank you Exit festival. The love you showed has made me the worlds happiest dj” Justin Martin

“Probably the best festival I’ve ever been to. Definitely coming back next year.” Joe Ransome / Kiss FM

“Thank you so much for having me at Exit, It was a truly amazing experience” Hannah

http://www.exitfest.org/