This Friday, Kokong Festival returns to Åland’s striking dome at Pub Stallhagen for its most ambitious edition yet, blending ambient, techno, and experimental soundscapes with performance, visual art, and dance. Taking place August 1–2, 2025, the festival features a boundary-pushing lineup of international pioneers like Exos, Mental Overdrive, and Andreas Tilliander alongside a thriving local scene of Åland-based artists. Founded by a group of passionate cultural instigators, Kokong has quickly grown into a vital meeting point for electronic music and cross-disciplinary creativity in the Baltic region. We spoke with the festival’s founders about the vision behind the event, the challenges of curating in a remote location, and what to expect from this year’s immersive experience.
For tickets and more information, visit https://www.kokong.ax/
Thanks for joining us at Echo Room!
Kokong Festival has been described as “cross-artistic” and “immersive.” What inspired you to create such a multi-disciplinary experience on Åland?
Åland Islands is a small place so we wanted to challenge a fairly conservative local audience and also prevent a Nordic scene from falling into a generic techno trap.
The lineup for 2025 is both local and international, from Exos to Åland-based acts like Havsmörker and Johan Grönlund. How do you strike the balance between global talent and nurturing your local scene?
For us, bringing in international talent that brings something new to Åland’s cultural scene, is as important as giving local talent a space to perform in. We enjoy combining different levels on the same stages, and have found that they often can inspire and lift each other.
The dome at Pub Stallhagen has become an iconic part of Kokong’s identity. How does the architecture and environment influence the festival’s programming and atmosphere?
It is a huge part of the atmosphere we’ve experienced at the past festivals. Even though somewhat of a dramatic architecture, it has a warm character that feeds all of the music being played in it. The building itself creates a comforting space where we wish to see people get encapsulated by the music and arts – much like a cocoon.
Åland is often called the “Ibiza of the Baltic Sea,” but Kokong feels more intimate and experimental than a typical party island vibe. How would you describe Kokong’s musical and cultural ethos?
Kokong is mainly focused on electronic and experimental music. However, that definition can be bent. We’ve had acoustic acts before and there will be some electro-acoustic artists this year as well.
Genre-wise we tend to focus on atmospheric and ambient projects, since this is a scene we feel like have been left out on Åland, before Kokong came about. That being said, we also enjoy dance music and always make sure that there is something more rhythmic to find towards the darker hours.
We often talk about the interplay between the electronic/digital and the organic/natural. This is something that permeates the entire festival, in everything from location to the sound.
What role do you see Kokong playing in the broader Nordic and Baltic electronic music scenes?
Located in the middle of the Baltic Sea, we see Kokong as a connector for the surrounding areas. After this year’s festival we’ve had artists from all the Nordics. The festival’s intimate setting really helps people connect, and we’ve witnessed new collaborations and relationships forming. This also gives visibility to artists and audiences from smaller places, local and abroad, helping them become a part of a larger regional scene.
Collaboration seems central to Kokong, from sound to performance art. Can you tell us about any cross-disciplinary projects or performances planned for 2025?
DMN7 is a local artist we are looking very much forward to in the intersection of art and music. Marika, the artist, has a degree both in electroacoustic composition and fine arts.
As festival founders, what challenges have you faced curating such a distinctive event in a relatively remote location? And how have you overcome them?
The most obvious challenge we had to face with starting Kokong is of course getting both artists and visitors to travel to Åland. Our solution to that has been to trust that what we do is meaningful and worth traveling for. Something that each year has proven to be true.
The less obvious challenge has been to trust that there is a big enough support locally for an annual event like this. At this point it has been made very clear to us that there are quite a few people on Åland who have missed a platform and community like this, and their longing for something like Kokong is what makes it even more special.
The festival emphasizes connection and creative exchange. What kind of audience are you hoping to attract this year, and how do you see them engaging with the space?
We are looking to attract anyone that is curious in what we are doing. People that feel like they want a unique festival experience in a unique location. Speaking from the past, we’ve seen a special interaction between audience and artist. The artists have spent time also being visitors of the festival, talking to the people in the crowd, which is something we cherish and hope to see continue.
Looking beyond 2025, where would you like to see Kokong evolve in the next five years? Any dream artists, installations, or directions?
We would love to see the Kokong community grow and expand. We already have an amazing group of people dedicated to making the festival happen, but naturally, the more people involved, the better the festival will become. Looking ahead, we have a vision of bringing more visual arts into the festival program.
Finally, for someone attending Kokong for the first time, what’s the one thing you hope they take away from the experience?
We hope first-timers leave with a sense of connection — to the music, to the place, and to the people around them. Kokong is a unique, intimate festival where the atmosphere and soundscape create a space to truly get lost in the experience and discover something new.
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