Slivers of silver zip through the Adriatic’s crystal waters. Shoals of fish patrol the depths under a cloudless sky, while rugged mountain ranges etch into the scene’s cobalt vistas. Somewhere between the rustic charm of nearby Budva and the vibrant party shores of Sveti Nikola island, a speedboat bobs to the current as the sun gleams down on its bow.
From winding waterways to dramatic mountain landscapes, Montenegro’s natural beauty forms the backdrop to Budva’s latest offering to the electronic music scene. By day, Budva rests quietly as a sleepy coastal town beneath the sun’s rays. Winding cobblestone streets pave the narrow alleyways hidden between the old town’s ancient encircling stone walls, while neighbouring Bečići Beach stretches out, edged with gently sloping pebble beaches and rife with bold blue and vibrant yellow canopies of colourful parasols.
As the sun sinks behind the horizon, the landscape changes shape. The clear waters darken, parasols disappear and the coastline begins to flicker with fluorescent lights. These glorious surroundings proudly boast a new home for . Originally born and nurtured in Novi Sad as a student protest movement in the early noughties, the festival soon found a home within Serbia’s historic Petrovaradin Fortress walls.
namesake nods to a welcome “exit from the bad things in Serbia”, Founder Dušan Kovacevic explains.
In response to ongoing political unrest, this year EXIT has adopted a nomadic approach, carrying its celebration of electronic genres across the globe. At its original Serbian home, the festival is renowned on a global scale for its quality of talent and breadth of exposure for electronic artists.
Soon after the last EXIT in Serbia, Dušan recalls the collapse of a local railway station canopy in Novi Sad, which killed and injured commuters, including a 16-year-old boy. “The station was one of the symbols of the town”, he explains.
The collapse occurred despite a recent multi-million-euro renovation, and questions were raised over the quality and completion of work. It soon came to light that the canopy itself was also renovated. “They did something wrong, or just a bad job, and everything fell down”, he remembers. As such, an investigation was requested and, in support of the movement, funding was subsequently cut to the festival.
It’s the second Sea Dance weekend in Budva, where EXIT collaborates with the local annual Sea Dance festival, drawing crowds of 150,000 to both events in Montenegro with the opener weekend held earlier in July at the sandy shores of Long Beach in Ulcinj. Usually, Budva is home to around just 27,000 people, yet during August’s bank holiday weekend, the town becomes a central point for an international audience, with registrations from tens of thousands and attendees from more than 100 countries.
Spread across a compact site comprising the Main Stage, a beachfront stage overlooking the Adriatic and a platform dedicated to local talent, Sea Dance condenses EXIT’s formula into a smaller but accessible package. There’s plenty of international pull across the bill: Belgian techno heavy-hitter Charlotte de Witte, French house , Bulgarian Eurovision winner , British singer-songwriter-turned-DJ , brand of acid techno, longtime Berghain resident and German minimal technoist all pool onto the shores, bringing with them a cross-section of electronic sounds from across the continent.
Pounding rhythms of techno and house pulsate into the humid night air – an intensity at odds with the daytime serenity. At EXIT, the rhythm of the weekend flickers between two worlds: a lazy morning on the water makes way for an afternoon wandering the historic walled town, before evening sets into a night of heavy techno.
It’s a much smaller venue in comparison to EXIT’s home within the Petrovaradin Fortress walls. The sprawling Serbian site has historically hosted the likes of , and , while a network of winding staircases links its tiered levels and myriad stages.
arrives with an exclusive live show, bringing a dose of familiar pop euphoria to the weekend. ‘Blame’, ‘Not Giving In’ and ‘Love Me Again’ are dotted throughout the DJ set and offer Newman the chance to settle into, and revel in, his biggest hits to date. ‘Love Me Again’ concludes the set with an unabashedly euphoric finale.
HUGEL, meanwhile, leans into the accessible end of the electronic spectrum, weaving recognisable pop anthems into a carefree concoction of house hits. It’s a dramatic change of pace from the harder-edged techno elsewhere across the bill, but a welcome nod to the international appeal of EXIT’s new Adriatic chapter.
The festival’s own voyage to new pastures extends an invitation for visitors to also explore. As the festival wanders throughout the continent and beyond – soon inbound for one of the wonders of the world at the Pyramids of Giza – EXIT’s destinations are as much a part of the experience as the music itself.
For all its idyllic coastal charm and breathtaking natural backdrop, Sea Dance’s edition never quite captures the scale of its roots. EXIT’s historic Petrovaradin Fortress remains unmatched in its labyrinthine sprawl, where towering stone walls, winding passageways and endless stages create a relentless sense of discovery. In Montenegro, the experience is more intimate, as though one of the festival’s wings has broken away and drifted south to the coast. The spirit remains unmistakably EXIT, rich in music, adventure and exploration. While Sea Dance succeeds as an admirable celebration in its own right, the sheer ambition and grandeur of its Serbian counterpart inevitably feel beyond reach.
An homage to house and techno, EXIT retains its long-standing core values of escape, protest and rebellion. As political conflict continues into its 26th year, EXIT’s unwavering commitment to justice marches on, to the Adriatic and beyond.