Three days immersed in music and art in the forests of Kiso, Nagano
Since launching in 2013, Re:birth has changed its setting with every edition, broadcasting Japan's own rave culture to the world — and now it returns. For three days from September 11, the site will be Kodama no Mori Campground in Kiso, Nagano: a gathering of more than 80 acts built around techno, house and trance.
What is Re:birth
An outdoor festival launched in 2013 under the banner of Underground Music, Art & Technology. Futtsu Cape, a quarry, a highland resort, a ski slope. And beyond that, Korea, Koh Phangan in Thailand, and a total solar eclipse festival in the United States. Staging each edition in a different environment, it has continued to send Japan's own rave culture out into the world.
Wherever it lands, the character of the place is drawn out, and as a diverse cast of artists converges, a one-of-a-kind space is born. That is the origin of the "gathering" Re:birth has expressed within rave culture. In 2026, roughly two and a half years since the last edition, it heads into a new forest.
Into the mountain valleys of Kiso, where countless festivals once rang out
The venue is Kodama no Mori Campground in Kiso, Nagano. A camping field surrounded by mystical trees, with majestic mountains as its backdrop. It's also a place where the memory of Japan's outdoor scene lingers — host to numerous outdoor festivals over the years, and burned into the memories of countless music fans.
Roughly three hours by car from Tokyo, two from Nagoya. Not somewhere you drop by on a whim — and precisely because of that, the journey to the festival begins on the road winding through the mountains. Cottages, cabins, tent camping, or nearby guesthouses: there are plenty of ways to spend the three days.
Eleven international acts, the domestic roster, and 16 live bands
Heading the international lineup is Rrose — an artist who has pursued techno's functionality and sonic depth while maintaining anonymity and an experimental edge. That sound, which treats club music as something that transforms space itself, will surely reveal its full power deep in the night forest. Also appearing is Mathew Jonson, who has left his mark on the history of techno and minimal through Wagon Repair and Cobblestone Jazz, taking on a B2B LIVE with SODEYAMA, a long-standing driving force in the Japanese scene. John Plaza, Domestic aka Ido Ophir and others round out a roster of 11 international guests.
From Japan come some of the country's defining figures: Kuniyuki, who has built his own world of electronic music since the '90s; GOTH-TRAD, delivering heavy low end and dub through a singular vision; Ree.K, connecting the history and present of Japanese rave culture; and Shhhhh, who moves freely across the underground. Joining them are organizer Kojiro, RISA TANIGUCHI — whose presence keeps growing at home and abroad — and DJ Yazi.
On top of that, 16 live bands including Dachambo and Anbassa layer in live instrumentation. Drift freely between DJ sets and live performance, and as night falls, fire performances mingle with the darkness of the forest.
The forest mist itself becomes the screen
The centerpiece of this edition's production is RE:SORB, coming over from Germany. Vast clouds of smoke dispersed into the air, and Kiso's own natural mist. Projecting giant holograms into it, their 3D visual performance dubbed "Infinity Hologram" has drawn acclaim around the world.
More than 20 art crews take part. Bubble artist Onchi, plus candles and decorations, raise an artistic space deep in the forest. On sound, five teams including Hiranya Access, Meta Audio and Wasshoi Sound hold down the floors across the site.
INFORMATION
Tickets are ¥18,000. A U25 ticket type is also available.
Purchase via the official sales page.
You come for the names you know, and you leave having discovered music you didn't.
That chain of chance encounters is exactly what makes this festival what it is.
