Ten years ago, we were stuck in the “in-between.”
We had just closed the doors on our past La Chapelle Studios—a legendary spot that hosted everyone from Hooverphonic to Stromae. Meanwhile, our new flagship in Malmedy was still just a skeleton of raw concrete and exposed wiring. To most, this was a “gap year.” To us, it was a problem: how do we keep the momentum when our building is still a construction site?
We didn’t want to sit around watching paint dry in the Ardennes. The mission was simple: If the studio isn’t finished yet, the city of Ghent becomes our recording booth.
The Ghent Tram: Cutting Vinyl on the Tracks
The “Tram Sessions” were a bit of a mad experiment born out of a refusal to stop working. While the heavy machinery hummed in Malmedy, we gutted a vintage Ghent streetcar and built a mobile recording environment capable of cutting live performances directly to vinyl while navigating traffic.
It wasn’t a world-changing event, but it was a very cool activation. We took the high-end precision of the La Chapelle legacy and shoved it into a rattling, iron box. No isolation booths, no “quiet on set”—just the raw energy of the street.
Among the artists who stepped into that chaos was Bazart. Back then, they were an emerging band just starting out. They played a set with the kind of grit that perfectly matched the setting, and shortly after, they released “Goud”—the track that went on to define a decade of Belgian pop. This is the Daft DNA: We find a way to create, even when the infrastructure says “maybe next year.”
Enter… The Creative Agency
That the refusal to be limited by “how things are usually done”, is the core of our Creative Agency today. We don’t just provide a space, we provide a playground for the impossible. We take the technical rigors of a world-class studio and apply them to brand storytelling and high-concept events.
When BMW Motorrad wanted to launch a new bike, we didn’t just hold a press conference. We drove the bikes directly into our recording studios, transforming a room designed for acoustic perfection into a high-octane showroom. We blurred the lines between industrial engineering and musical soul, proving that our infrastructure is as multidisciplinary as the ideas we host.
Our portfolio of “Daft” solutions includes:
- Automotive Invasions: Turning a recording sanctuary into a launchpad for brands like BMW.
- Artist Residencies: Creating songwriting camps where labels move 40+ people onto one site to live, eat, and breathe a project.
- Forest Sessions: Taking the “mobile studio” concept back to its roots by building temporary high-spec setups in the middle of the Ardennes woods.
The Daft Bubble: 5,000m² of “Why Not?”
Today, the concrete in Malmedy is finally dry, but we’ve kept that unpolished edge. We haven’t just built a studio; we’ve built a 2,000m² creative playground where high-end production meets the kind of problem-solving that usually requires a sledgehammer and a lot of caffeine.
| The Daft “Logic” | What it actually means |
| Frictionless Flow | 35+ beds and a private chef, so the only reason you’ll leave is because you miss your dog. |
| Multidisciplinary Grit | We apply “tram logic” to everything. If the format doesn’t exist, we’ll build it (and try not to derail). |
| Cultural Authority | We bridge the gap between “indie cool” and “corporate scale” without losing our soul. |
Why Work With Daft? (Besides the vibes)
We’ve spent the last decade proving that constraints are just creative fuel. We don’t just “host” projects; we inhabit them. We are the kind of people who see a world-class recording studio and think, “You know what this room needs? A fleet of motorcycles.” When BMW Motorrad wanted to launch a new bike, we didn’t just book a hall. We drove the bikes directly into the studio, blurring the lines between industrial engineering and musical soul. Because why should a motorcycle launch sound like a PowerPoint presentation when it can sound like a rock concert?
Whether it’s stuffing BMW cars into our live rooms or launching Sony’s new earbuds with a Grammy winner in our control room, Daft does things differently.
The tram is long gone, but that spirit of building a world-class experience out of thin air (and a healthy amount of stubbornness) is what we bring to every brand, artist, and campaign we touch.
Ready to move? Step into the Daft ecosystem. (We promise the walls are actually finished this time).
