First, Sziget isn’t just a music festival, it’s a celebration of art in all its forms, with acts from all genres distributed between the main stage and a tent stage, a newcomer stage close by, and two electronic music venues along countless little stages for performances of all kinds. It’s hard to describe what it really is in just a few words, especially with the recent changes – but it has been known as this magical island of freedom that breathes art around every corner and where the focus has never been on money making … typically.

Image above: Role Model

This year sadly brought some drastic changes to the event. Due to the pandemic and two canceled editions, the organizers faced no support from the government and huge budget cuts as a result. While this is understandable, the cuts were sadly handled in the most unfortunate way and killed the vibe that made this place so extraordinary. In the past, most of the island was free to camp wherever you want. The majority of the campgrounds were under the trees close to the beach with country-related paid campsites and VIP camping including a swimming pool, this now got reversed. Only a tiny part of an undesired part of the island remained free while the paid part got extended enormously and changed location to the area that used to be free. With names like `chill` or `relaxed` people expected peace there but quickly learned their campsites were directly situated next to the party venues that were going on until 5 and 6 AM.

The VIP camp, now called ‘Superstar,’ faced similar issues with its unfortunate loud location and swimming pool people paid for but couldn’t use due to a construction issue the organizers only got notice of 4 weeks prior to the festival. All the decorations have disappeared, even the beach which used to be a hippie heaven turned into a commercialized space that felt more like Tulum than Goa.

Image above: Rufus del Sol

Due to a drought that was affecting all of Europe and resulted in 3 months of nearly no rain in Hungary the ground was so incredibly dry that after day 2 the dust was so bad that even with a mask it was more torture than fun to be around the Main Stage. Water shortage didn’t help, even two weeks after the event many festival goers still complained about respiration issues, on the ground everyone was coughing, many tried to get throat spray and eventually lost their voice.

Another very sour taste, figuratively speaking, were the food prices. While inflation is understandable the fact that food prices doubled since 2019 and the same products cost double of what they did in the city just a 20 min train ride away simply couldn’t be ignored. The selection was also a lot smaller with a minimal amount of healthy options available, the supermarket at the festival was very small for the number of people taking part and before midnight there was always a 30 min queue to get in.

Images below: Nova Twins

On the positive side, the drink prices remained very reasonable and the different high-quality artist installations were still present, a big kudos to all the artists working on them!

On the first day, it was still very busy with people moving in, which resulted in crazy long wait lines. Role Model played the tent and the crowd was very excited, fresh, and ready to rock to this energetic show. Later on Rufus du Sol took the MainStage, it took a bit to get everyone going and as usual with DJ acts there wasn’t much crowd interaction but the night was still young. Nova Twins attracted everyone looking for mosh pits and action, they absolutely burnt the place down and nobody left not convinced that they are an act to keep in mind. The highlight for many was headliner Dua Lipa, and she didn’t disappoint. To end the night, Canadians Cleopatrick played the Europe stage with a solid set that attracted a similar crowd as Nova Twins just a few hours prior. Many people continued to the tribute stage, where rock cover bands played until late and a rock disco was on until 5 AM. In previous years this started right after the main act, but sadly this year it was way later and lost quite a few people due to the delay.

Images below: Cleopatrick

Day two was hot, and people were still up relatively early ready to check out all the different areas the island had to offer. The Gaming Hub was a popular area during the day, offering board games and consoles to bring people together, it has been organized by the same family for the past years and they make sure they offer a wide, ever-changing variety.

The World Stage had artists from all over the globe playing traditional music and right next to it was the Tent Without Borders – a safe space for European refugees and this year the focus was on Ukraine. The tent was home to a special exhibition presented by a French museum and everyone working in the space were refugees themselves.

Later in the afternoon, the programming started on the Europe stage with dutch newcomers The Vices who filled the area in seconds (no surprise with hundreds of Dutch visitors) the band is definitely worth keeping an eye on. While the headliner Kings of Leon sadly was a bit disappointing with no drive and a pretty boring set, Bastille were able to make up for it and offered a great show playing all their hits which matched the festival vibe perfectly.

Image above: The Vices; Images below: Bastille

The next day everything started to get dusty, but that didn’t stop people from coming, yet. Loads of day tickets were sold, which led to a very full venue, even though the island is gigantic and people usually spread really well, this year the space reached its maximum capacity.

Like many acts this year, Viagra Boys canceled their show but The Murder Capital stepped in and offered a banging punk set that treated the crowd to rock vibes that were a bit sparse this year. Belgium superstar Stromae attracted a huge crowd that absolutely went wild while he performed a beautiful show with loads of theatrical elements and a detailed theme.

Image above: Stromae; Image below: The Murder Capital

The main reason, however, for so many guests here today for just the one day was of course Justin Bieber, and loads of young girls already fainted in the heat before the show even started. He played all his hits, and the fans were happy, even though he didn’t seem to enjoy it that much and there wasn’t a ton of crowd engagement.

There was another highlight though and that took place every evening at PM in the Magic Mirror – a venue dedicated to the LGBTQIA+ community. During the day they offered talks on a range of topics, screened movies, and hosted creative performances, the evening programming led to huge queues outside the tent, and rightfully so! Put together by an Australian group a very thoughtful but still frisky burlesque, acrobatic and dance show was performed in the most tasteful way possible. This one stage very possibly would have been worth the price of the ticket.

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Continue your Sziget adventure in the next post: Sziget Festival part two: In the dust we live and dance

The post Sziget Festival part one: The vibe and the energetic start appeared first on Quip Magazine.

For those who don’t know, Lollapalooza was originally a heavy metal punk show and the festival has endorsed other music genres over the years to gain a wider audience. However, they never forgot their roots, and this year they brought back rock legends Green Day and Metallica. Both of whom recently played at The Metro showing that they are willing to pay homage to their humble beginnings. The theatrics of Lolla allowed both bands to put on grand performances.

Metallica began their set with a video montage of Ennio Morricone’s “The Ecstasy of Gold” from Clint Eastwood’s The Good, The Bad And The Ugly. Once the band came on stage they wasted no time by performing “Whiplash.” They asked the rowdy crowd whether they were diehard fans or newcomers, but welcomed both. The band continued by playing classic songs from their catalog like “Die, Die My Darling” and “Enter Sandman.” Metallica’s James Hetfield joked, “I bet you are all wondering what are we going to play now that with finished all the good songs.” They then proceeded to play songs from the less critically acclaimed St. Anger before going back to the typical hits.

Green Day by Charles Reagan for Lollapalooza

Green Day was the only other band that could go toe-to-toe with Metallica, both in audience attendance and song list. Green Day have gotten a lot of flack over the years as fans debate their “punk” status but there is no denying the band’s impact on the genre during the 90s and early 2000s was immense. The more melodic sound and mainstream attention make an argument about them being punk or pop punk but in the end, Green Day have some bangers. Playing songs off Dookie and American Idiot took listeners back to yesteryear, especially the later album. Hearing “American Idiot” and “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” was a reminder of the emo craze. Some of us still haven’t left that phase (Sigh).

The older I get the more I’m turning into an EDM fan. I still enjoy rock shows but I’m too old to get thrashed around in the mosh pits; you wake up the next day, body all sore from the intensity. So naturally, Perry stage is where I spent most of my Lollapalooza journey. It was safe, people weren’t pushy, there was much more of a positive vibe, and most importantly the music was fun to dance to. It was great seeing DJ’s I’ve seen before like LP Giobbi and Liquid Stranger, with his visual display blending modern EDM, all that heavy bass, and head-bobbing electronic tunes. However, the best DJ set I saw over the weekend was John Smith. His style aligns with more traditional house music making for a pleasant experience from start to finish. His vibrant light show plus consistent heart-beating tempo kept the field dancing through the entire set.

Dua Lipa by Pooneh Ghana for Lollapalooza

Dua Lipa absolutely slayed her performance. Adorned in shimmering black and clear spandex, the English singer got to work with “Physical.” As she sang her lyrics, you can tell she took over the crowds’ imagination with her performance. Over the weekend I went to a Dua Lipa pop-up event, in collaboration with Puma clothing line, the fun interactive set pieces were great for fans to take selfies with, and not going to lie, the clothes were looking pretty fly too. Hearing her music playing in the background took me back to seeing her live. Fans sang along to the tunes of  “Boys Will Be Boys”, “Electricity” and “Hallucinate” before ending her set with “Don’t Start Now” with a crazy firework show! Watching her hypnotizing dance moves, hearing the beautiful vocals, and observing the showmanship of the entire performance, I definitely became a fan of Dua Lipa.

My heart will forever be in love with hip-hop. Pi’erre Bourne, the former producer of Playboi Carti, had an instrumental set; his sound is mellow and chill yet fans still found a way to mosh to it, which I found hilarious. The beats do go hard and can be headbanging-worthy but people love a reason to start a mosh pit these days. Luckily, I was more in my element when Big Sean and J. Cole performed. Both rappers played back to back on the same stage so most of us didn’t have to move. The adrenaline Big Sean brought went hard on “All Me”, “Blessing”, and “I Don’t Fuck with You”.  J. Cole kept it more chill with his verse from 21 Savage’s “A Lot” and “No Role Modelz”. It was a nice balance of high energy and chill vibes.

Cole by Brandy Fik for Lollapalooza

Denzel Curry was another rapper that put on an amazing show. Doing most of the tracks Melt My Eyes See Your Future like “Troubles”, “Ain’t No Way” and (IMO) the best song on the album “Walkin”. I actually got to meet Curry in the media lounge and talk a bit, it wasn’t until during his set that I regretted not asking for a picture.

Maxo Kream had one of the best performances of the entire festival. Not as highly known as his contemporaries Maxo Kream can make an impact on anyone who gives him a listen. Maxo Kream didn’t bring together a big crowd but those that gathered were diehard fans that rapped along to all the lyrics. He’s a goon from the slumps but songs like “Roaches,” “Grannies,” and especially “Meet Again” paint the image of a rough life some of us can relate to. It’s not glamorous or something to brag about, it’s simply real. I enjoyed seeing Maxo Kream perform so much that I rushed to Reggies Pub to catch his after-show.

Lollapalooza has set the bar high when it comes to music festivals. It could be hard for them to consistently outdo themselves year after year yet the organizers always find a way.

Maxo Kream by Greg Noire for Lollapalooza 

cover image: Big Sean by Keenan Hairston for Lollapalooza

The post Lollapalooza continues earning legendary status appeared first on Quip Magazine.