THE LINE-UP OF THE SEVENTEENTH PRAGUE GOTHIC TREFFEN IS COMPLETE
THE LINE-UP OF THE SEVENTEENTH PRAGUE GOTHIC TREFFEN IS COMPLETE
XVII. PRAGUE GOTHIC TREFFEN
26. - 27. August 2022, clubs Fuchs2 a Bike Jesus, Praha 7 - Štvanice
live: Kælan Mikla (ISL), Christian Death (USA), The Frozen Autumn (IT), Minuit Machine (FR), Wulfband (SE), The Last Days Of Jesus (SK), Wisborg (DE), Her Own World (PL), Naturata Brutalismus (EC/DE), Paar (DE), Isiolia (CZ).
Entry: 690 Kč + charges (GoOut.cz)/ 790 Kč (door).
FB Event: https://fb.me/e/MHlhWiVv
On Friday 26th and Saturday 27th August, the biggest gothic gathering in Central Europe will return to Prague. It will feature 11 bands (including scene mainstays Christian Death and The Frozen Autumn or contemporary cults Kælan Mikla or Minuit Machine), DJs and the traditional gothic picnic.
Who would have thought seventeen years ago that Prague Gothic Treffen would one day grow into the biggest event of its kind in Central Europe? That it would host the very bands we then used to play from Winamp for a few gothic enthusiasts with religious reverence. But it did. In fact, PGT started attracting so many people that after a few years it is moving from our beloved Futurum to a bigger club.
In the two inter-connected venues, Fuchs 2 and Bike Jesus, we'll once again be able to enjoy two concurrent stages covering everything from traditional goth to the hottest trends in the dark scene in terms of genre. What to look forward to?
The most recognizable name at this year's PGT is Christian Death, whose logo still decorates jackets of many goth and dark music fans. And rightly so. The Apostles of deathrock defined the genre in the early 80s on the iconic albums "Only Theatre of Pain" and "Catastrophe Ballet". And became one of the most fundamental musical pillars of the entire goth scene. They continued on even after Rozz Williams left this world and Valor Kand took over the reins of the band, producing many albums still rotating in Goth players today. They will return to Prague six years after their excellent concert at Chmelnice.
What Christian Death are to deathrock, are the Italian The Frozen Autumn to darkwave. Originally a solo project of Diego Merletto was inspired by the European cold wave and bands of the iconic 4AD label. The duo perform very rarely, plus their concert at Prague Gothic Treffen will also be their Czech premiere. How could you possibly miss this?
The sound and form of the contemporary scene will be represented by the Icelandic women trio Kælan Mikla, who in eight years of their existence managed to conquer a significant part of our planet's dark community. A unique and hard-to-define Nordic atmosphere permeates their work, enhanced by abstract lyrics in Icelandic. On all of their five albums, we can trace the elements of post-punk, synthpunk, cold wave, ethereal to darkwave. A favourite of Robert Smith of The Cure and the prized pearl of the Artoffact Records label released their fifth full-length album "Undir Köldum Norðurljósum". And the reviews are raving. We're delighted that the band is coming to present their art to the visitors of Prague Gothic Treffen.
Rounding out the top four names on this year's line-up is the French duo Minuit Machine. The combination of Hélène De Thoury's cold, dark yet driving electronics and Amandine Stioui's hypnotic vocals has earned the ladies a place as one of the leading representatives of contemporary dark electronica. Minuit Machine's current strength is confirmed by their live album "Sainte Rave", which we rightly named one of the best releases of last year. We predict their performance to be one of the highlights of the upcoming PGT.
But there is also a place for good old electronic banger - unsurprisingly from Sweden. The mysterious Wulfband has managed to break the established rules of the EBM scene and drive half a continent crazy with their incredibly energetic concerts. It pleases us that the band will come to Prague for the first time to the PGT. Another Czech premiere will be the performance of German goth rockers Wisborg who enrich their contemporary goth-friendly sound with elements of darkwave, punk or hard rock. Whom we don't have to introduce at all, on the contrary to the previous artists, are the Slovak stalwarts The Last Days Of Jesus. The deathrock energy, unmistakeable sound and infectious concert vivacity have been their main hallmarks for almost three decades, making TLDOJ one of the most original bands of former Czechoslovakia. After all, the gentlemen have performed alongside the biggest stars of the scene all around the world.
Polish subculture will be represented at this year's PGT by the dark electronic trio Her Own World, which has quickly built a strong position on the domestic dark scene. The band will come to the Czech Republic to present their current EP "This Fire". However, the greatest distance between Prague and their homeland awaits Naturata Brutalismus. A pack from Ecuador, mixing coldwave atmosphere with deathrock guitars and impressive declamation in their mother tongue. The band from exotic lands will surely excite PGT visitors with their unbridled and energetic performance. Coldwave, postpunk and sprawling new wave is the home territory of Munich trio Paar. Dominant bass, massive walls of sound and elaborate guitar riffs are complemented by the exotic vocals of the singer Ly, who can first gently caress in a dream-pop way and then dictate mercilessly right after. As with the two previous bands, Prague Gothic Treffen will host their first performance in the Czech Republic.
Now, what about the domestic scene? It will be represented by the Czech electronic sensation Isiolia, whom you could see in both parts of our compilation "Dark Tunes". Moreover, the charming author of the repertoire Julie impressed us last year with her mature debut album "I Saw It Coming". The album then garnered favourable reviews from listeners and publicists across Europe. Isiolie's intimate and thoughtful electronica is likely to hit home to many melancholics in the audience.
After the live shows on both stages, the popular afterparties will commence with foreign and Czech DJs, spinning everything from classic goth/deathrock through dark/new wave and post-punk to various forms of dark electronica. The traditional Saturday afternoon gothic picnic is also an integral part of the PGT and a neat tradition - an ideal opportunity to meet and chat with other event visitors from all corners of Europe and tune in to the evening club scene.
The seventeenth PGT thus clearly shows that the gothic scene is not just worshipping the legends of the "golden times" of the eighties. It is a scene damn lively, progressive and contemporary. Come and see for yourself the last August weekend. And experience the unique atmosphere of togetherness of the dark subculture that makes Prague Gothic Treffen what it is - the most sought-after gothic gathering in Central Europe.
