Untz, untz, untz, untz.
What’s that, you ask?
That’s the universal sound of the music festival, folks.
Jamming out with your clam out at homegrown festivals like Hot Dub Wine Machine, Laneway or Falls is a rite of passage for most Australians.
Everyone remembers their first festival.
Whether it was as an underage rager jumping the fence at Pyramid Rock or as a respectable punter having a good old fashioned time at Parklife, festivals are the times I imagine we’re gonna look back at fondly in 15 years time when we’re all three screaming kids deep.
But what happens when you’ve clocked all the festivals Down Under? What happens when you’ve won the ballot for Splendour 5 times in a row? Where do you go from there?!
To Europe, of course.
They mightn’t have as many goon bags and mosquitoes, but European festivals are big.
Unlike Oz, acts usually don’t mind making the trek to Europe, because it’s not in the middle of nowhere, and pasta.
Sure, Europe might be a 24 hour commute away from us, but once you’re over there you can hop from country to country, taking in the sights and sounds of endless festivals.
Here are five of ’em you should whack on your ‘18 bucket list. By the way, if you HAVEN’T entered this epic comp c/o Student Flights – what are you bloody waiting for? A Croatian sailing trip and hitting up one of the biggest Euro fests in existence? Sign us the hell up.
Ultra, Croatia
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Oomph, we’re starting with a biggun folks.
Ultra is the ultra of electronic music festivals. It’s huge, hectic and totally hedonistic. Last year the line up featured ya boys David Guetta, Carl Cox and Axwell ^ Ingrosso. Btw, Student Flights do package deals where you can head off on a sailing trip and hit up Ultra Europe 2018 – check ’em out here.
If EDM tunes on massive ass stages with major production values is your jam, Ultra Europe 2018 is a must. The best bit? The festival also includes a tonne of beach and boat parties across the lush Adriatic Sea. Yes papi.
July 6th – July 9th 2018.
Hideout Festival, Croatia
Hideout Festival is an annual electronic music festival held in Zrce, Croatia on the island of Pag. The first festival was in 2011 and since then it has sold out every year to date.
The festival went down only a few months ago with ripping performances from the likes of Major Lazer and Stormzy:
The line up is yet to be announced but judging by this year, it ought to be a biggun.
25th June – 29th June, 2018.
Exit Festival, Serbia
Exit is an award-winning summer music festival which is held at the Petrovaradin Fortress in the city of Novi Sad, Serbia.
Billed as a rock, indie and electronic music festival, it’s famed for its wild, unforgettable parties inside a stunning setting. As if being in a fortress wasn’t dope enough, that fortress overlooks the Danube. Look at how bloody ginormous it is:
The 2018 lineup is yet to drop, but considering last edition included The Killers, Liam Gallagher, Hardwell, The Jesus & Mary Chain, Paul Kalkbrenner and Jason Derulo, festival goers of all persuasions are sure to be pleased.
July 12th – July 15th, 2018.
Dekmantel, Amsterdam
Dekmantel, more like dekmental, am I right folks!!
Dekmantel is a three-day electronic music festival set in a lush woodland park in Amsterdam. It’s held in early August every year, meaning punters enjoy the delicious remnants of the European summer. It’s mega alluring for a few reasons. While it’s rural, it’s still close enough to the European city, meaning travellers needn’t stress about trekking to bumfug for a few tunes.
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The festival offers the option to camp or to book a cabin, which is particularly appealing to those opposed to bush living.
This year they had live sets from the likes of Steve Reich, Marcos Valle, Larry Heard, D.A.F., Wolfgang Voigt as GAS and British Murder Boys, as well as DJ sets from the likes of Masters At Work, Joe Claussell, Nina Kraviz, Lena Willikens, Beatrice Dillon and Antal & Hunee.
Tasty.
August 2018 dates (And full line up) TBC.
Primavera Sound, Spain
Primavera Sound is, according to PEDESTRIAN.TV‘s Tech Editor and avid music appreciator Matt Hopkins, “the best festival ever”.
The yuge festival has been happening annually since 2001, and takes place in Barcelona, Spain.
The festival boasts four distinct areas offering different sounds. On one stage, your ears would be treated to contemporary acts like Jamie XX and Bon Iver, and on another, you’d cop surprise gigs by some of the biggest names in music, like Haim and Arcade Fire.
Most festivals are synonymous with posers. You know the types. The ones who treat festivals like Instagram fashion parades. Good luck to them, but if that’s not your vibe, you need to go to Primavera. It’s all about the music here.
May 30th – June 3rd, 2018.
Pukkelpop, Belgium
While the name might sound like some incurable strain of chicken pox, Pukkelpop is a pure delight. (Legit though, Pukkel does mean pimple in Dutch.)
It’s the biggest alternative open-air music festival in Belgium. Held in Hasselt, the festival is held in a beaut spot within a large enclosure of fields and woodland.
It’s proper historic, too. It’s been happening annually since 1985, with the likes of Sonic Youth, Ramones, Nirvana, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica, Blink-182, Guns N’ Roses, Pixies, Daft Punk and Björk having played over the years.
The 2018 line up and dates are TBC, but it’ll be going down in mid-August.
C u there.
