Sziget 2016

[#1SzigetFan]

I really hope they'll announce something... at least the Day -1 headliner.

[Uncle Liam]

On May 9, 2016 at 3:42 PM, meepmoop said:

They'll make sure the lineup is as good as possible to help maximise ticket sales in the future too. Reputation is what keeps festivals going!

This.

In 2013 they took a battering for booking a really poor lineup. So much so that they ended up putting out an apology on Facebook as well as a list of bands who they tried to book and turned them down (the vast majority of whom weren't even on tour and seemed like a list of acts taken purely at random). I believe the festival didn't sell out that year, and if it sold out in 2014 it was certainly close to the festival itself. 

I think in 2013 Sziget believed their own hype and thought they could book a lineup on the cheap (admittedly, they were still recovering from the massive loss they took on Prince in 2011) and go on end parties, the island of freedom (where I was searched 3 times in 20 minutes) and all that jazz. 

Which is why I'm surprised that the Day 1 lineup is so poor. I've said it before and I'll say it again, in my experience it's the fans of independent music that are will to travel the most. So why, when you are a festival that relies on a international crowd, book a load of pop acts for one day?

[Cristall]

On 9-5-2016 at 2:07 PM, Uncle Liam said:

Nonsense.

The names will have all been booked long long long ago. 

No, that is nonsense. I'm 100% certain they still need to book some acts. Most European festivals don't book their lineup as far in advance as some of the British festivals can do because of the higher ticket prices and the better deals with sponsors and media.

On 9-5-2016 at 2:42 PM, meepmoop said:

They'll make sure the lineup is as good as possible to help maximise ticket sales in the future too. Reputation is what keeps festivals going!

This seems very true to me. I also think Sziget has always tried to make the lineup as good as possible, even in the year 2013 which was mentioned by @Uncle Liam, but as an independent festival they depend more on which artists are available than those festivals that belong to big multinationals like LiveNation or have higher ticket prices and better deals with sponsors and media. Therefore it can happen that in some years the lineup is not as good as in other years.

I believe booking a lineup for Sziget is extra difficult as the festival attracts people from a lot of different countries and interested in a lot of different genres. After the first announcements I've seen people complaining because there were not enough DJs among them. In the later announcements there were more DJs and those wanting more live bands were complaining. 

14 hours ago, Uncle Liam said:

I think in 2013 Sziget believed their own hype and thought they could book a lineup on the cheap (admittedly, they were still recovering from the massive loss they took on Prince in 2011) and go on end parties, the island of freedom (where I was searched 3 times in 20 minutes) and all that jazz. 

Which is why I'm surprised that the Day 1 lineup is so poor. I've said it before and I'll say it again, in my experience it's the fans of independent music that are will to travel the most. So why, when you are a festival that relies on a international crowd, book a load of pop acts for one day?

I really believe it didn't have anything to do with trying to book a lineup on the cheap, but there simply weren't any big acts available that could have been booked that year. I remember I read somewhere it was because of this the Sziget Festival moved to one week later in the next year.

Also, I remember in 2013 a lot of Hungarians and Dutch weren't happy with Blur as a headliner, while people from almost all countries except for UK weren't happy with The Stone Roses headlining in 2012. I think something similar is the case with Manu Chao now, but this time it's the British which are unhappy with the headliner. I asked some of the friends I made at Sziget from France, Spain, Hungary, Italy and Holland and most of them told me they are looking forward to Manu Chao.

I agree Manu Chao is one of the weaker headliners of this year, but I don't think it's realistic to expect Sziget to have seven headliners as strong as Muse, while offering as many other shows as they have each year and keeping about the same ticket price. 

Also I don't agree that it's the fans of independent music that are willing to travel the most. Festivals like Tomorrowland, Ultra, Electric Daisy Carnival attract a lot of people from all over the world, while at Sziget the concerts of DJs and pop stars often seem to attract a bigger audience than most indie acts. 

[Uncle Liam]

Are you seriously suggesting that one of the largest festivals in Europe hasn't finalized booking it's lineup yet? 

Now, perhaps some of the acts on the very small stages- and I'm talking bandstand level here- maybe. But do you really think they are going to call up say... Wolf Alice and say "ok, we know you're really busy in August but can you alter your logistics plan to come play in the A-38 on date x?" Now bands can and will come on short notice, but leaving a big chunk of the lineup not booked until now is unprofessional bordering on incompetent.

And 2013 had no big acts available? Arctic Monkeys, Fatboy Slim, Sigur Ros, Foals, Eminem, Green Day, Bjork, NIN, Portishead...

And was it 2012 where the number of main stage acts was cut from 5 to 4? Reeks of cost cutting.

Also, the reality is this, using the very unscientific method of looking at how many were in the arena, the biggest acts have always seemed to be the bands- although Snoop Dogg might have had the biggest crowd of all. The Killers had a huge crowd, Queens of the Stone Age was massive, so was The stone roses, all the times I've seen Placebo. The end party acts haven't even come close. Even Calvin Harris. 

 

 

 

 

[ilbeyene]

Are you serious @Uncle Liam? Calvin Harris put one of the biggest crowd in the history of Sziget's Main Stage! I really dislike him, but saying that the crowd was not massive it's a pure lie. The crowd was so much bigger than Placebo and Queens Of The Stone Age.

Here is a pic of the crowd during Calvin Harris' end show:

Edited May 11, 2016 by ilbeyene

[Uncle Liam]

Genuinely shocked at that.

Wasn't busy at all where we were stood. 

[Cristall]

12 hours ago, Uncle Liam said:

Are you seriously suggesting that one of the largest festivals in Europe hasn't finalized booking it's lineup yet? 

Now, perhaps some of the acts on the very small stages- and I'm talking bandstand level here- maybe. But do you really think they are going to call up say... Wolf Alice and say "ok, we know you're really busy in August but can you alter your logistics plan to come play in the A-38 on date x?" Now bands can and will come on short notice, but leaving a big chunk of the lineup not booked until now is unprofessional bordering on incompetent.

And 2013 had no big acts available? Arctic Monkeys, Fatboy Slim, Sigur Ros, Foals, Eminem, Green Day, Bjork, NIN, Portishead...

And was it 2012 where the number of main stage acts was cut from 5 to 4? Reeks of cost cutting.

Also, the reality is this, using the very unscientific method of looking at how many were in the arena, the biggest acts have always seemed to be the bands- although Snoop Dogg might have had the biggest crowd of all. The Killers had a huge crowd, Queens of the Stone Age was massive, so was The stone roses, all the times I've seen Placebo. The end party acts haven't even come close. Even Calvin Harris. 

Yes, that's what I'm saying. As I've been told by friends in the music industry, that's how most festivals work, not only Sziget. Only a few (mostly very commercial) festivals can afford booking their complete lineup early. The others need the cash of their ticket sales. This is the main reason why a lot of festivals have some sort of early bird ticket sales scheme. 

For sure 2013 had some big acts touring in the summer, but apparently they weren't available for a booking in Hungary during the week of Sziget. Weren't the acts you mentioned in the list posted on Facebook? I'm not going to scroll back to find it

Where I stood during The Stone Roses, the crowd didn't seem huge at all. For sure all DJ headliners I've seen on the Main Stage attracted more people. I think the biggest crowds were during Robbie Williams and Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, while the smallest crowd for a headliner probably was during Nick Cave.

[Noeliam]

Also, I think that last year KoL were booked pretty late!

[dolevshelly]

maybe they gonna bring an exclusive act like KOL last year? i really hope for the killers!

[thooomash]

What about The Stone Roses?
I also think we can expect The Chemical Brothers...

[Nicklord]

8 minutes ago, thooomash said:

What about The Stone Roses?
I also think we can expect The Chemical Brothers...

They won't book The Stone Roses again I think. The field was empty last time

Edited May 12, 2016 by Nicklord

[neacaisa]

The stone roses are considered a genuine headline act, while not being too popular at the same time. Remember the coachella fiasco?

They have a new single by the way :-)

[Noeliam]

I wrote an article about 5 smaller bands that will perform this year

https://backpacknstuff.wordpress.com/2016/05/14/sziget-festival-2016-top-5-smaller-bands/

 

[R_B]

Hi Guys.

I am hoping someone around here can help me decide on what accommodation will be best for Sziget this year. It's my second visit to Budapest but first time going to Sziget. I'm travelling solo and arriving on August 2nd so I have plenty of time to explore Budapest before the festival.

I'm undecided as to whether or not I'm better to camp at Camp Unknown or stay at a hostel somewhere in the city. My main concerns with camping at the festival is the noise late at night/early morning and heat during the day that may prevent me from sleeping. I've been to several 3 or 4 day festivals where I've camped and it gets incredibly draining when you party hard and do not have anywhere to sleep off the hangover. I've also been to festivals where we camped for a week or so, but the temperatures were much cooler. I'm not sure I can handle 7+ days of partying, whilst also camping in the heat. I have the possibility of moving in on the very first moving in day if I decide to camp, and will probably make the most of the opportunity to make sure I camp somewhere in the shade, which will hopefully help with the heat. Is it cheaper to buy camping equipment at Auchan or buy from the festival? Arriving in Budapest on the 2nd August I can always go to Auchan when I arrive to buy camping gear if it is cheaper or better quality?

I can avoid the sleeping dilemma by staying somewhere in the city and sleeping in a comfortable bed. Although if I stay in the city I will have to deal with a commute to and from the festival each day, which won't be too bad if the commute is limited to half n hour or so, but if it's going to be a difficult commute or take about an hour or more each way then it's not really something I want to to do, particularly if it's late at night/early in the morning and I can't be bothered with it because I've spent the previous 12 hours dancing! So my question for this is how difficult and approximately how long will the commute be if I stay somewhere in the city and travel to the festival at about 1pm each afternoon and leave at 4am each morning?

I also don't want to deal with long lines getting into and out of the festival each day if I stay in the city. Will the lines be long getting into and out of the festival?

Also if I stay in the city will I still be able to experience the festival to it's fullest? I feel like if I camp it will be easier to meet people and make friends, as well as experience all the other things happening inside the festival, aside from the music itself. I don't want to miss out on those things. Will I miss out on the friendship and other aspects of the festival if I stay in the city?

I know there's probably a sacrifice somewhere that has to be made. I can sacrifice sleep to get the full festival experience or I can sacrifice the full festival experience to get sleep.

Does anybody with Sziget experience here know of a way where it is possible to get the best of both worlds and not have to make these sacrifices?

Your thoughts and recommendations are greatly appreciated.

 

 

[Uncle Liam]

Firstly... get a Citypass.

If you want to avoid long lines, get the boat there. It takes longer, but you can get a beer, and once you get there it's a piece of piss to get in.

As for getting out, a Citypass means you skip the queues at the train station, which is priceless on the last day. 

If you stay in the City you won't miss out on the festival at all. It doesn't really get going until 4pm and loads of people go an explore the city during the day. Which means the queues to get back in during the day can be excessive if you go on the train. 

I've camped for years but this year I'm in a hotel. I didn't enjoy camping last time at all. 

[Uncle Liam]

Also, it depends on where you stay in the City. For me I'm staying ten minutes walk from Batthanny which is where the train to the festival goes from. That train takes about 15 minutes. 

The boat goes from the same area. Takes about 30 mins. 

[504329lt]

10 hours ago, R_B said:

Hi Guys.

I am hoping someone around here can help me decide on what accommodation will be best for Sziget this year. It's my second visit to Budapest but first time going to Sziget. I'm travelling solo and arriving on August 2nd so I have plenty of time to explore Budapest before the festival.

I'm undecided as to whether or not I'm better to camp at Camp Unknown or stay at a hostel somewhere in the city. My main concerns with camping at the festival is the noise late at night/early morning and heat during the day that may prevent me from sleeping. I've been to several 3 or 4 day festivals where I've camped and it gets incredibly draining when you party hard and do not have anywhere to sleep off the hangover. I've also been to festivals where we camped for a week or so, but the temperatures were much cooler. I'm not sure I can handle 7+ days of partying, whilst also camping in the heat. I have the possibility of moving in on the very first moving in day if I decide to camp, and will probably make the most of the opportunity to make sure I camp somewhere in the shade, which will hopefully help with the heat. Is it cheaper to buy camping equipment at Auchan or buy from the festival? Arriving in Budapest on the 2nd August I can always go to Auchan when I arrive to buy camping gear if it is cheaper or better quality?

I can avoid the sleeping dilemma by staying somewhere in the city and sleeping in a comfortable bed. Although if I stay in the city I will have to deal with a commute to and from the festival each day, which won't be too bad if the commute is limited to half n hour or so, but if it's going to be a difficult commute or take about an hour or more each way then it's not really something I want to to do, particularly if it's late at night/early in the morning and I can't be bothered with it because I've spent the previous 12 hours dancing! So my question for this is how difficult and approximately how long will the commute be if I stay somewhere in the city and travel to the festival at about 1pm each afternoon and leave at 4am each morning?

I also don't want to deal with long lines getting into and out of the festival each day if I stay in the city. Will the lines be long getting into and out of the festival?

Also if I stay in the city will I still be able to experience the festival to it's fullest? I feel like if I camp it will be easier to meet people and make friends, as well as experience all the other things happening inside the festival, aside from the music itself. I don't want to miss out on those things. Will I miss out on the friendship and other aspects of the festival if I stay in the city?

I know there's probably a sacrifice somewhere that has to be made. I can sacrifice sleep to get the full festival experience or I can sacrifice the full festival experience to get sleep.

Does anybody with Sziget experience here know of a way where it is possible to get the best of both worlds and not have to make these sacrifices?

Your thoughts and recommendations are greatly appreciated.

 

 

Yes

Get a campervan / motorhome and drive there.  Comfortable nights sleep; you get electric hook up so can have a fan and on site.  I wouldn't do it any other way

[doobie ninja]

On ‎14‎/‎05‎/‎2016 at 9:41 PM, R_B said:

Hi Guys.

I am hoping someone around here can help me decide on what accommodation will be best for Sziget this year. It's my second visit to Budapest but first time going to Sziget. I'm travelling solo and arriving on August 2nd so I have plenty of time to explore Budapest before the festival.

I'm undecided as to whether or not I'm better to camp at Camp Unknown or stay at a hostel somewhere in the city. My main concerns with camping at the festival is the noise late at night/early morning and heat during the day that may prevent me from sleeping. I've been to several 3 or 4 day festivals where I've camped and it gets incredibly draining when you party hard and do not have anywhere to sleep off the hangover. I've also been to festivals where we camped for a week or so, but the temperatures were much cooler. I'm not sure I can handle 7+ days of partying, whilst also camping in the heat. I have the possibility of moving in on the very first moving in day if I decide to camp, and will probably make the most of the opportunity to make sure I camp somewhere in the shade, which will hopefully help with the heat. Is it cheaper to buy camping equipment at Auchan or buy from the festival? Arriving in Budapest on the 2nd August I can always go to Auchan when I arrive to buy camping gear if it is cheaper or better quality?

I can avoid the sleeping dilemma by staying somewhere in the city and sleeping in a comfortable bed. Although if I stay in the city I will have to deal with a commute to and from the festival each day, which won't be too bad if the commute is limited to half n hour or so, but if it's going to be a difficult commute or take about an hour or more each way then it's not really something I want to to do, particularly if it's late at night/early in the morning and I can't be bothered with it because I've spent the previous 12 hours dancing! So my question for this is how difficult and approximately how long will the commute be if I stay somewhere in the city and travel to the festival at about 1pm each afternoon and leave at 4am each morning?

I also don't want to deal with long lines getting into and out of the festival each day if I stay in the city. Will the lines be long getting into and out of the festival?

Also if I stay in the city will I still be able to experience the festival to it's fullest? I feel like if I camp it will be easier to meet people and make friends, as well as experience all the other things happening inside the festival, aside from the music itself. I don't want to miss out on those things. Will I miss out on the friendship and other aspects of the festival if I stay in the city?

I know there's probably a sacrifice somewhere that has to be made. I can sacrifice sleep to get the full festival experience or I can sacrifice the full festival experience to get sleep.

Does anybody with Sziget experience here know of a way where it is possible to get the best of both worlds and not have to make these sacrifices?

Your thoughts and recommendations are greatly appreciated.

 

 

Hi

 

Last year was my first Sziget and I had EXACTLY the same concerns as you!! I was so close to staying in the city, but in the end I camped in Alternativa, hooked up with the Camp Uknown crew and had the time of my life. There is no way I would stay in the city now, hanging out in the morning sunshine, watching the site wake up, its great.

Alternative is a camping upgrade and at night is virtually silent. (unlike everywhere else on the site). Its also very shady!

 

Its a win - win situation to be honest as however you do Sziget, it will be amazing. Before I went I couldn't believe I was going to a festival for 9 days (had moving in ticket) but when its over.....you want to stay for longer.

 

Cheers

[Uncle Liam]

Foals are playing Budapest park the day after Sziget. FFS. 

[R_B]

Appreciate the responses, thank you.

I think I'm leaning towards staying at Sziget with the Camp Unknown crew. Unfortunately I was late with buying tickets and was not able to upgrade to the quieter Alternativa campground, so earplugs will have to do if the place where Camp Unknown chooses to set up camp is a little bit noisy. 

I'm arriving into August on the 2nd August and have purchased a 3 day moving in ticket so am planning on going to Auchan to get camping supplies and setting up camp on the 7th. That way I can be guaranteed a shady spot at least. 

Uncle Liam do you care to say why you disliked camping so much last year?

I've looked into accommodation near Batthany and there is some available that interest me if I opt out of camping. Thanks for the advice about the boat and where to stay, it may become very valuable to me.

Cheers.

[Noeliam]

1 hour ago, R_B said:

Appreciate the responses, thank you.

I think I'm leaning towards staying at Sziget with the Camp Unknown crew. Unfortunately I was late with buying tickets and was not able to upgrade to the quieter Alternativa campground, so earplugs will have to do if the place where Camp Unknown chooses to set up camp is a little bit noisy. 

I'm arriving into August on the 2nd August and have purchased a 3 day moving in ticket so am planning on going to Auchan to get camping supplies and setting up camp on the 7th. That way I can be guaranteed a shady spot at least. 

Uncle Liam do you care to say why you disliked camping so much last year?

I've looked into accommodation near Batthany and there is some available that interest me if I opt out of camping. Thanks for the advice about the boat and where to stay, it may become very valuable to me.

Cheers.

Hey man! We plan on camping at the same spot as last year, which was close to the main stage. fortunately it closes at 11pm but there's the VIP area (not camping) right next to us (some tents were far enough though) and some bars play also 'til pretty late. But I never had a problem sleeping with my earplugs

Is it your first Sziget? I will be in Budapest on the 1st, so if you want to have a beer and chat about Sziget you can send me a pm.

Cheers

[Uncle Liam]

13 hours ago, R_B said:

Uncle Liam do you care to say why you disliked camping so much last year?

 

It's not that I dislike it as such, it's better than at most festivals. It's just that I'm done with it if you know what I mean. 

[mattD83]

I should know this as i've been twice before.. but do the main stage headliners take place same time as the A38 tent headliners or does the A38 go on much later? (I have hazy drunken memories from 2013)

Ive just had a quick look and looks like the main artists I want to see may all clash! 

Muse Headlining main stage Saturday and Roisin Murphy headlining A38 on the same day?

M83 Headlining A38 and SIA headlining main stage on the Monday? And Chvrches second to headliner on Monday in A38 and Noel Ghallagher second to headliner on Main stage? 

Guess I'll just have to pick and choose who to see if they are all on at similar times but if its likely the the 2 stages will clash I may book tickets to go see M83 in my home town next month. 

Cheers! 

[Noeliam]

18 minutes ago, mattD83 said:

I should know this as i've been twice before.. but do the main stage headliners take place same time as the A38 tent headliners or does the A38 go on much later? (I have hazy drunken memories from 2013)

Ive just had a quick look and looks like the main artists I want to see may all clash! 

Muse Headlining main stage Saturday and Roisin Murphy headlining A38 on the same day?

M83 Headlining A38 and SIA headlining main stage on the Monday? And Chvrches second to headliner on Monday in A38 and Noel Ghallagher second to headliner on Main stage? 

Guess I'll just have to pick and choose who to see if they are all on at similar times but if its likely the the 2 stages will clash I may book tickets to go see M83 in my home town next month. 

Cheers! 

Muse will clash with Kodaline, Roisin Murphy will play after.

Sia will play at 21h30, M83 at 23h45 (Sia's set ends at 23h).

Noel and Chvrches will clash, but after Noel you'll  still have 30 minutes of Chvrches.

http:///s/sz2016/

[harold08]

When are we expecting a new line up announcement and how many acts are there to be announced roughly? Me and my friends have been to Benicassim the last few years and the year we change festival, Beni have a ridiculously good line up and Sziget isn't as good as I was expecting (although I can see there is much more to Sziget than just the music.) 

 

cheers all.