Pukkelpop 2022

[polnico]

Attended Pukkelpop yesterday for the first time, what a beautiful festival this is. Lots of variety on the stages, queues were non existent, no trouble at all getting close in tents/main stage. Also love the concept that some stages with different DJs are opened until very late, this made the wait of the morning's 1st train way shorter than I feared. Definitely will come back for a nice day in Kiewit at some point if the lineup is as good as yday!

Personal favorites were Tame Impala, Shame, Frank Carter, Marc Rebillet, The Murder Capital and Dave. Hope all of you are having/had a fantastic festival!

[Name taken]

Love this festival !

[SarahEmpre]

Amazing Weekend!!! What a great festival it is. All ages people, great atmosphere, great sound, good weather, no queues, and all kind of music!!

Backyard Stage is a SUPER adition. It had the good vibes from the old shelter with modern and old bands. 

It was funny to see Kate Ryan and I loved the Bizkit Park opening slot at Main Stage. This kind of acts should be booked every year to open Main Stage.

Looking forward to Pukkelpop 2023

 

[DDave]

Just watching a few PKP sets on YouTube. The Little Simz set is a bit of a masterclass, innit? I'd have been annoyed if I'd have gone and not seen it. 

[lighthouse]

12 hours ago, DDave said:

Just watching a few PKP sets on YouTube. The Little Simz set is a bit of a masterclass, innit? I'd have been annoyed if I'd have gone and not seen it. 

Easily best set I saw. 

Well, not easily because this was a very good edition, but still: best show of the festival.

[Chimme]

16 hours ago, DDave said:

Just watching a few PKP sets on YouTube. The Little Simz set is a bit of a masterclass, innit? I'd have been annoyed if I'd have gone and not seen it. 

I walked by when she did her show at PKP back in 2015, on my way to something else, and didn't stop. This year, I chose Wet Leg instead.

I was wrong both times.

[F2J2]

Got back yesterday and I can confidently say this was the best festival I have ever been to. Benchmark set, had a combi ticket and stayed in camping comfy. Personal highlights Inc Slipknot, Tame Impala, Declan Mckenna and Boys Noize.

The proper food court aka food wood was incredible. 

Place was well kept throughout in all aspects.

Will return! 

[DDave]

1 hour ago, F2J2 said:

Got back yesterday and I can confidently say this was the best festival I have ever been to. Benchmark set, had a combi ticket and stayed in camping comfy. Personal highlights Inc Slipknot, Tame Impala, Declan Mckenna and Boys Noize.

The proper food court aka food wood was incredible. 

Place was well kept throughout in all aspects.

Will return! 

Imagine what it's like with a decent line up! 😜

[F2J2]

1 hour ago, DDave said:

Imagine what it's like with a decent line up! 😜

It doesn't get much better IMO but as always with fests...each to their own. Hellfest this year had a killer lineup but in terms of diversity Pukkelpop nailed it. 

[Aech2ElectricBoogaloo]

Amazing festival everything exceeded expectations. Only faults were the Club stage needed to be bigger (and Lift really) and I thought the sound on Backyard wasn't as good as the other stages. My highlights were Slipknot, Bring Me The Horizon, Tai Verdes and Jungle (what a party that was). 

[Trufflehound]

21 hours ago, DDave said:

Imagine what it's like with a decent line up! 😜

Friday and Sunday were a bit average line-up wise, but the Saturday was for me as good as any PKP day I've been to (and I don't mean the dull but inexplicably popular George Ezra or Tame Impala... And we missed Underworld because there was so much else going on)

All told, another great festival.

My far and away standout of the weekend was Viagra Boys. Wow. Just wow. Other Saturday highlights for me were The Clockworks, Shame and Yard Act.

Tamino was my top act of an otherwise ordinary Friday, while DIIV and the insanely insane Ho99o9 were great on Sunday.

Other observations. The vocal mix in the Club was too low for many bands. Quite a few were too quiet, and Slow Crush's singing was virtually inaudible (but then they are influenced by My Bloody Valentine, so that may have been deliberate...)

Also, this was the cleanest and most litter-free PKP I've witnessed in my 18 visits there. They've had the teams of "Wombles" in green dungarees picking up litter for several years, and the 'return 25 plastic glasses to get free tokens' scheme for even longer, but this is the first year I've really noticed the effects. In previous editions you'd still be wading ankle-deep through paper plates and crushed plastic beer glasses to get to every stage, but this time it was all spick and span.

But I still think they're missing a tricking in not switching to reusable hard plastic glasses with a, say, (half) token returnable deposit on them, like BKS has operated since the beginning.

Edited August 24, 2022 by Trufflehound

[Semprini]

Was so good to be back after three years, with this one being extra special as I took my 16 year old son along for the first time.

I was unsure in the current climate and after the enforced break whether the usual professional organisation and general ease of navigating the festival would be the same but I needn't have worried as it was better then ever. From the buses and trains making the trip to and from Hasselt a breeze each day, the changes to the layout of the site (cut through from Castello to the Dance Hall was a huge improvement) to the increased choice of food and drink it was all there and worked wonderfully from the very start to the end.

In terms of the music, I saw a lot of bands and DJs over the weekend and loads of great sets. The huge amount of choice can throw up some difficult clashes, particularly from about 9pm onwards, so I chose to split quite a lot of my time between acts. It's never more than a few minutes walk between stages so that was easy to do. Saw full sets though from Underworld, Rufus Du Sol, Pink Pantheress, Overmono, 100 Gecs, Bru-C and Fred Again.. who were all fantastic. Other notable mentions go to Job Jobse, Vitalic, Pendulum, Charlotte Adigery and Bolis Pupul, Gabber Eleganza, Mall Grab, Marc Rebillet, Jungle, Boys Noize, Paula Temple and Kolsch.

Felt sorry for Four Tet who had probably the smallest crowd I saw all weekend in the Dance Hall which was a real pity, was about 1/5th full at most. This was mainly due to the huge crowd that went to see Arctic Monkeys. My son wanted to watch them but he left after about 20 mins as he'd had enough! I ended up staying for about 45 mins as I was with some friends but the sound was quiet, the band were just going through the motions and there was virtually no interaction with the crowd. This was in stark contrast to Slipknot on Friday night who were amazing! I'm not really a fan and don't listen to their music but I wanted to go and see a bit of the show just for the spectacle. I had a great time though as the sound, energy from the crowd and band and the production were all superb. We left after about half an hour to go and see Goose in the DH but only stayed for a few songs as it was a slow start and the tent was incredibly hot. We both agreed next morning that we regretted not watching a lot more of Slipknot, this is bearing in mind my lad had said beforehand that he wasn't even going to bother checking them out!

I didn't see any trouble or anti-social behaviour all weekend (to keep up a record that now extends to 13 editions) and I had no concerns at all when he wanted to go off on his own to watch bands I didn't want to see, even in the early hours of the morning. Sure, there were lots of drunk and high/smashed people all over the site but unlike many in the UK they don't want to start a fight if you bump into them or tread on their toes - you're more likely to get a hug! Didn't have to queue for drinks or food at any point and toilets were quick to use and clean even in places that were busy. We mostly ate in the Food Wood, which was more expensive than elsewhere but worth it for the quality. I bought all our tokens in advance so 3 euros for a beer, particularly some of the ones available in the PKP Cafe, Beer Shack and Special beers tent, was a decent deal.

My son has already said this is now his festival and he will be coming back every year that he can in future! Did a backstage tour on Sunday and saw a few of the bands wandering around which was nice! Our guide told us a lot of interesting facts and stories about the festival, my favourite being the year Guns and Roses played and no one knew where Axel was? When he eventually answered his phone - just 30 mins before the band were due on stage - to their horror he was still in England 🤣 We also saw Four Tet and Fred Again.. come out from behind the Main Stage to watch a bit of BMTH and managed to get some pics with them!

It wasn't a cheap weekend by any means but I still consider it good value for money and will hopefully be back again next summer to do it all again!

Edited August 24, 2022 by Semprini

[DDave]

On 8/22/2022 at 11:24 AM, SarahEmpre said:

Amazing Weekend!!! What a great festival it is. All ages people, great atmosphere, great sound, good weather, no queues, and all kind of music!! 

 

That does sum up Pukkelpop to a tee. 

We'll be back in for Pukkelpop 2023 all being well. Main thing I'm hoping for is for them not to hold Hear Hear as a separate event again and make the Marquee as strong as it was in 2019 (LCD or Pulp to headline it please!) 

Charlotte De Wittes technical problems make her a cert to return again next year for some redemption I reckon.  Have a feeling we'll see returns for the War on Drugs, Imagine Dragons and maybe the XX, and hopefully Dua Lipa. Not sure if he's too big or will be elsewhere but can see Harry Styles getting booked. A good fit for Pukkelpop. 

[DDave]

On 8/24/2022 at 8:50 PM, DDave said:

That does sum up Pukkelpop to a tee. 

We'll be back in for Pukkelpop 2023 all being well. Main thing I'm hoping for is for them not to hold Hear Hear as a separate event again and make the Marquee as strong as it was in 2019 (LCD or Pulp to headline it please!) 

Charlotte De Wittes technical problems make her a cert to return again next year for some redemption I reckon.  Have a feeling we'll see returns for the War on Drugs, Imagine Dragons and maybe the XX, and hopefully Dua Lipa. Not sure if he's too big or will be elsewhere but can see Harry Styles getting booked. A good fit for Pukkelpop. 

Harry Styles ruled out 😅 

https://m.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20220826_95503909

[arcuse]

On 8/24/2022 at 9:50 PM, DDave said:

make her a cert to return again next year for some redemption I reckon.

Nahh.

[johnybegood]

No official dates for Pukkelpop 2023?

[DDave]

7 hours ago, johnybegood said:

No official dates for Pukkelpop 2023?

17-20 August mate. Hope all is good with you. 

[johnybegood]

19 hours ago, DDave said:

17-20 August mate. Hope all is good with you. 

Are these dates official? I can't find them in their site or social media.

Everything is good. The medical issues were solved in a few days so despite missing Pukkelpop we could have a good end of summer holidays. Thanks for asking, Dave!

[Trufflehound]

1 hour ago, johnybegood said:

Are these dates official? I can't find them in their site or social media.

Everything is good. The medical issues were solved in a few days so despite missing Pukkelpop we could have a good end of summer holidays. Thanks for asking, Dave!

Facebook event for 2023 was created by the official PKP FB page:

https://www.facebook.com/events/1103291916954097?ref=newsfeed

 

[Muppetmark]

Lcd soundsystem supposedly touring in august

Edited October 30, 2022 by Muppetmark

[DDave]

Just now, Muppetmark said:

Lcd soundsystem supposedly touring in august

Marquee headliner a la the National?

Rumours of Eminem on the Sziget forum as well. 

I can see Lizzo playing Pukkelpop. Think we'll be back into the normal groove of acts playing arenas in the spring then rolling round again for the August festivals. Can also see the War on Drugs making a return, if they decide to revert back to a normal PKP line up. 

 

[DDave]

16 minutes ago, Muppetmark said:

Lcd soundsystem supposedly touring in august

Where are you seeing this by the way? 

[Muppetmark]

3 hours ago, DDave said:

Where are you seeing this by the way? 

Someone posted in the glasto boards that they're announcing a gig in Ireland with yeah yeah yeahs support in a few weeks for august

[foolee]

If the Reading festival rumours are true of Green Day, MGK, Foals, Billie Eilish, Sam Fender and KSI would we expect any of these at Pukkelpop? Hoping for Green Say and MGK, Foals would be nice too. 

[neacaisa]

KSI lmao