MEO Kalorama 2023

[gfa]

On 7/17/2023 at 5:32 PM, adawonggang said:

Understand this is a new festival, but really struggling to find any info or discourse online at all.

Anyone able to share tips/insights/ thoughts from last year?

What do you want to know? I went last year - its a pretty standard affair, all very close, no bar queues etc. toilet queues were fine for mens - womens looked a bit long but nothing super ridiculous (5-10 min wait)

On 7/28/2023 at 5:06 PM, adawonggang said:

All looks pretty similar.

A lot of Portuguese people going seem livid about how early it's starting and ending on Instagram, but for me this suits perfectly, means I can go out in Lisbon after!

Does seem the anomaly though compared to the other European festivals I've gone to, particularly the Spanish ones.

Its almost the same as last year timings wise - finishing at 2am (2 nights were 2am last year, now just 1)

Headliners are actually going later this year too - well Prodigy at least.

[eivomracsy]

21 hours ago, gfa said:

What do you want to know? I went last year - its a pretty standard affair, all very close, no bar queues etc. toilet queues were fine for mens - womens looked a bit long but nothing super ridiculous (5-10 min wait)

we were on the chems day last year and really enjoyed it overall. good lineup, nice location. but it did have some flaws which mainly was a problem of information whichwe are sure we didnt miss but wasnt there. first to get there was pretty easy, from the metro you just follow the masses. (there were no signs i remember, so we had to), at the location the signs were to que where pretty unclear and also what you an take inside and what not. bars were easy, foodstands a nightmare. at least the ones we tried had a line for orders and one for pick ups. there were no signs and the queues were really long, so some people were pretty pissed when it was their turn in the pick up queue. toilets i found pretty difficult too. there was a one way system theoretically (if i remember correctly) and lines took forever, for the ones who cared about being nice and lining up. IF there was a sign for urinals we totally missed it. they had to cancel to abort one act who was playing on the mainstage at the same time as kraftwerk because of sound bleed. and getting home was also a shitshow as we had no idea were the bus to the centre started. there was a long line which turned out to be for tickets (which we already had) and only two lines, one to some train station and one going all over the town taking one hour plus to the center.

[e2p2]

Are all stages open-air?

[graceunderpressure]

On 8/10/2023 at 12:27 PM, e2p2 said:

Are all stages open-air?

Can't find out , less stages last year  . Hoping that the Samsung stage is a tent . Young Fathers in a tent would be awesome !

[GAmbrose]

Wife and I have tickets for this. Haven't even been to Lisbon before let alone a festival abroad.

We'll be getting the metro there, which looks pretty simple.

Metro only runs until 1 a.m.

I know they are putting shuttles on and can see the route it goes (We are staying close to Saldanha) but how busy were these buses last year?

Failing that, were there plenty of taxis about? We are only staying about 10 mins away by car.

Edited August 15, 2023 by GAmbrose

[graceunderpressure]

On 8/10/2023 at 12:27 PM, e2p2 said:

Are all stages open-air?

Yep . and they kept  those non binary toilets again . Heard they were a disaster last year 😞 

[e2p2]

1 hour ago, graceunderpressure said:

Yep . and they kept  those non binary toilets again . Heard they were a disaster last year 😞 

Bummer. Seeing artists like Jose Gonzalez and Charlie Cunningham in broad daylight and in the heat might take their magic off.

Thanks for the information though!

[e2p2]

Does anyone knows if you can pay with the phone in the bars inside?

[DDave]

https://twitter.com/the_prodigy/status/1693699115526275461?s=20

[Paul E]

I see Florence + the Machine have cancelled their festival appearances on 25th and 26th August - the next on their schedule is Meo on Saturday so we'll see in next few days whether they also cancel this one.

[GAmbrose]

I assume the map using generic images of burgers, pizza and hotdogs on the foodstands is just to highlight where they are.

Can anyone who went last year confirm what types of food was available?

Also what are they talking about when they say you can't take in "rain hats"

I Googled it and things like bucket hats came up?!

[charlierc]

Florence Welch has said they are planning to go ahead with this and Cala Mijas, though it sounds from her post that she's had to have some kind of surgery so what kind of performance it'll be is another matter.

[mt6456]

Enjoyed the first night at the festival, got to see around 7 acts. Blur and the Prodigy were great as were Metronomy and the Yeahs, Yeah Yeahs. Just caught snippets of Shame and The Blaze. M83 were good but may have benefited from a later start when it was dark.

The venue isn’t bad. It’s compact enough to get around quickly however the positioning of some of the bars and toilets are poor as they block traffic. The second stage on top of a hill isn’t the best idea. It’s a bit dusty also. Never had to queue at the bars and good food selection. Roll on day 2. 

[VCF]

Arcade Fire’s set is live on Youtube!

[D-Low]

Agreed about M83's placement. The Blaze killed it, along with AF. The band definitely didn't look like one about to call it a day.

The dust was something else though. Only just got over my Glastonbury illness from the dust, so it'll be a miracle if I come away scott free here as it was unbearable near the front for Foals and AF.

Nice to not have to queue for beers (although not sure what it is with lots of European places not serving full sized pints), but the toilets were really bad with waiting, definitely need to have more + urinals, and some situated near the mainstage.

Sound was decent for the most part. Food choices not the best. €5 for the worlds smallest portion of fries.

Would I return? Probably if the line-up was decent.

[graceunderpressure]

Really enjoyed the festival . Easy to get in and out and the sound was good . Toilets were a complete shambles . Blur ,Foals , AF and Young Fathers were the highlights for me . Would consider going again with a strong lineup but will wait for nos alive announcement and decide then

[gfa]

On 9/3/2023 at 10:47 PM, D-Low said:

Nice to not have to queue for beers (although not sure what it is with lots of European places not serving full sized pints), but the toilets were really bad with waiting, definitely need to have more + urinals, and some situated near the mainstage.

Pints aren't common in mainland europe (maybe only in areas with tons of british tourists). They do 500ml servings due to the metric system

[eivomracsy]

3 minutes ago, gfa said:

Pints aren't common in mainland europe (maybe only in areas with tons of british tourists). They do 500ml servings due to the metric system

true, but in the last years festival got a bit funny in the definition of a big beer. i think this year i had at least 500, 475, 450 and 400 ml as a big beer on different festivals.