THE FOUR-DAY METRONOME PRAGUE ENDED AT THE EXHIBITION GROUNDS

NICK CAVE DRIFTED ON HIS HANDS, BECK OVERCAME THE RAIN, AND UNDERWORLD DANCED THE CROWDS

The fifth year of the Metronome Prague festival ended at the Prague Exhibition Grounds on Sunday morning. The main star of Saturday’s program was the band Underworld. Friday’s program on the main stage culminated in a breathtaking show by Beck, for which an hard core of fans waited under the stage for an hour in a strong storm. The day before, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds completely captivated the audience. A total of a record 22,000 visitors came to the festival, and the first jubilee semicircular Metronome Prague thus set a new standard in attendance. Music lovers from Prague and visitors from all over the country and foreign guests will have another chance to drop this bar in a year. The organizers announced the date of the sixth year of Metronome Prague from 22 to 25 June 2023 in the same locality.

Domestic and foreign performers performed on eight stages. Among others, Baltazar, Oh Wonder and Lola Marsh attracted attention from abroad, and fans of older rock music were delighted by Mick Jagger’s brother Chris. The festival also introduced talented foreign artists to the Czech scene who have a future ahead of them, such as the British singer Emily Burns. The Czech premiere of the band Sunnbrella, founded in London by Meky Žbirka’s son David, was a kind of transition between the foreign and domestic scene. Many domestic performers performed brilliant and exceptionally exceptional concerts. Lenka Dusilová presented the widely occupied Greek Ensemble, Tata Bojs performed on a special stage at Křižík’s Fountain as if for life, at the same place she presented the SymfoMig 21 project with her songs in an arrangement enriched by the National Theater Symphony Orchestra, ballet and choir. Dan Bárta sang a good old hard rock with the band Alice, with which he once became famous for the first time, Marpo celebrated with full show the tenth anniversary of the founding of his Troublegang. A hip-hop dramaturgical line was also typical for this year’s Metronome Prague, which brought the top and local discoveries of this extremely popular genre to the stage at the Exhibition Grounds.

On Thursdays and Saturdays, over 14,000 spectators passed through the gates of the festival, and on Friday there were fewer of them due to the weather. In total, 22,000 individual ticket holders enjoyed the event. The main interest of the audience, of course, was focused on the main stars. On Thursday, Nick Cave confirmed his current position on the music scene with a well-composed setlist, a perfectly executed musical concept, in which his band was accompanied by two vocalists. The former «prince of darkness» also performed as a master of contact with the audience, who returned his expended energy with a hundredfold force and did not hesitate to even carry his idol on his hands. The star of Friday night, Beck, was similarly in touch. Due to a strong storm that stopped over the Exhibition Center, fans had to wait for an hour for his performance, many — to keep the place as close to the stage as possible — right in the rain and under a lightning sky.

When the first tones sounded after doubting whether the concert really would be, the applause did not end and Beck literally poured more than thirty of his songs into the audience, including the biggest hits. And at every possible moment, he showed how much he appreciated the fact that his listeners remained loyal to him and did not allow intensifying rain. The whole festival then culminated on Saturday before midnight with the last main star, the British electronic duo Underworld. She was able to captivate not only with the music that perhaps stirred the staunch opponents of dance, but also with a fascinating spectacle with a perfect light park.

«Thank you very much to everyone who took part. Audiences, performers, productions, partners. The Czech capital is back on the map of major cultural events in Europe. We believe that we have started the next stage of Metronome Prague and we are looking forward to the next year, to which we invite in June 2023, «said David Gaydečka on behalf of the organizers. As it cannot be otherwise at similarly large events, while the last tones of the music of the fifth year have not yet been heard at the Exhibition Grounds, the organizers are already thinking about the next one. They were the first to state that the sixth Metronome Prague will take place on June 22-25, 2023, of course in the same place, ie at the Prague Exhibition Grounds.

About Metronome Prague:

Metronome Prague is the first major music and art festival held in Prague. Its 5th year was originally planned for 2020, due to the covid-19 pandemic it was moved to 2021 and for the same reason currently moved to 2022. During the event, stars such as Sting, Kraftwerk, Primal Scream, Liam Gallagher visited the event. , Morcheeba, Nick Cave, Iggy Pop, Beck, Underworld, Foals, Chemical Brothers, Kasabian, Tom Odell, Ella Eyre, David Byrne, John Cale or Massive Attack. Ohm Square, Floex, Tata Bojs, Mig 21 with the National Symphony Orchestra and David Koller with Katarzia, among others, performed from the domestic scene

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