Benátská! with Impuls 2026, Day 1: Treacherous Weather on a Slovak Thursday
The 32nd edition of the Benátská! with Impuls festival kicked off on Thursday, July 23, at the Vesec grounds near Liberec. The opening day was dominated by Slovak headliners, while the contemporary Czech music scene was also well represented with a varied selection spanning genres from pop rock and punk to heavy metal. People say that in Liberec it is either raining or uphill. The Vesec grounds are not particularly hilly, but rain is nothing unusual at Benátská!. On arrival, however, there was no immediate reason to reach for a raincoat in the backpack, although the radar data advised caution.
The day's programme opened with the Rokycany ska-punk band Budulínek, whose set in the Magna tent gently got arriving visitors moving.
On the main TCN stage, the first headliner was already getting ready: Slovak singer Peter Nagy with his band Indigo. Despite the relatively early hour, when many visitors were still queueing at the gates, the area in front of the stage was already respectably full. The audience could revisit hits from their youth (or perhaps their parents' youth) such as Korálky od Natálky and Psí sa bránia útokom.
Visitors longing for the faster end of the musical spectrum were soon treated to The Fialky, who were preparing to dig into their guitars as the previous performance drew to a close. The band, which describes its style as "pure 77 punkrock", did not have to wait long for a mosh pit to form in front of the stage, supplemented by spectators drifting over between acts on the main stage. After the punk interlude came another calmer spell. With the square now completely packed, another Slovak guest was preparing to appear: singer and lyricist Richard Müller, a charismatic performer with a distinctive voice. Unfortunately, Liberec's notorious weather allowed him to play no more than three songs, and his concert had to be cut short.
A torrential downpour scattered visitors, some into the beer tents and others back into the Magna tent, whose near-capacity crowd must have delighted the Slaný punk-rock band Totální nasazení. During Balkánská, the whole area in front of the stage was jumping, and even the newcomers were not too taken aback by the performance. Even those who were not fans found that the fast, cheerful music helped them ride out the bad weather outside.
At 8 p.m., the clouds broke and the next Slovak headliner, No Name, was able to continue the evening. The band returned to the festival with fond memories. Frontman Igor Timko recalled that years ago they had played here as an almost unknown act in a small tent, whereas this year they returned as one of the programme's main stars. Fans still wearing raincoats could enjoy familiar hits from across the band's catalogue. After appearing at Masters of Rock over the weekend, Doctor P.P., a rock band led by Petr Pečený, also brought plenty of energy and humour.
One of the biggest draws for the younger generation was Mirai, formed in 2014 around frontman Mirai Navrátil and now one of the most successful and most-streamed Czech bands. From a living-room set that occupied the entire stage, the frontman kept up lively communication with the crowd between the band's best-known hits, including Když nemůžeš, tak přidej. During Volám, he alternated between the female and male sections of the audience. He also picked five random fans and instantly turned them into a new band. Mirai's was the only show accompanied by pyrotechnics, and it ended with the obligatory shower of confetti.
Meanwhile, Schweine in Žito appeared on the Skutečná Liga stage with their distinctive genre label, which they call "JZD grind". As the winners of the 2025 Skutečná liga competition in the Vysočina Region, they were the only band that day to break decisively away from the established pop-rock formula, and more than one visitor looked surprised by what exactly was happening on stage. Shortly afterwards, Protheus began his set. The solo project of singer Jan Macků, who fronted Dymytry behind a mask from 2005 to 2023 before setting out on his own, combines metal with other styles. The set included a selection of his best-known songs, including Ženy.
The day was slowly drawing to a close when its final headliner took the main stage: punk-rock showmen Horkýže Slíže. The band hardly needs a lengthy introduction; it is enough to say that the audience once again enjoyed another of their concerts and sang along to a full set of familiar songs. The day was brought to a close by Záviš and his distinctive repertoire steeped in humour. Without unnecessary chatter, he launched into material from his porno-folk songbook, whose titles are probably best not repeated here.
The first day of Benátská! with Impuls 2026 thus offered a colourful mix of genres and generations. Despite the bad weather and Richard Müller's prematurely ended concert, the great majority of visitors remained on site throughout and refused to be discouraged. There were plenty of places to sit, as well as opportunities to hear bands they might not otherwise have seen.