Benátská! with Impuls, Day 2: Record Attendance, Legendary Roxette and Koller’s Helicopter Arrival
On the second day of the festival, Friday 24 July, the weather finally improved and greeted us with a warm morning. Visitors slowly emerged from their tents for morning coffee and lunch.
At 1:00 p.m., the newly completed Adifex stage was opened by the Havířov hard rock band Bastard, who first made a name for themselves in the 1990s as a support act for Kabát and returned to the scene in 2015 after a break. At 2:00 p.m., the programme also began on the main TCN Energie stage with the arrival of Mňága a Žďorp. During their second song, Hodinový Hotel, frontman Petr Fiala jumped down from the stage, shook hands with fans in the front rows and sang almost the entire song while standing on the crowd barriers. With every song, the band brought more and more energy to the busy area in front of the stage, putting the audience in the perfect mood for the acts to follow.
Another performer on the smaller stage was singer-songwriter Pokáč, appearing alone because, as he joked, a full band is apparently too expensive. Armed with just his guitar, he played most of his best-known songs, including Jsem levej and Kočka. As his set came to an end, rock band Walda Gang were getting ready on the main stage. The group mainly performs covers of famous Waldemar Matuška songs, and the audience could sing along with the band to, among others, Eldorádo.
The arrival of David Koller caused quite a stir, as he flew into the festival grounds by helicopter together with producer Steve Lyon. During his performance, he presented a selection of songs from his solo career and, as a singing drummer, performed part of the set from behind the drum kit alongside the other drummers. Meanwhile, Vypsaná Fixa were preparing to perform in the Magna tent with their charismatic frontman Márdi. Interest in the concert was exceptional: so many people turned up that some could not even fit inside the tent and had to listen through the canvas.
Another major act on the main stage was Chinaski. The long-running band needs little introduction. Fans of all generations filled the area in front of the stage and enthusiastically sang their best-known hits with Michal Malátný, including 1970, Punčocháče and Máme rádi víno. On the adjacent stage, Škwor were already getting ready to turn up the intensity. They offered the audience the best of their catalogue and, unlike most of the other acts, also brought flames to the show. They closed their set with Síla starejch vín, loudly sung along to by the packed crowd in front of the stage.
The highlight of Friday evening was the performance by Swedish band Roxette, led by Per Gessle and Lena Philipsson. They fired up the eager fans with the hit Big L, followed by the instantly recognisable Sleeping in My Car. Lena frequently encouraged the enthusiastic crowd to sing along, and with their energetic stage performance they proved they are far more than just an "old band". The audience was also delighted by their cover version of the song Holka Modrooká.
The evening then concluded with performances by Žlutý pes and Turbo.
Day two made festival history: Benátská! with Impuls recorded its highest-ever attendance.
More photos can be found on our Zonerama!