Heavy Under the Influence: Alkehol and Bastard Kick Off Their Joint Spring Tour in Plzeň
With their brand-new album Připíjím, Alkehol hit the road for their spring tour, joined for the entire run by Havířov rockers Bastard. On Saturday, March 14, they kicked off this shared ride in Plzeň's Šeříkovka.
Even before seven, eager fans started flooding into the venue. About an hour later, the speakers fired up Pretty Maids and their Little Drop of Heaven, marking the start of Bastard's set. For this tour, the band brought along a special guest—on guitar, they're backed by longtime friend Michal Rucký. The stage setup was simple but effective: a blue band logo on the backdrop and two stands featuring the blue-black artwork of the single V řetězech, positioned on either side of the drum kit.
Bastard opened with Veselý kouř. There was also a story about what it feels like to win a million—naturally followed by the track Milion. Then came the stage-presented V řetězech. The band rolled into Noc, dedicated to women - though the guys in the crowd were reassured that despite sounding romantic, it's short and doesn't end well. They also introduced their new single Cesta kolem světa, which smoothly transitioned into Vstupenka do ráje. At one point, singer Marian 333 tossed a ball into the crowd - a little tour companion that travels with them in the van. Whoever catches it can trade it in for a piece of merch at the stand. Bastard wrapped things up with a full-on Mexican wave across the venue.
After a quick stage reset, it was time for the main act - Alkehol, the undisputed kings of Czech "beer metal." No hesitation, no warm-up - they launched straight into Hospoda, giving a nod to the legendary golden brew of Plzeň. Then came Rockeři and Piju jako duha, sparking a debate about how much is actually "a lot" - for some it's five beers, for others twenty. The set kept rolling with Pojďme se bavit, V pátek k večeru, Víkend, Na zdraví, and Život je krátkej. The crowd went all in - beer (and plenty more) flowing non-stop.
The band took a moment to talk about their latest album, released last autumn. Even though it's fresh material, Alkehol leaned more on their proven classics - the ones they know will hit hard live. Still, the new record got its share of spotlight with three tracks: Těsně pod parou, Máme dar, and the title track Připíjím. Of course, the set wouldn't be complete without staples like Jízda králů, Pojďme se napít, Spalovač chlastu, Pivo dělá hezká těla, or the now-legendary cover anthem Nechte vlajky vlát. They closed the main set with Zmaštěnej.
But the fans weren't ready to let them go that easily. Chanting and clapping brought the band right back on stage. The whole venue united in a football-style chant: "Olé, olé, olé, olé… Alkehol! Alkehol!" The encore delivered O chlastu and Na slamníku, before the band finally said their goodbyes.
Big thanks to both bands and the Šeříkovka venue for an awesome tour kickoff here in Plzeň. It was quite an experience showing up as a near-abstainer at a show built almost entirely around alcohol—beer especially.
A small photo selection is included here, the rest can be found, as always, on ZONERAMA.
Šári