Ezechiel | 01.07.2021 11:11

On Friday the 27th and Saturday the 28th of August, the largest Gothic meeting in Central Europe will return to Prague. It will present 8 bands (including names like Rein, Empathy Test, and Then Comes Silence), DJs, and a traditional gothic picnic.

The past year has taught us all how easily plans can change. And also that with luck you can overcome everything. Last year we managed to squeeze Prague Gothic Treffen in the gap between lockdowns and be one of the few in Europe to organize a Goth event. And we want to continue this tradition this year as well - as much as government security measures will allow us. Yet the XVI. Prague Gothic Treffen will be slightly different anyway. How in particular?

For the first time since the sixth Prague Gothic Treffen (for the first time in ten years), we will omit the tradition of involving various clubs and instead stay settled in the Futurum Music Club for both days. We will still keep the two stages playing at the same time and the genre diversity, though. What is waiting for us?

The legacy of post-punk from Manchester, a peculiar guy with the 90’s goth vibes and leaders of the contemporary goth / post-punk scene

On Friday, the stage will belong to the British darkwave / post-punk project A Dull Set, which has relocated to Prague. Sharp guitars, throbbing synths, cold drum machines in a fast-paced tempo, and stylish declamation caught the attention at the last year's EP "What Kind of Spectacle" and we believe that it will attract all lovers of contemporary synth/guitar sound.

Another wild card got the band Je T'aime, a coldwave / post-punk jewel from France. Since its founding in 2018, managed Trinity dBoy, Tall Bastard, and Crazy Z to drive through Europe with their eponymous, warmly received album released by Icy Cold Records and Manic Depression Records and delight the hearts of devotees to the iconic sound of Manchester publishers The Factory. Moreover, they are bringing to Prague new material for the upcoming record set to be released this autumn.

Another one of the new most promising names is surely the peculiar German, DIAF, who stunned fans with the last year's album "Weida", especially with his characteristic, expressive shouting vocals in German, perched on heavy synths, cold surfaces, 8-bit glitches, distorted beats, and squeaky guitars. Sometimes gliding on the winds of 90’s gothic rock, sometimes a swift flyby through the (properly darkened) Mario world, and other times slow downed visits to the gates of Neofolk with his acoustic guitar - but every time real and authentic to the fullest. Can DIAF transfer so much energy live? We are wondering too ...

Few bands on the scene have experienced such a development curve and a turnaround, as the post-punk/goth rock connoisseurs Then Comes Silence. Five years ago, after the band got signed by international publishing juggernaut Nuclear Blast, who'd taken their then-new album "Blood" under the wings and catapulted the Swedish crew to a completely different league. The massive success of the album brought not only worldwide interest in the group and venerable concert tours, but also the internal crisis (both on the personal and band levels), which resulted in the loss of several members and a change of posts in the band.

After a wild party came quite a hangover and a need to look at life through sober eyes. The band decided not to do another "Blood" and preferred to return to its roots, firmly embedded in the Stockholm underground. The result is last year's album "Machine" - darker, rawer, more honest, and chilling. Then Comes Silence arched back to where they had come from in 2012, with the sound they’ve always wanted. And they will bring just that to the Prague Gothic Treffen for us to bathe in. Maximum experience intensity guaranteed.

Then Comes Silence - When You're Gone (Official Video)

Gothic picnic, analog synth dreamers, and Swedish EBM princess

An integral part of PGT is the traditional afternoon gothic picnic, this year again situated near Futurum. An ideal opportunity to meet and chat in peace with other visitors of the event and tune in to the later club party.

The main stage will be opened by a brand new Prague minimal synth project Body of Pain, who will come to present their promising, cold debut album "We No Longer Exist Anymore".

The wild Dutch project Bragolin will then invade the freezing waters, pouring his view of dynamic postpunk and darkwave onto us, spiced with the 60’s keyboards and 90’s shoegaze guitars. The duo with the excellent record "I Saw Nothing Good So I Left" toured over 40 concerts in Europe in two years, including stops at WGT and other festivals.

Did you see the Swedish analog synth wizards Kite perform at PGT two years ago? This was not only one of the highlights of the evening but also one of the most powerful experiences of all Prague Gothic Treffens ever. If you are also turned on by fragile, nostalgic analog electronics mixed with captivating soulful vocals, you will fall in love with the Empathy Test. The glory of the British trio quite deservedly keeps growing and we were hooked by their last album "Monsters" which we rated to 90% (as the second album in the entire history of Sanctuary.cz ). We are all the more pleased to finally welcome the Empathy Test in the Czech Republic for the first time and waiting for a show that will be remembered for a long time.

Empathy Test - Monsters

The energetic highlight of Saturday's line-up will be another Czech premiere - a performance by Swedish artist and producer Rein. Fragile-looking, blue-eyed blonde? Maybe at first sight. In 2016 Rein introduced herself with an uncompromising old-school EBM sound, to which she over time blended more and more melodic elements. Rein's own sound earned her a nomination in 2017 in two categories of the Swedish music awards "P3 Gold" (newcomer of the year and best dance composition). Rein has evolved from an EBM princess into a strong and unique personality of the electronic scene, which exceeded the boundaries of the dark subculture - proved by performing at festivals like Sziget, Eurosonic, or Vega. Last year, Rein released the well-received record "Reincarnated", where she skillfully combined the EBM references with finer dark/synthpop moments. However, the main thing remains the elemental energy, which will splash from the stage in all directions.

Rein - Off The Grid

As an alternative to the line-up on the main stage, there will be a smaller stage, both where foreign and domestic DJs will cover everything from classic goth/deathrock, dark/new wave, and post-punk to various forms of dark electronics.

The sixteenth edition of PGT thus makes it clear that the gothic scene is not just a nostalgic whine missing the "golden times" of the 1980s, but that it is damn live, progressive, and current. And you can see it for yourself on the last weekend of August.

XVI. PRAGUE GOTHIC TREFFEN - Rein (S), Empathy Test (GB), Then Comes Silence (S), Bragolin (NL), DIAF (D), Je T'Aime (F), A Dull Set, Body Of Pain
27- 2 8 . August 2021
Prague, Futurum Music Club
Admission: 590 CZK (on GoOut)
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