The city’s coolest clubs welcome the most exciting young musicians during a full week of madness. Sounds familiar? Yes, the Rakéta Festival (July 20-26) is basically the Hungarian version of Creepy Teepee or SXSW.

Some bands make their very first appearance during the week, while many of them are already well-known for their freaking-strange live shows, and a few of the acts already received praise from websites like FACT or Electronic Beats. Which bands, you wonder? What bands play what, you wanna ask? Take our guided tour and find out!

Wednesday, July 22 - 7pm: Noahstas, Shiver & Shakes, MYGL, CYST Records DJ Set @ Vittula

Shivers & Shakes is a musical duo formed in 2012 in Poznan, Poland. This romantic and spatial music is settled freely between experimental pop, rough folk, and ambient, all flavored with a noisy approach. This is a music of contrasts.

Harsh, yet soft. Intimate and intimidating at the same time. MYGL is the duo of to well-known bedroom pop artists Barna Szőke (ex-Planet55, ex-Nemjuci, the Qualitons, Hó Márton és a Jégkorszak) and Márton Hó (Hó Márton és a Jégkorszak).

Together they play repetitive, minimal pop music that you can(’t) dance to. Sounds exciting? It is. Noahstas is basically noisy sound design: rythmical noises, experimental soundscapes, and a few beats.

Thursday, July 23 - 7:25pm: Supraverzum, Buster Keaton (UK), 80 Strange Robots, Jimmy P @ Fogas Ház

Supraverzum plays “chemical-protective nintendopunk”, according to the organizers of the festival. Buster Keaton (UK), the synth-drum duo of Gábor Nagy and Csaba Németh, might as well also share that description next to the name of this historic figure of cinema history.

Their instrumentation is just as austere as Keaton’s acting, yet they’re capable of conveying a wide range of emotions, from brooding meditations to furious outbursts. 80 Strange Robots will transport you back to the golden age of Italian disco, when robots used to rule the dance floor. And if you are already there, Jimmy P from Slovakia will keep you shaking what you’ve got with his mix.

Thursday, July 23 - 7pm: Panel Surfers, Sarajevo, Flexible Juice @ BEAT ON THE BRAT

Panel Surfers is a noisy surf punk in the shadow of the blocks. Sarajevo is the master of post-coldwave boogie – bone-chillingly good! Flexible Juice is the duo of Sándor Kaszás and Erzsébet Kósa: they play something between (pop-)punk and noise rock. It is sometimes catchy, sometimes grunge-ish, but always lo-fi and full of catchy moments.

Friday, July 24 - 11pm: Mayberian Sanskülotts, Lazerpunk!, Sippor, Isle Of Man, Synus0006, Percut @ Toldi

Lazerpunk! – a retrofuturistic synthwave attack from Hungary! Think of acts like Perturbator or Carpenter Brut and you’ve got it. Sippor is an 18-year-old Hungarian bass music producer, who likes EDM too and likes to smash the dance floor into pieces.

Isle Of Man plays modern electronic music with tinkling synths like Eskmo or Gold Panda. Just lay back and enjoy it, or don’t fight it, feel it! Then the sweet, classic acid techno of Synus0006 kicks in. But don’t worry, Percut will transport you back to the land of soft, opium-den-ish soundscapes.

Friday, July 24 - 7pm: Tumo, No Eves, Kikosho, Syntax Error DJ Set @ Vittula

Tumo is into the hardcore-punk music of the ’80s and the noise-rock of the ’90s. Angry, hard-hitting, and lo-fi: it can easily break your neck. Kikosho is a drum-guitar duo that plays experimental post-metal, and No Eves is an alternative stoner smoker band.

Saturday, July 25 - 5:40pm: Mt. Kailash, Umreti Fit, Rokoko Rosé, Simicska és a Gecik, Owls Are Watching @ Gólya

Taking its name after the most sacred peak in Tibet, Mt. Kailash plays a mixture of psychedelic (prog-)rock and stoners with an organ. Umreti Fit is a yu-wave/post-punk band whose aim is to make you grab somebody, sing and bounce, go loony, and have a great time.

We like it! Rokoko Rosé is a six-piece all-girl band, which is influenced by folk and legendary Hungarian alternative bands. Románia and Simicska és a gecik are blitzkrieg-punk bands: lo-fi, aggressive, and entertaining with songs that are shorter than three minutes.

Saturday, July 25 - 7pm: Panoramic Barrier feat Sir Weirdo, Raccoon Rally, Bass-O-Matic @ BEAT ON THE BRAT

Bass-O-Matic plays drone with a bass guitar and loves experimental soundscapes. The duo of Panoramic Barrier and Sir Weirdo will present a special industrial dark-wave show. Raccoon Rally is a one-man lo-fi melancholia project.

Sunday, July 26 - 4:30pm: Dope Calypso, Kőszívű Ember Fiai, Gézakékég, My Name Is Ann!, Veszélyes Faszfej, Klusters @ A38 Ship

Dope Calypso plays raw and catchy punk ’n’ roll – they are kind of a supergroup, because the members came from bands like Haunebu or Kollaps.

Think of bands like OFF! or Pixies, and you’ve got it. My Name Is Ann! is a project of musician, performer, and journalist KnofLenka (music, sax, vocals, Nintendo, Casio keyboards), that is live accompanied by Šárka Kobzová (synths, vocal, dance) and a drummer. Gézakékég is influenced by the indie rock of the ’90s, Kőszívű Ember Fiai is by stoner-rock/doom metal acts like Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats.

Published on XpatLoop.com with the permission of We Love Budapest