Time to plan this year’s festival season! Usually, I do this in a very similar pattern every year: Mini Rock and Taubertal are planned right from the start. Then I add some festivals in Norway where my favorite Norwegian bands are playing and the remaining line-up is interesting and fun, and then I search around for festivals that happen on the weekends that aren’t filled yet and that look like they are worth checking out.

This year, everything’s a bit different, and a bit more difficult. I’ll be moving this summer, and if I do something, I do it right, and therefore I’ll move from Germany to Norway. The plan is to move around August 1st, which means that Mini Rock will be really difficult to catch, and Taubertal might be impossible as well – really sad. But then, I’m absolutely used to stress in summer! So let’s wait and see … maybe it’ll work out after all

These are the festivals that I have on my list right now – let’s see which of these I’ll actually get to see:

Bukta (Tromsø, July 17-19, 2014)

www.bukta.no

The special thing about this festival: It takes place in Tromsø, thus above the polar circle, during the time of the midnight sun. I always wanted to experience that – and this year, it looks like it will actually work out. During the last weeks, quite a few real highlights were added to the line-up: Skambankt are of course my main reason for visiting, but the Dropkick Murphys, Patti Smith, and several Norwegian newcomers like Billie Van really make it worth taking the trip up north.

Check out the line-up on bukta.no. Tickets cost 1400 NOK (about 170 Euro) for three days – which is not cheap, but pretty “normal” for Norway.

Mini Rock (Horb am Neckar, August 1+2, 2014)

www.mini-rock-festival.de

Not too big, friendly and likable, well organized – and always with a great line-up that contains both well-known names and surprises. This year, the headliners are Anti-Flag and SDP; which gives a good idea about the broad coverage of the festival. And the best part about this variety: The audience goes along with it! There are always fans in front of the stages, they are interested in what is happening, nobody complains about the “wrong” style of music, but people will just come and check out what they like and let others stand in the front if they like it better. And I think that this is mostly what characterizes the flair of the festival. Trailerpark, Maxim, and the Emil Bulls continue the mix of genres … or, to put it differently: Everybody will get to see the bands they love! And those that don’t care for the next act on the main stage can just check out the tent stage instead. Usually, there are always great bands to discover there.

Check out the full line-up here. Tickets are only 59 Euro including camping and “trash deposit” (which you’ll get back if you keep your camp site clean).

Taubertal (Rothenburg ob der Tauber, August 8-10, 2014)

www.taubertal-festival.de

If it works out for me this year, this will be my seventh Taubertal festival in a row. Why? Because it’s always awesome! The line-up is always right up my alley, the headliners are first class, and the festival grounds are arranged in a way that you can always find a spot with a good view of the stage, even if it’s really crowded. In addition, you can choose between camping and getting a hotel in the city. And either way you can always take a trip to the city center, either walking or taking the shuttle, which means that you have the free choice to start the day with breakfast at some café in town or in the festival beergarden, cooling your feet in the Tauber. Oh right, and then there’s music! This year, some of the acts are Seeed, Biffy Clyro, Casper, Sportfreunde Stiller, Ska-P, and the Subways. Plus SDP and Die Schröders – and many more, of course! The line-up itself is awesome; and if you additionally have lots of memories from previous gigs of these bands at Taubertal – The Subways after the Flood in 2011, Die Schröders on Sunday morning in 2008, Biffy Clyro as the big surprise last year – it’s hard to wait for the festival to start!

You can find the list of all announced bands here. Tickets for the whole festival are 105 Euro, or 50 Euro per day. There are also VIP tickets for 200 resp. 80 Euro. If you like your festival a bit more comfortable, these tickets are definitely worth the extra money.

Pstereo (Trondheim, August 15+16, 2014)

www.pstereo.no

THE festival in Trondheim – I’ve never been there before, because even though it is a huge festival, the line-up never really convinced me. I guess that’s mostly because the headliners are often huge American or British bands, and it’s easier and cheaper for me to see them at festivals in Germany. 😉 It’s actually the same this year – Biffy Clyro will play at Taubertal Festival as well, and Franz Ferdinand were at Rock’n’Heim last year. But of course, Skambankt are a big plus and the reason for me to NOT miss the festival this year! Oh, and of course the little detail that I will be living in Trondheim from August. 😉

Here‘s the current line-up, and tickets are 1300 NOK (about 160 Euro).

Verket (Mo i Rana, August 29+30, 2014)

www.verketfestival.no

I’ve been to Verket Festival in Mo i Rana once before, five years ago. Mo i Rana is very far up north as well, just beneath the Arctic Circle. 2009 was the first time the festival was held. In the following years, the line-up was always awesome – but Mo i Rana is a “bit” hard to get to, and without any of my favorite bands in the line-up, I wasn’t really motivated to travel up there again. This year, Skambankt will be playing at Verket; and from Trondheim, it’s only a short trip (more precisely: about 6 hours *g*) to Mo i Rana. Yay! And except for Skambankt, the other announced bands up to now are Seigmen, Morten Harket, and Satyricon, amongst others. Did I say “Yay!” already? 😉

Not all bands have been announced yet, but you can check out the current bands on www.verketfestival.no. Tickets cost between 1100 and 1500 NOK, depending on when you buy them.